Science Sensory Bottles for Density Exploration with Crayons

As a parent, finding ways to enjoy science and fun at home can be very rewarding. This science experiment with sensory bottles gives your child the opportunity to explore the concept of density through colorful crayons, water bottles, and a little mysterious materials.

Plus, they have the opportunity to simply learn the art of observation and problem-solving for themselves, which is a win in my book.

Here's how to make your own Science Sensory bottles.

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Science Sensory Bottle Experiment

I admit I could look at this picture above with the floating crayons for some time, it totally captivates my scientific brain wondering. Some thoughts that go through my mind are:

Do the colored pencil buttons move?

Are the bubbles moving?

How fast are they moving?

How did you get there?

Will that little drop fall down on top?

What is this brand made of?

Are these questions going through your thoughts right now? This is exactly why you need to create this scientific sensory bottle experiment with your child too.

Create opportunities that encourage your child to ask questions and hypothesize

My kids literally spent hours creating the bottles and researching how they work. The use of clear corn syrup was a first for us in our house, which also led to some great nutrition talks.

Here's what you need to make your own.

Materials needed

Science Sensory Bottles Instructions

Gather your materials with the kids who are just a few things and get started. I recommend filling the sensory science bottle in the following order to get the most out of this science experiment.

1. Have your child fill an empty bottle with water. Leave some air space for the water to move.

2. Then add some of the colored pencil buttons in the water bottle. Screw the lid back on firmly to avoid spills and leaks.

3. With the water bottle and colored pencil buttons, discover what you can do with the buttons. Ask questions as your child explores their scientific mind bottle ...

Are they floating?

Are they sinking?

Can you control where to go?

Do you hear something

What is the density of the liquid?

4th Now fill the 2nd empty bottle with your child with corn syrup. This alone is a super fun experience as it drips into the empty bottle in a small smooth stream. My children also loved the air bubbles that it created. Make sure the corn syrup has some air space in which to move.

5. Add a couple of colored pencil buttons into the corn syrup container. Close the container tightly to avoid spillage or leakage. Ask the same questions again from step 3. Is the density different from water?

6th Shake the sensory science bottle filled with corn syrup to add air bubbles. Are the answers to the questions the same?

7th Now it's time to see what happens when you add half water and half corn syrup. Visually, the corn syrup pouring into the water is quite a place. Go super slow so it will take longer. Take a break and give your child time to observe the contrast in density.

8th. Add the colored pencil buttons to the corn syrup and water mixture and see what happens.

9. Shake the combined science bottle to see what happens to the corn syrup and water mixture. Make sure your child really sees what is happening. Ask the same questions again from step 2.

TIP: A great opportunity to talk about sugary drinks here and how what you see is not always what is really in our drinks and what to look out for to avoid the ingredients

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS:

I admit I was quite surprised at some of the reactions we got when we varied the density of the liquids and my kids were totally fascinated. This science experiment with sensory bottles gives your child so many ways to observe and explore the density of liquids.

Do the colored pencils float, sink or stay the same? The answer might surprise you!

BONUS IDEAS: You can add extra liquids to new bottles to see how they react too. The first thing I would try would be vegetable oil. Or try a different material like metal, stone, or glass to see if the responses are the same.

If you're looking for more ideas like this science activity for kids. Grab a copy of our book 100 Fun and Easy Educational Games For Kids!

Want More Crayon Themed Sensory Bottle FUN?

Try this math game with the same bottles and colored pencil buttons.

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