Float Or Sink – a Toddler Trick for bath time

Does it float or sink is a simple waterplay activity for toddlers and preschoolers. There are many variations to this activity from where you play it to what objects you use. The favourite in our household is to play does if float or sink in the bath tub as a bath time activity. This is a great activity to get your toddler thinking and creates such fun surprised reactions, partly because it is as simple as it comes.

This toddler trick is best for older toddlers or those that sit very securely in the bath.

What you need: 

- A collection of random items gathered from around the house. Items such as crayons, plastic toys, metal toy car, cork, plastic spoon, container, crumpled up ball of aluminium foil. Options are endless. Make sure that you don’t use any items that could be breakable or a chocking hazard.

How to play:

1. Start by giving your toddler a bucket or container to grab some of their plastic toys that can go in the water. You never know what they will come back with but you can help sort out what ones are suitable for the bath once they have finished. Make sure you explain to them why they are not suitable for the bath…”this toy has batteries in it so can become very dangerous if it’s put in water” etc. While they are collecting their items you grab a few exciting ones yourself to add to the collection.

2. Run the bath and get your toddler in. Grab a toy out of the container and give it to your toddler to hold, ask them to predict whether it’s going to sink to the bottom and hit the ground or if it’s going to float on the surface like you do when you’re swimming. Continue with the remaining objects. Ask your toddler questions like is it heavy? Is it light? Is it a small object? This will get them thinking!  Do all small objects float?  Do all large objects sink?

This is a great activity to do on a regular basis with different objects each time, you will be surprised how quickly your toddler become on ‘sinking and floating’.

NOTE: Nature float or sink is another great variation to this activity if you want to get outdoors. Finding objects such as sticks, rocks, leaves, stones etc and throwing them into a nearby river, stream or in a paddling pool in your back garden is just as much fun!

Ice Balloons – a Toddler Trick for bath time or outdoors

Anything that involves ice is right up my daughter’s alley so when I stumbled upon this ice balloon idea on pinterest the other day I knew I had to give it a go! This colorful, fun sensory idea is so easy to make and sooooo much fun for your toddler. The blog that we got the idea from based it around being an outdoor activity, however we thought we would try it as a bath time trick. This way your toddler will be able to physically fell and see what happens when the ice balloons start to melt and disappear into the bath.

This toddler trick is great for those toddlers that can sit securely in the bath.

What you need:

• - Balloons (We used water balloons (small ones) as they are easier for toddlers to hold )
• - Food coloring - a number of colors (preferably vegetable based colorings)
• - Freezer to freeze them in.

How to make:

- Simply take a deflated balloon and put 1 small drop of food coloring in to it. Carefully make sure the balloon is attached to the tap properly then slowly fill with water until you have reached the desired size, be care ful not to over fill!  Tie a secure knot at the top of the balloon, then repeat this step till you reach your desired quantity.

- Freeze the balloons. I popped ours in a plastic bag just incase the balloons got stuck to the bottom of the freezer or happened to pop. We froze ours over night to be sure they were properly frozen. Once the balloons are frozen, use sissors to chop the top knot off then peel the remainder of the balloon off! This is a lot easier than I thought it would be, it just peeled off with ease so this is something your toddler can help you with.

- There are so many different things you could do with these very cool ice balloons! Bath time was at the top of our list. I ran my daughter a bath then handed her the balloons in a bowl. She loved watching and feeling the balls melt and the color spill into the bath. Talk to your toddler about what they can see and feel….As we used vegetable food coloring and very little of it (1 drop in each balloon) it did not stain the bath or my daughter! =)

This toddler trick would also be great outdoors in containers of water or in the paddling pool during the summer time.

Baby Barista – a Toddler Trick for bath time!

My toddler just loves drinking  baby-cinos (or milk-fluffies) when we find a child-friendly café.  The ones with chocolate on top or a chocolate fish on the side are a particular favourite!  So it was no real surprise that when given the chance to make a baby-cino all of her own that my toddler just jumped at it!

This one does take a bit of supervision to make sure that the baby-barrista doesn’t actually consume too much bath water!  I just love the sheer joy and pride that my toddler gets from making baby-cinos for mum and dad – we now have a baby chino plastic keep cup especially for this.

This toddler trick is best for older toddlers or those that sit very securely in the bath.

What you need:

• • Bath
• • Bubble bath
• • At least one plastic cup or mug – ideally one that looks like one mum and dad get in a café (The Salvos or an Opportunity Shop are a great source of these things and you are supporting your community as well)

How to play:

1. Run a bath with plenty of bubbles.

2. Place your toddler in the bath and set the scene; “I would really love a baby-cino shall we make one together”

3. Show your toddler how to fill the plastic cup with water from the bath and then scoop handfuls of froth onto the top.  Build it up really high if you can!

4. Then you can pretend to drink the baby-cino – getting a frothy moustache is all part of the fun.

5. You can then put the cup to one side out of sight and offer another clean one to start the game again; or, as I do, quietly rinse it out behind your toddler’s back and start again.

6. This might sound quite tame, but I always tire of playing Baby Barrista long before my toddler does.

A few more things you should think about:

· Safety is foremost.  So never leave your toddler unattended even for a second while they are in the bath.

· Don’t be tempted to use a china cup – no matter how careful you think your child will be.

· I am afraid it is inevitable they will try to sample their own creation and a bit of bathwater is likely to be consumed.   Keep a watchful eye – swapping the full cup with an empty one is another good ploy for keeping the sampling at bay.

· If you have older children who bath with your toddler, they will love  this too.  You can get your toddler making everyone a baby-cino or suggest that your older child(ren) attempt to craft something out of the bubbles to go with the drink…a flat plastic plate can be the canvas for all kinds of cupcakes,  ice creams and other concoctions.

And finally, this should be a treat – so don’t do it every night.  Check out our other Toddler Tricks for Bath Time for more great water play ideas.

Bath balloons – A Toddler Trick for Bathtime

My toddler loves balloons but they have a limited life expectancy in her hands.  This trick is a great way to get hours of fun out of a few balloons and is just as much fun in the bath, a paddling pool or even a larger pool.   Aside from basic playing with your water filled balloons you can invent all kinds of games with them including balloon races, balloon basketball and even balloon tennis if you  don’t mind a lot of water on the ground (or you!)

This toddler trick is best for toddlers that can sit securely in a bath; a bath seat could be useful.  Like any water-based activity it requires constant supervision.

What your need:

• - Water bomb balloons (we got ours from the $2 shop)
• - Tap for cold water
• - A plastic container for balloon basketball

What you do: (Note: make sure you remove the balloons from the bath before you pull the plug.)

1. Fill half-a-dozen water bomb balloons with cold water.  Don’t over fill. Try to use a variety of different colours.

2. Place your toddler in bath or pool and ‘plop’ the balloons in one-by-one (or put them all in the bath at once, with some bubbles and see how excited your toddler now is to get in the bath)Enjoy experimenting:

a. Feel the texture of the water in the balloon by squeezing.

b. Drop into the bath and watch them float up…the higher you go, the faster they pop up.

c. Create a wave behind them and move up and down the bath.Let the fun begin!

3. Once you have tried the basics, then have a go at a few games – here are a couple we came up with:

a. Whirlpool – swirl the water in a circle next to your toddler and watch the balloons circle around, seemingly chasing each other.

b. Balloon basketball.  Sink a coloured container in the end of the bath (we used a plastic bowl) so that it is easily seen in the bath.  Now get your toddler to throw the balloons to land inside the container.  This is a lot harder and wetter, than it sounds.Your balloons may last several baths.  Collect them up and keep them safely in a bowl until the next encounter.

Let us know if you come up with any other bath-balloon games in the comments section below.

Warning: Small balloons aren’t generally toddler friendly so make sure you don’t leave any unfilled balloons lying around.  Try to deter your toddler from putting the balloons near sharp objects such as their teeth and the taps!  If a balloon does break then quickly collect the skin and put out of reach.

Bath Tub Painting – a Toddler Trick for bath time

Painting with my toddler in two words – not relaxing!!!! No matter how well I “mess proof” the area we always seem to end up with paint somewhere it shouldn’t be! A friend told me about this absolutely genius idea a few months back – bath tub painting!!! Since then I haven’t looked back – I used a homemade recipe to make the paint in just a few minutes which is always a bonus! My daughter just loves it  and cleaning up is such a breeze. This activity is a great trick to get toddlers in the bath that don’t overly enjoy bath time and the paint is something you can make cheaply and easily.

This toddler trick is best for older toddlers or those that sit very securely in the bath.

What you need (this recipe makes 4 small containers of paint or recipe can be halved to make 2 containers of paint):

• - 1 cup baby bubble bath or body wash – as long as it’s clear
• - 4 tbsp cornflour
• - Few drops of food colouring (colours of your choice)
• - Small containers with lids
• - Paint brush – one out of children’s paint box is fine

How to make:

1. In a mixing bowl mix together the corn flour and bubble bath. I put the corn flour in first then added the bubble bath while simultaneously mixing. I found using this method we ended up with virtually no clumps.

2. Pour this mixture evenly into your containers.

3. Pour 2 drops of food coloring into each container and mix well (make sure you use no more than  2 drops as too much food coloring may end up staining your bath tub.

How to play:

1. Before you get your toddler into the bath – test the paints on the side of the bath tub by painting on a couple of drops and then making sure it wipes off. ( I have white tiles and grout and it washed off very easily).

2. Place the paints on the side of the bath tub in an area that they will sit securely without falling into the tub.

3. Place your toddler in the bath and get them started by showing them what to do by dipping the paint brush into the paint then painting on the side of the bath tub.

4. Give your toddler the paint brush and let them have a go! You may need to help them dip their brush into the containers of paint depending on how high your bath tub edge is.

5. While your toddler is happy painting away take the opportunity to wash their body and shampoo their hair with limited complaints!

  Note: It hasn’t stained any of the baths we have tested this idea on, however always do a small test patch to check; make sure you clean the bath immediately after “painting” as we haven’t tested the effects of leaving the paint to dry for a lengthy period.

Dessert on board your boat – a Toddler Trick for bath time.

We love bath time but some days it just can’t come fast enough!  My mum, an awesome multi-tasker, used to put my twin sister and I in the bath with our dessert.  Not only is this a fun departure from the everyday, it is a no mess way for your toddler to eat fruit and cuts down the time between dinner, bath and bedtime on those crazy ‘had enough’ nights.

 You will be surprised at how well your average plastic child’s plate will float. If you put bite sized fruit that they love to eat on it, your toddler will manage eating the contents themselves with minimal spillage.  Raisins, apricots and other dried fruit also work well and they don’t  break-up if they do get the odd dunking.  This idea works just as well in summer out in the paddling pool. Dessert on Board Your Boat is great for over summer when juicy berries and stone fruits can make quite a mess of clothes, high chair and the floor.

This toddler trick is best for older toddlers or those that sit very securely in the bath.

What you need:

• Bath or paddling pool

• A plastic plate with reasonably high sides that floats on water (good to test it out in

the kitchen sink first)

• A bowl of fruit that your toddler likes to eat -  fresh or dried – cut up into bite sized pieces

How to play:

1. Place your toddler’s favourite fruit , in a bowl, cut into bite sized pieces.  Take it into the bathroom or put it beside your paddling pool, alongside a plastic plate that floats well (preferably a bowl or a toddler’s plate with high side)

2. Run their bath like usual and get your toddler in.

3. Place the plate in the bath in front of your toddler.  Put a few pieces of fruit on-board your plate  and take the first piece off the plate and give it to them to eat.  If you make the connection between the floating plate and the yummy things on it your toddler will very quickly get the idea of eating their dessert on a boat.  You may need to keep a steadying hand on the plate in the first instance.

4. I generally don’t use bubble bath but if you do be sure to let the bubbles settle before placing your toddlers dessert in the bath – just be aware if the dessert gets a dunking it might taste a bit odd.

5. When the dessert is all gone, encourage them to have some water play with the bowl while you do the ‘washing up’ of your toddler.

A few more things you should think about:

·  Safety is foremost.  So never leave your toddler unattended even for a second while they are in the bath…particularly with food involved.  They should always be sitting upright and  an approved bath seat could be a good idea.  Never let them eat from the plate when they are lying down in the bath.

· “Dessert on board your boat” remains untested with any dessert other than fresh and dried fruit.   If you try it with other food options please let me know what else  you find works well.

·  Don’t attempt this with foods your toddler isn’t confident eating outside of the bath environment – keep it to the tried and true.

·  Be careful not to overload the plate or you will have a submarine not a boat that floats!

·  If you have older children who bath with your toddler, they will love  this too but make sure everyone has their own plate – this is most important for twins and triplets too!

And finally, this should be a treat – so don’t do it every night.

NOTE: last week we had a one-off technical issue and lost all of our Toddler Trick subscriber info – its all fixed – so please subscribe again if you want all our Toddler Tricks sent straight to your inbox! 

Milk Bottle Sprinkler – a Toddler Trick for bath time

Bath time has always been a favorite in our household however every now and again we have a fighting battle! I have always tried to make sure my daughter has fun in the bath because lets face it, it’s a once or twice a day event…and maybe even three if you had a day like I did the other day! We have had just about everything in the bath! wooden spoons, measuring cups, pots, containers, hairbrushes you name it, it has been in there! I decided it was time for me to get creative!  “A milk bottle sprinkler” your toddlers will just love it!

You will be amazed how quickly they figure out what to do with it and how it all works, my daughter loved watching the water filter through the holes at the bottom when I held the bottle up high. Towards the end she started pouring it over herself as if she was in the shower.  This idea works just as well in summer outside watering the plants with mum and dad.

This toddler trick is best for older toddlers or those that sit very securely in the bath.

What you need:

• - Empty 2 litre sized plastic milk bottle.
• - Large nail

How to Make and play

- Get an empty 2 Litre milk container, rinse it out with water making sure it is thoroughly clean.

- Get a large nail and with a bit of force and twisting puncture a hole through the bottom of the milk bottle. (repeat this until you have 15 or so holes )

- Unscrew the lid off the top (you can collect the lids as they always come in handy for arts and crafts!)

- Let your toddler fill up the bottle with water when they are in the bath and the water then will come sprinkling out the bottom – you may need to give them a helping hand to get started.

A few more things you should think about:

- Safety is foremost.  So never leave your toddler unattended even for a second while they are in the bath…They should always be sitting upright and  an approved bath seat could be a good idea.

- Make sure they don’t try too drink out of the bottle and consume too much bath water.

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