I am sure you have seen these grow animals before, try turning them into creepy grow animal specimen bottles? Kids love this simple science activity and get a huge kick out of the results. These might just be inexpensive novelty items, but there is a bit of science too. Simple science experiments for young kids is a perfect way to set up a good foundation for the future.

GROW ANIMAL SPECIMEN BOTTLES FOR KIDS

We all get these grow animal novelty items from time to time and kids will have fun setting up these grow animal specimen bottles and watching them grow. We did do an alternate activity with these grow animals last year that also makes for a fun way to use these random items.

SIMPLE SUPPLIES

Grow Animals

Plastic Bottles

The trick to making these grow animals specimen bottles look a bit creepy is to use bottles a little on the small side. However it will be neat if they don’t quite fill the bottle either. Our snake is in a slightly bigger bottle. In addition, you can choose to color the water or leave it natural. You will notice that the water may get a little cloudy from the hydrogel material used.

GROW ANIMAL SPECIMEN BOTTLES SCIENCE

This may seem like a silly little activity to do with no obvious learning component. However, the substance that makes these animals grow is all about science. The hydro gel is a polymer that when wet expands and absorbs water. Just like a diaper can absorb water. So all learning is not lost. If you have a diaper handy check it out.

MAKE SURE TO CHECK OUT: Science Discovery Bottle Ideas

For the spider, I needed an even small bottle since it wasn’t very long. Since I had an 8 ounce water bottle on the counter, I decided to use it! The spider filled it out quite nicely.

A little bit creepy and a little bit cool!

EXTRA CREDIT: Empty the water out of the bottles. Do the grow animals shrink back down? Can you regrow them?

In addition to our dollar store specimen bottles, our glitter sensory bottles or calm down bottles are also fun to try and use dollar store glue.

 

 So if you receive one of these grow animals and aren’t quite sure what you can do it with it, make a grow animal specimen bottle. I bet these would be a fun decoration for a Halloween party table or a Crazy Scientist Birthday party. Most of all, they are just fun. We actually have one that’s been in a bottle for a year. It’s a zombie!