nature Sensory Bottle

• A location with different colored flowers and weeds
• Empty water bottle with cap
• Seltzer (or any water with bubbles)

I LOVED doing this activity with both of my kids. We suited up and went out to the backyard. Dandelions are in full force in New England so I knew we'd be able to find those and some lilies that are growing in our back garden. I gave Lincoln the job of holding and filling the bottle with different colors. We started with bark, got some grass, then moved onto flowers. The entire time he was gathering items, we described them, grouped them by their similarities, and identified characteristics. All in all, we found brown, green, yellow, white, purple, blue, and orange items. 

After we gathered all of our flowers and nature items, I added seltzer water and sealed the top. Lincoln shook it up and most of the flowers floated while the bark stayed at the bottom of the bottle. When Lincoln was done exploring, it was Layla's turn. While she couldn't participate in the gathering of items since she is immobile, she loved playing with the bottle. I would shake it up and hand it to her. She was rolling it around, when it would roll out of reach she'd crawl to get it. The kids both played together with the bottle. 

1. Outdoor sensory experience
2. Practice with color identification
3. Grouping items by similar characteristics
4. Fine and gross motor skills (especially for baby!)
5. An understanding of the world around them