Bottles of Discovery and Inquiry

Discovery bottles are a wonderful way to encourage the development of observational and inquiry skills. I discovered these little gems from a Dr. Jean workshop several years ago. There is no limit to the age that enjoys using these little bottles of wonder. They are fun to make and fairly inexpensive to construct. You can try the ones we made, or be creative and discover some new bottles. I've been busy redoing the bottles and will add updated photos.


Here are some nice links with many ideas!

Dr. Jean's Discovery Bottles
KinderFriends Discovery Bottles
Teachers.net Posting for Discovery Bottles
Mrs. Little's Bottles
Sally's Bottles
This site actually has packets for sale to fill empty bottles. There are some interesting ideas here.


Basic Materials:
A variety of clear, plastic bottles (water, 16oz soda, peanut butter, mayonnaise, etc.)
Hot glue gun or good glue to seal the lids to the bottles. (This will help insure that wonderful, inquisitive minds don’t get unduly carried away!)
Some mediums to try:
Water
Baby Oil
Cooking Oil
Clear, Liquid Soap
Clear Karo Syrup
Salt
Sand

The following are the ones I have made and found the children to truly enjoy. An added benefit is that they are very soothing when behaviors get to the frustration level.

Wave Bottle
Fill half of the bottle with baby oil.
Add enough water to fill the bottle 3/4 of the way.
Add blue food coloring, and seal the lid with glue.
As you turn the bottle on its side, the waves roll gently.
Add a plastic duck or boat to roll with the waves.

Glitter Bottle
Fill a bottle 1/3-1/2 full with colored glitter.
Add water to the top of the bottle and seal the lid with glue.
Shake and see what happens.

Down By the Sea
Add small shells and any sea themed items to a bottle.
Fill with sand. (The kind you can by for sandboxes is great!)
The children rotate to discover the things hidden in the sand.
You can tell them the number of items and they count to find them.

Relaxation Bottle
Add a small package of colored confetti or small beads to the bottom of a bottle.
Fill the bottle with Karo Syrup.
Watch the glitter float and flutter as you gently turn the bottle.
(If you use beads the children will enjoy seeing how long it takes all the beads to reach the top or count the number of beads in the bottle.)

Magnetic Bottle
Add magnetic objects to a bottle, and fill the bottle with salt or sand.
Attach a bar, horseshoe or magnetic wand to the outside of the bottle with string, twine or yarn.
Use the magnet to find what is hiding under the sand.

Mud Bottle
This one is S-O simple but one of the favorites!
Fill a bottle 1/4 full with good garden soil.
Add enough water to fill the bottle to 1/2 of its capacity.
Shake and watch the layers settle.
Try different types of doil so the children can do some comparing.

Bubble Bottle
Fill a bottle 1/3 full with water.
Add a few squirts of liquid dish soap. Also, include a few drops of your favorite food coloring.

Treasure Hunt
1 clean plastic jar with lid (such as a peanut butter jar)
Small seeded bird seed (finch, canary or parakeet)
Fill the jar half full of bird seed. Add whatever small items you can find, such as a screw, jingle bell, rubber band, piece of macaroni, button, needle, bead, screw, paper clip, penny, marble, pop tab, etc. Put 20 items in the jar (more or less to your linking).
Fill with bird seed, leaving a space at the top for the seed to move around.
Keep a list of the items you put into the jar and have the children try to find the listed items. OR…have them tell what 20 items are in the jar.

Here’s the cute poem that accompanies this jar:
Some pirates got it all mixed up
And did things wrong way 'round.
They put the treasure in a bottle
And buried the map in the ground!

Their treasure was some silly stuff
Like pennies, screws and beads.
Then dear old Polly Parrot
Added all her extra seeds!

So find the twenty items here
No two are quite the same.
Don't open up the bottle though
As that would break the game!