Mix, Stir, Fizz ... It's Time For Potion Play. How to make your own fizzy potions play tray.
- Danica - Our Playful Learning Journey
- Nov 9, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Looking for a really fun play idea? Here is an absolute winner!
Want to make some fun potions with your child/children without a fancy potion kit? Keep reading to find out what we used.
Potion play is so much fun! Both my girls enjoy it and this play idea kept them playing for ages while they poured, mixed, observed the bubbles, stirred and did it all again.
I set up this potion play tray on an afternoon after school.
*IMPORTANT: Always actively supervise water play and never leave a child alone with water play. Play idea recommended for ages 3+
Always actively supervise all potion play.
What we used:
Mini play saucepans
Plastic jugs
Fresh flowers
Water - both uncoloured and coloured pink with a few drops of pink food colouring and little sprinkle of eco glitter for sparkles (our eco glitter is from The Creative Toy Shop*)
Bicarb soda
White vinegar
Twisty droppers and paint pipettes (both from The Creative Toy Shop*)
Silicone ice cube trays
* not affiliate links
This is what the invitation to play and make potions looked like before the girls began playing.
Potion Playtime:
To play I added bicarb soda to the ice cube trays for the girls. I added some plain water in jugs. I ended up adding a couple of drops of food colouring to the water to make coloured potions and a sprinkle of eco glitter.
This video shows what the tray looked like before the potion mixing began.
We also had some vinegar in a little jug, which the girls used twisty droppers to put drops of vinegar onto the bicarb soda to create a fizzing reaction.
The really enjoyed this and had fun making the little bubbles and mixing all the coloured water together to make potions.
The potions made the best fizzing noises!
Extending the play:
To make this invitation to play last longer, we added in some panda animal figurines and little fairies.
The sparkly pink water made a fun small world to play in!
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Tips for clean up:
The easiest way to clean up a tray like this is to set this type of activity up outside so you can just tip it out and hose the tray out. (Just make sure you don't tip this mixture on your grass or garden as it won't be good for it!)
If you have set this tray up inside and it's not too heavy, you can carefully carry it to the sink. Tip out the mixture and give the tray/container a wash.
Our tray was bigger so I needed to scoop some of the potion mixture into the jugs and use the squeezy droppers to collect some of it. This is a great to get the kids involved with helping to clean it up in a fun way! Once we had removed some of the potion, the tray could be carried to the sink to tip the rest out.
Setting this type of activity up on a waterproof mat or some towels is also a good idea to help catch any accidental spills.
Have you tried potion play before?
Yes! It is so much fun!
Not yet, but would like to.
Yes, but only with a bought potion
Yes - homemade potions!
You can vote for more than one answer.
Thank you for reading this blog post! I hope you found some inspiration for creating some magical potion play for the little ones in your life.
Making homemade potions doesn't need to be hard! With a few ingredients that you probably already have in your cupboard and some water you are ready to make and miz your own potions. Add in a touch of eco glitter for some extra sparkle!
You might also like to read these blog posts: Magical Potion Mixing: Fun outside play idea for kids or Flower Soup and Tea: A Pretty Water Sensory Play Idea for Kids.
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Until next time .... have fun learning in a playful way!
Danica
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