Color Play on the Mirror

Science Color Play with Rainbow Colored Sensory Bottles

Color play on the mirror is a wonderful simple science and sensory activity for young children. Exploring reflections is really neat and exciting for kids! We have used this mirror before for exploring reflections and light and for exploring sparkly holiday items. There are so many ways to explore mirrors! It is surely a classic science activity to try!

Mirror play develops great language!

What is a mirror? What is reflection? What is light? Are there other surfaces that reflect? We looked around the house and he named quite a few including the heart on my silver necklace! His definition of reflection is all about the light bouncing and creating the same image. Here’s more on the physics of mirrors and reflection. You can even grab a flashlight to test out lights on mirrors like we did with our light reflection activity. Fascinating hands-on, visual sensory play too!

Color Play Set Up

We enjoy repeating similar experiments to reinforce key concepts. Hands on activities for color play are our favorite! I love playful science just for that purpose. This time we mixed it up by adding homemade rainbow sensory bottles, colored gems, and color paddles

Supplies Needed:

Mirror {ours is from our half bath wall} You can certainly pick one up that is also shatterproof.
VOSS water bottles {our favorite but any will work}
Decorative gems {we used aquarium gems as they are cheaper!}
Color Paddles
Water
Food Coloring
Funnel
Glitter
Clear Glue

Please note: Mirrors can break! Please supervise your child closely and model how to play appropriately. I stayed with my son at all times while he played with the mirror.

Quick Rainbow Sensory Bottles

Sensory bottles or calm down bottles are simple to make. We used 1/2 bottle of cheap clear glue for each one, but you can use up to a whole bottle depending on how long you want the glitter to swirl around. Add food coloring which is a great color mixing activity along with your glitter. Cap tightly and shake! Awesome visual sensory play!

Color Mirror Play

What fun for all of us! I enjoyed playing too! Joining your child is a nice way to start conversation about what your child is experiencing. Ask questions! Wonder out loud about what will happen if…. Your child is listening and watching you. Set up an easy invitation to explore color play on a mirror!

Test mixing colors with the color paddles and the sensory bottles. It’s a great visual learning activity for hands on color play! The light coming in from the nearby window made everything sparkle and shine even more! Grab an old CD if you have one handy!

Let your child experiment freely with the objects. Maybe he or she is particularly interested with one item. The calming, glittering sensory bottles are awesome to watch and shake! This mirror play is all about exploration! Enjoy his or her curiosity before he or she moves on to something else. Enjoy the play too!