Pool Noodle Bath Activity: Water Sensory Exploration

This pool noodle bath kicks up the bath time fun while giving kids the chance to explore water, patterns and color.

Water sensory activities are a terrific way for kids to explore their world as well as help fill up their sensory diet needs.

While there are many great sensory ideas out there, I’m a firm believer in doing things that are simple.  Pool noodles can be incredibly versatile.

If you haven’t seen my pool noodle lightsabers, go check them out. They’re loads of fun and can be a positive way for your kids to get their energy out.

Want more sensory ideas? Be sure to check out our other fun sensory activities for kids!

 

Water Sensory Bath with Pool Noodles

The next time you’re at the dollar store or Target, be sure to grab some pool noodles.

I recommend you purchase the thinner pool noodles rather than the super thick ones.

They’re easier to hold and manipulate.

The first thing to do to set up for a pool noodle bath is to cut two pool noodles.

Cutting them with scissors can be difficult. I grabbed out bread knife, which cut right through the noodle and made even slices.

I cut the noodle into one-inch pieces.

Kids just love exploring how the noodles float.

Let your child manipulate them the way he or she wants to.

Even my older son wanted to hang out in the bath to get some play time.

By letting my kid play around, they got inventive.

They even put a couple of the pieces over the water spout, having fun reverse stacking the pieces to see how many they could get on there.

Then we tried to aim the water through the opening of the noodle.

It was much more difficult than I expected, but the boys loved getting splashed.

Learn Colors with Pool Noodles

If you have little ones, using two colors of pool noodles will allow them to work on learning their colors.

You can easily have them separate the pieces by color.

Because my kiddos are a bit older, we decided to make out own patterns.

Sometimes they created their own.

Other times I had them mimic whatever pattern I made.

The next night I had some fun and added in a green pool noodle.

When they asked where the green pieces had come from, I told them that yellow and blue make green.

That’s how those new pieces must have shown up.

They giggled and said I was being silly.

But a small part of them wondered if the yellow and blue hadn’t multiplied during the night to make green.

Explore Patterns with Pool Noodles

At the end of the bath, we decided to see how high a tower we could create.

We first tried to see how many we could stack with them floating on the water.

But that wasn’t tall enough!

So my kiddo went to work on stacking as many as he could hold.

Sensory baths don’t have to be a lot of work for you and are always a ton of fun for your child.

Grab a couple of pool noodles and enjoy them again and again.

When you’re done, just dry them out in the bath and store them for another day!

For another pool noodle idea, check out my DIY Pool Noddle Lightsabers!