Sensory Bottles

I mentioned on a previous post that I was working on making sensory bottles for my pre-k and 1st grade classes. This set of bottles that I have finished will be used with both classes.I love sensory bottles. There are so many different things that you can do with them and you can make them for a wide variety of themes. Plus, you can put items in them that you may not always be able to leave sitting out in your classroom for students to freely touch.

With my pre-k class, they are used for observing and comparing/contrasting. They are available in the science center for students to use and it's a great way for students to work on verbal skills and vocabulary when they are describing what they see and hear. Plus they can explore the bottles by moving them all around, shaking them, putting them upside down, seeing if they are magnetic, etc. I also like to ask students to describe what they think the items would feel like if they could touch them based on what they see and hear.

With the first grade class they are getting multiple uses. They were first used during the magnetic unit when we made predictions as to whether the sensory bottles would attract (vocabulary word!) magnets. Then students had the opportunity to explore the bottles using magnets to see if they were attracted. The sensory bottles will also be used for writing activities for students to write about what they observe in the bottles and to make charts comparing/contrasting different bottles.

buttons (some are magnetic which made for a fun discussion about this bottle) and pom poms

feathers and beads

paperclips and pipe cleaners (both are magnetic)

Next set of sensory bottles that I'm working on: fall theme to go along with my month long fall/apples/pumpkins unit with my pre-k class.

Have you made sensory bottles before? What did you put in them (I'm always looking for new ideas)?