The Chaos and the Clutter

sensory play

Nativity Sensory Bottle Snow Globe

By

Is it weird to call a sensory bottle “beautiful”?! Because I really think this one is. The soft colours combined with the calming falling snow make this Nativity Sensory Bottle Snow Globe so pretty.

Sometimes parents can assume that the holidays are a time when kids don’t need as much sensory input because there are so many other things going on, but the opposite is actually true. With the change in routine and all the hubbub, children actually need more regular and varied sensory play to help them manage emotions and mitigate stress. We also use our Christmas Calm Down Kit for this purpose. clear bottle filled with clear liquid, falling snow, and the nativity icons with text that reads "Nativity Sensory Bottle"

I love this Nativity Sensory Bottle as a holiday activity. It highlights the reason for the season. It also creates kind of a snow globe effect because of the snowflakes and glitter. And watching that fall helps kids (or adults) to regulate their breathing and feel more calm.

Nativity Sensory Bottle Snow Globe:

Supplies needed:

Directions:

  1. Fill a plastic bottle about halfway with clear dish soap.
  2. Drop in some glitter.
  3. Add some of the snowflake buttons.
  4. Drop in all the people (buttons) that belong in the nativity scene.
  5. Fill the remaining space with water and screw on the lid.
  6. I suggest that you super glue the lid in place to prevent kids from opening the bottle.

Even if the lid is glued in place, determined kids can get it off and this contains small parts, so adult supervision is required when kids are playing with this.

Sensory Opportunities:

This sensory activity engages both the tactile, visual, and proprioceptive sensory systems. Sensory play is important for development, regulating emotions and behaviour, language development, and so much more.You can also play a game where as you tell or read the Christmas story, your child can find each character in the story as they are talked about. This is a great way to increase their interest and attention to the story. It allows them to participate and engage.

You may also be interested in these Christmas activities:

O Holy Night Nativity Sensory Bin

Nativity Chalk Silhouette

Time Capsule Family Ornament

Football Mini Sensory Bottle

By

We love sensory bottles and usually make them in either the regular size or even the large one, but lately we’ve discovered these cute mini bottles. They’re great for bringing with you or putting into your child’s backpack. This football mini sensory bottle can be an effective small calm down tool for kids.

toy football in the background with a small bottle filled with gold and brown glitter and small footballs with text that reads "Football Mini Sensory Bottle"This would be a good sensory bottle for football season, Thanksgiving, the Super Bowl, or just for a sports fan. One of the things I like about it is that it can be hard to come up with sensory play ideas that boys are interested in. That’s not to say that some girls won’t also like this! But football is certainly an interest that many boys share.

You can even customize the colours of this football sensory bottle to show your support for your favourite team! This could be a professional team, collage, or even school team. You could even take it with you to cheer on your team at games.

Football Mini Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

  • mini bottle (we used these plastic test tube treat containers)
  • clear dish soap
  • mini football beads
  • sequins (choose a colour for your favourite team)
  • glitter (choose the colours of your favourite team!)
  • optional: hot glue

Directions:

  1. Pour clear dish soap into a mini bottle until it’s about half full.
  2. Drop in some mini football beads.
  3. Add in sequins and glitter.
  4. If there’s any room left in the bottle, fill the the top with water.
  5. Replace the lid. If using with small children, you can secure the lid with hot glue.

With this or any other sensory play activity, adult supervision is recommended. Even with the lid secured, it can be opened by determined kids or when the glue gets old and the bottle contains small parts that could be a choking hazard.

With its tiny size, this mini calm down bottle is great for bringing anywhere. You can tuck it into the seat pocket of the vehicle, put it in your child’s backpack, or include it in their calm down kit.

This cute little bottle engages both the visual and tactile sensory systems. Because the glitter and sequins stay suspended in the dish soap and fall slowly as it is turned, this can also serve as a calm down bottle. Children can watch the glitter slowly fall as they focus on regulating their breathing. It’s surprisingly effective.

Check out these other sensory bottles for kids:

Thanksgiving Sensory Bottle

Glow in the Dark Sensory Bottle

Bugs Sensory Bottle

Thanksgiving Sensory Bottle

By

It’s easy to create a Thanksgiving sensory bottle for your child. You’ll capture the holiday as well as the fall season all in one bottle. I love the colours at this time of year. I think that’s one of the reasons that I find this bottle so pretty.

bottle filled with clear liquid and red, orange and yellow glitter turkeys next to an orange gourd with text that reads "Thanksgiving Sensory Bottle"A sensory bottle can help kids self-regulate. The calm down type are particularly effective and this is one of those. Kids can watch the glitter and confetti slowly drop and as they focus on that, their breathing begins to regulate. It’s like magic!

Thanksgiving Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

  • plastic bottle or empty plastic water bottle
  • 5 oz. bottle of Elmer’s clear school Glue
  • warm water
  • approximately 1 Tbsp. glitter and Thanksgiving confetti
  • optional: glass beads in clear, yellow, or orange
  • optional: hot glue

Directions:

  1. Empty the bottle of glue into bottle.
  2. Fill the empty glue bottle about half full with warm water and reseal with the lid. Shake well to combine the remaining glue with the water. Pour into the bottle with glue and shake to combine.
  3. Add the glitter and Thanksgiving confetti into the glue mixture.
  4. Drop in a few glass beads if you want.
  5. Seal the jar and shake well. If the glitter or confetti do not move easily, add more warm water. If the glitter and confetti moves too quickly, add additional glue. You’ll achieve more of a calm down bottle effect if there is more glue.
  6. When the contents of the bottle move according to your preference, seal the bottle.
  7. Hot glue the lid closed to avoid spills.

As with all sensory activities, adult supervision should be used at all times.

I like to add the glass beads myself. I like the way they create an auditory component. Because they are heavier, they drop to the bottom right away and create a “plunk” sound. This activity provides visual, tactile, and proprioceptive sensory input and if using the glass beads, auditory sensory input as well.

Looking for more great sensory ideas? Join for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

You might also like these Thanksgiving activities:

Thanksgiving Sensory Bin

Christmas Tree Sensory Bottle

By

The holidays can be a challenging time for kids. They are off schedule and the excitement can be too much for some kids. Enter the simple calm down bottle. This easy Christmas tree sensory bottle can be an effective calm down tool for kids.

bottle filled with clear liquid and floating red and green tree confetti and glitter with green pine near and text that reads "Christmas Tree Sensory Bottle"You can include this sensory bottle in your child’s Christmas Calm Down Kit. As the glitter and confetti fall slowly through the bottle, watching it creates a calming effect. Adding more glue slows the rate at which it falls.

Christmas Tree Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

  • plastic sensory bottle or empty water bottle
  • 5 oz. bottle clear Elmer’s school glue (or more if you want the glitter and confetti to fall more slowly)
  • warm water
  • 1 Tbsp. glitter and Christmas tree confetti
  • optional: hot glue and/or holiday duct tape

Directions:

  1. Empty the bottle of glue into the plastic bottle.
  2. Fill the empty glue bottle about half full with warm water and place the lid back on. Shake well to combine the remaining glue with the water.
  3. Pour into the sensory bottle, place the lid on that and shake to combine.
  4. Add the glitter in the colour of your choice and holiday confetti into the glue mixture.
  5. Reseal the jar and shake well. If the glitter or confetti does not move easily, add more warm water. If the glitter or confetti moves through the liquid too quickly, add additional glue. To create a calm down effect, you’ll want it to move slowly through the bottle.
  6. If younger kids will be playing with it, secure the lid with hot glue.
  7. If desired, cover the lid with seasonal duct tape.

Adult supervision should be used with this or any other sensory play activity.

You will also be interested in checking these out:

Christmas Calm Down Kit for Kids

Nativity Sensory Bottle

Melted Snowman Sensory Bottle

I-Spy Christmas Sensory Bag

Googly Eye Monster Slime

By

I was attempting to create a Halloween slime, but I’m not very good at scary things, so in the end, I decided that a Monster Slime was about as scary as it was going to get. Apparently, it doesn’t look like a very scary monster at that because one of my daughters took to calling it the Mike Wazowski Slime!

So ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I present to you, Mike Wazowski Monster Slime!plop of green slime with googly eyes on polka dot table with text that reads "Googly Eyed Monster Slime"

How to Make Monster Slime:

Supplies needed:

  • 5 oz. bottle Elmer’s clear school glue
  • ½ cup water
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • 1 Tbsp. contact solution
  • lime green acrylic paint – you could use another colour if you prefer
  • green fine glitter
  • googly eyes

Wiggle Eyes Multi-PackWiggle Eyes Multi-PackWiggle Eyes Multi-PackElmer's Clear School Glue, 5 oz.Elmer’s Clear School Glue, 5 oz.Elmer's Clear School Glue, 5 oz.Equate Saline SolutionEquate Saline SolutionEquate Saline SolutionAcrylic Paint Lime GreenAcrylic Paint Lime GreenAcrylic Paint Lime Green

Directions:

  1. Pour the entire 5 oz. bottle of clear glue in a bowl.
  2. Add in ½ cup of water.
  3. Add in ½ tsp. of baking soda and stir.
  4. Squirt in some acrylic paint until you achieve the shade of your liking. Stir well.
  5. Sprinkle in some green glitter and stir.
  6. Add in lots of googly eyes. You can use a variety of sizes.
  7. Mix in 1 Tbsp. of contact solution. The slime will instantly begin to form.
  8. At this point, it will be sticky. Don’t worry. Just keep stirring the solution in the bowl until it starts to form.
  9. Knead the slime until it is no longer sticky.
  10. Store it in an airtight container when you’re not playing with it.

This monster slime is cute for using at Halloween parties or even giving as a party favour. You can change the colour by changing the colour of the paint used. Using coloured googly eyes will also change the look of it, so there are many possibilities.

Sensory and Learning Opportunities:

Mixing and kneading this slime while making the recipe provides proprioceptive sensory feedback.

The tactile, visual, and proprioceptive sensory systems are all engaged while playing with this Monster Slime. Pulling, pressing, stretching, squeezing, and shaping the slime also helps develop coordination and motor skills.

Check out some of these other Halloween slimes:

Halloween Striped Slime

Creepy Spider Web Slime

Halloween Sensory Game

Frozen Inspired Elsa Microwave Playdough

By

When I first started making playdough for my kids (because we all know that homemade playdough is so much better than store bought!), my arm would get sore from all that stirring on the stovetop. Things have come a long way since then. I now make most of my playdough using my KitchenAid mixer, so no more sore arms. But I recently discovered microwave playdough. This could be a game changer. light blue dough pressed down with white, silver, and blue sprinkles and text reads "Elsa microwave playdough"This quick and easy taste safe microwave playdough recipe includes a variation in case you want to make it without cream of tartar. With all the buzz about the new Frozen movie, we’ve been on a bit of an Elsa kick when it comes to our sensory play like our Frozen Inspired Elsa Slime or our cool Frozen Inspired Sensory Bin.

Homemade Microwave Playdough Recipe:

Microwave Playdough Ingredients:

This Frozen Inspired Elsa Playdough recipe can be doubled if you’re making this for preschool, a classroom, or a large group. Directions:

    1. Start by adding your flour, salt, oil, cream of tarter OR lemon juice, and water to a large, microwave safe mixing bowl.
    2. Stir until it is well combined.
    3. Microwave for one minute and stir really well.
    4. Repeat two more times, microwaving one minute each time.
    5. Allow to cool.
    6. Add in food colouring until you get your desired colour. Knead dough well.
    7. Add in the edible sprinkles. Knead again.
    8. Let the kids play!

When you’re not playing with this dough, be sure to store it in an airtight container.

If you’re more of a visual learner, I’ve included a microwave playdough video below.

Note: Even though this recipe is taste safe, it is not safe for children to consume large quantities of salt at one time. Adult supervision is required.

Sensory Play and Learning Opportunities:

Have your child help with the stirring and kneading when making the playdough. This provides visual, tactile, and proprioceptive sensory feedback.

Stretching and rolling and squeezing and squishing and pinching and pressing all are great sensory play actions. Playing with playdough engages not only your child’s senses, but also their imagination. This type of preschool play is also good for developing fine motor skills and coordination.

Are you looking for other easy sensory play recipes? Join us for a free five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Check out some of our most popular playdough recipes:

Peppermint Scented Playdough

Snow PlaydoughSnow Playdough and invitation to play

Calming Lavender Scented Playdough