Create Beautiful Sensory Wands from Repurposed Bubble Wands!
By: Knowledge Crates
As part of our preschool and elementary homeschool weather units, we discovered a super fun and GORGEOUS activity that transformed our empty bubble wands into beautiful sensory wands! Here’s how we made these captivating sensory wands, perfect for fostering creativity, exploration, and imaginative play.
Why Sensory Wands?
Sensory wands are FUN to make!
Sensory wands are awesome tools for engaging children’s senses and developing fine motor skills.
The process of creating and exploring these wands allows kids to practice hand-eye coordination, creativity, and patience.
Repurposing something familiar into a whole new toy opens up worlds of imaginative play.
The soothing visual effect of watching the beads, glitter, and confetti float through the water creates a calming sensory experience perfect for calm-down time.
Materials You’ll Need
Our weather unit crates come packed with all the essentials for this activity, making it super convenient! If you’d like to recreate this on your own, here’s a list of what you’ll need:
Empty bubble wands: You can use any shape or size, but longer tubes work best for the visual effect.
Confetti/sequins: Pick shapes or colors that your child loves—stars, moons, or weather-themed pieces like raindrops.
Glitter: Add some sparkle to the wand for extra magic! Choose different colors to make it even more eye-catching.
UV color-changing beads: These are a fantastic way to tie in the weather theme, as the beads change color when exposed to sunlight.
Rainbow beads: These add a pop of color and excitement as they float through the wand.
Clear glue: The glue thickens the water, making the contents move slowly and creating a mesmerizing (and relaxing!) effect.
Water: Fill the rest of the wand with water to complete the sensory experience.
How to Make Your Sensory Wands
1. Set Up Your Workspace: Gather all your materials and set up a workspace, preferably outdoors or over a surface that can be easily cleaned. This is a great opportunity to let your child take the lead in organizing their materials and choosing what they want to add to their wand.
2. Choose Your Filler Items: Allow your child to select the beads, glitter, and confetti they want to add. This decision-making process is valuable for developing independence and personal expression. Encourage them to think about how the colors and textures will look once they’re floating inside the wand.
3. Fill the Wand: Carefully add the chosen items into the empty bubble wand. This step can be a bit challenging for little hands, but it’s excellent practice for fine motor skills. My kids loved picking out the beads and watching them drop into the tube one by one. You might need to help with trickier pieces (like the confetti) or use a funnel for easier filling.
4. Add Clear Glue: Once the wand is filled with the sensory items, add a generous amount of clear glue. This step is crucial, as the glue slows down the movement of the items, creating a calming effect. The more glue you add, the slower the items will move. We filled ours about 1/4 way with clear glue. If you prefer a faster-moving effect, add less glue and more water.
5. Fill the Rest with Water: After adding the glue, fill the wand the rest of the way with water. Be sure to leave a tiny bit of space at the top to prevent spills. Use a small pitcher or measuring cup to pour the water carefully and avoid overflowing.
6. Seal and Test: Once the wand is filled, tightly seal the cap. Test it gently by flipping the wand upside down to make sure everything stays inside. You can even hot glue or super glue the cap for extra security if you’re worried about spills.
Variations and Extensions
One of the best things about sensory wands is that you can customize them in countless ways! Here are some fun variations to try:
Seasonal Sensory Wands: Make sensory wands that match the season! For fall, use orange and brown beads, leaf confetti, and gold glitter. In winter, go for blue and silver glitter with snowflake confetti. This is a great way to integrate seasonal themes into playtime.
Nature-Themed Wands: Incorporate tiny flower petals, small shells, or even sand into the wand for a nature-inspired sensory experience. You can discuss the different textures and where these items come from in nature.
Calming Wands for Quiet Time: If you want to create a sensory wand specifically for calming or quiet time, stick to cool colors like blues, greens, and purples with soft, slow-moving items like feather confetti. These can become a useful tool for moments when your child needs to relax or refocus.
Glow-in-the-Dark Sensory Wands: Add glow-in-the-dark stars or UV-reactive beads for a sensory wand that changes in different light settings. This is a great extension of the weather unit theme, as you can explain how UV light from the sun affects the beads.
Open-Ended Play and Imaginative Fun
After creating their wands, my kids quickly turned them into “magic wands,” running around the yard casting spells on each other. It’s amazing to see how something as simple as a sensory wand can spark so much imaginative play! They became wizards, superheroes, and even supervillains, using their wands as freeze rays, laser shooters, and more.
This spontaneous playtime is what makes open-ended toys like sensory wands so valuable—they can be whatever your child imagines. Whether it’s using them as magic wands, making up weather-themed games, or even turning them into musical instruments by tapping them, these wands offer limitless possibilities for play.
Why I Love This Activity
This activity might have been my personal favorite from our weather unit! The sensory wands are not only visually stunning, but they also provide a wonderful opportunity for sensory exploration, fine motor skill development, and imaginative play. Watching my kids engage so deeply in creating and playing with their wands was such a joy! Plus, it gave me some much-needed time to unwind and tend to my garden—a win-win for everyone!
Tips for Success
Be Patient with the Process: Let your kids take their time when filling the wands. It’s all part of the sensory experience, and the more involved they are, the more invested they’ll be in playing with the finished product.
Encourage Exploration: Ask open-ended questions like, "What do you think will happen if we add more glitter?" or "What kind of magic spell does your wand create?" These questions can spark conversations and deepen the imaginative experience.
Store Sensory Wands Safely: If you plan to reuse them often, store the wands in a safe spot to prevent leaks or breakage.
If you’re looking for a fun, hands-on project that captivates kids' attention and encourages imaginative play, I highly recommend trying out these sensory wands! They’re easy to make, visually captivating, and provide endless opportunities for creative expression. Plus, they’re a beautiful addition to any collection of outdoor toys, perfect for turning ordinary days into magical adventures.
My son plays with his paracord kit every day since we got it. He's learning so much and staying occupied with this and I couldn't be more pleased. Thank you!
This will be the 3rd year we’ve ordered this special box and while each year has been great the customizations of this year’s box is fantastic! They’ve thought of everything including add on kits, a fantastic guidebook to help and extra ideas including recipes, other activities and so much more. Thank you so much for putting all the time and effort into this to make this time of year so magical!!!
