We made some Autumn themed sensory bottles for Molly the other day. You see, Autumn is the best! The beautiful tones of oranges, yellows and reds, collecting conkers, the crunching of leaves as you walk. Unfortunately Molly doesn’t get to experience the crunching sensation of the leaves, which is the best part I think. Because any time we have let her play in the leaves, or look at conkers, she just tries to put them in her mouth! Yum! So, I decided to make her some Autumn themed Sensory bottles. That way, she gets to explore the autumn leaves, without trying to consume them!
“What IS a sensory bottle?”
Sensory bottles are clear plastic or glass bottles that are filled with a variety of materials that allow children to explore different elements in a mess-free environment. The possibilities are endless!
This has to be one of the simplest yet most effective activities for a little one. These bottles kept Molly amused for ages. She takes them around with her – too cute! The first bottle has leaves in it. We went outside and collected a handful of leaves. I showed her each one and she would touch it and smile before trying to grab it and eat it.
The second bottle we filled with conkers. Molly loves to play with it and shake it to make a great sound. It’s also fun to roll around and watch the conkers move and fall from one side to the other. She decided that this bottle made the best noise and would sing as she shook it!
Our last bottle is filled with pine cones . There aren’t any near us so we borrowed some of Liam’s mum’s scented pine cones from the bowl on the dining room table! Just like the conkers this bottle was a hit because it made a noise! She would say ‘ta’ and pass it to one of us, before saying ‘ta’ again asking for it back.
Sensory bottles are really quick and easy to make, so you can put together an interesting selection for your child to explore. All you need is a clean plastic bottle with a well-fitting lid, some super glue to make sure the fastening is secure, and some interesting contents to go in your bottle. You can include all sorts of lovely items that are normally off-limits for very young children. Think about what would be interesting to shake and hear inside the bottle, or what would be interesting to roll around and look at. You can make them themed to the time of year like we did with our Autumnal bottles!
