sensory play

This bedtime calming sensory bottle is perfect for helping children fall asleep. Your child can watch the stars in the bottle be revealed from within the glitter and count them until falling asleep.

Having a comfort item such as this calming bottle can help kids who have anxiety about bedtime. Incorporating this into the nighttime routine can be good for both children and parents.

Making a Bedtime Calming Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

• plastic Voss water bottle
• 5-10 foam stars (glitter gold)
• ¼ cup holographic glitter (royal blue)
• ¼ cup glitter (royal blue)
• 1 cup hand sanitizer
• 1 cup water
• funnel
• Superglue

Directions:

1. If using a Voss water bottle, empty the bottle of water and allow the bottle to fully dry.
2. Add hand sanitizer and water to the sensory bottle using the funnel.
3. Add the foam stars (these may have to be folded in half depending on size).
4. Add both glitters to the bottle using the funnel.
5. Seal with lid with Superglue and allow the glue to dry fully (at least 15 minutes).*

*Note: I normally only Superglue the lids on sensory bottles for small children, but since this one is going into bed with your child, you should secure the lid with glue. It would be quite a mess to clean up glitter and hand sanitizer from bedding! 

Bedtime Use:

Hand your child the calming bottle when they’re having trouble going to sleep and ask them to count the stars. They will have to allow the stars to reveal themselves from the glitter in order to count them. This will keep the child focused until they fall asleep.

Some kids also just find it helpful to have something to hold onto.

Be sure that the lid is securely in place before allowing your child to sleep with this sensory bottle and for younger kids who may choke on small objects (such as the stars), only use during the day when you can supervise.

Learning Opportunities:

Sensory – Describe the sounds the calming sensory bottle makes, the feel of the bottle (is it light, heavy, etc.), what you can see when you shake the bottle, how quickly the stars fall. This bottle provides visual, tactile, and proprioceptive feedback. 

Math Skills – Count the stars, count the different size stars, and sort the stars by size.

Science Skills – Watch how the glitter moves around, falling down, swirling around and moving with the shaking. Watch how the stars reveal themselves as the glitter shifts, kind of like the stars in the night sky are revealed as the sun goes down. 

Try making the same bottle with just water or just hand sanitizer instead of hand sanitizer and water and compare and contrast how the glitter falls in each of the bottles.

Fine Motor – Getting the stars into the sensory bottle can be a challenge for those little hands. This is great fine motor skill practise for them. It is also an opportunity to problem solve and discuss what happens if you fold the stars, push them in with your fingers or just try to get them to “fall” into the bottle.

Language Skills – have kids use descriptive language to explain what the stars and glitter look like, what sizes the stars are, and what they are experiencing. They can also practise their conversation skills by asking for their sensory bottle at bedtime and talking about how it makes them feel.

Check out these other calming techniques for kids:

Calm Down Breathing for Kids Calming Lavender Playdough The Best Things to Include in a Calm Down Kit 

My oldest daughter loves Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night artwork. This starry night sensory bottle is inspired by that piece. This sensory bottle is extremely lightweight. This makes it perfect for keeping in the vehicle or in a backpack. Having easy access to a sensory bottle can help kids to stay calm when they need it. 

Starry Night Sensory Bottle:

Materials needed:

• plastic water bottle (I like the Voss ones because of the shape and the wide spout)
• 12-inch long, 3-inch wide yellow ribbon
• ½ cup Royal Blue holographic glitter
• ½ cup Royal Blue glitter
• 5-10 gold glitter foam stars, varying sizes
• funnel
• Super Glue, optional

VOSS Water BottlesRoyal Blue Holographic GlitterRoyal Blue Glitter

Directions:

1. If using a Voss water bottle, empty the bottle of water and allow the bottle to air dry.
2. Fold the ribbon and slide it into the sensory bottle.
3. Add stars (these may have to be folded in half depending on the size).
4. Add both glitters to the bottle using the funnel.
5. Replace the lid and play! (see note below)

Note: If you are intending to use this sensory bottle with small children, seal the lid with super glue before screwing the lid back on. You will need to give the super glue at least 15 minutes to dry before handing it over to a child.

Learning Objectives for the Starry Night Sensory Bottle:

Sensory – Describe the sound the bottle makes, describe the feel of the bottle (light, heavy, etc), describe what you see when you shake the bottle. This bottle provides good visual sensory input. 

Math Skills – Counting stars, counting the different size stars, sorting the stars by size.

Science Skills – Over time, watch how the glitter sticks to the side of the bottle, creating a new “painting” with every shake.Fine Motor – Getting the ribbons and stars into the sensory bottle can be a challenge for little hands. Not only will this challenge their fine motor muscles, it is also an excellent chance to problem solve and discuss what happens if you fold the ribbon, push it in with your fingers or just try to get it to “fall” into the bottle.

Language Skills – Have kids use descriptive language to explain what the ribbon, stars and glitter look like, what sizes the stars are, how long the ribbon is and what they are experiencing. Each child can practice pragmatic language for rules on how to use the sensory bottle and how to share the sensory bottle (informing, demanding, stating, and requesting).

Art Appreciation – Look together at images of the original Starry Night painting by Vincent Van Gogh. Discuss how the sensory bottle is similar and how it is different.

Check out these other sensory bottles:

Nature Sensory Bottle

Rainbow Rainfall Sensory Bottle

Ocean Sensory Bottle