Ocean in A Jar – Kids DIY Project
Have fun learning about the Ocean & more with this easy Ocean in A Jar Craft project. A fun diy to celebrate Shark Week or a take away for an ocean party.
My kids love doing fun projects over the Summer. I love doing them too. Not only do we usually learn something, but it is just nice spending quality time with them. Today I sat down with Audrey and made this Ocean in a Jar. We are getting ready for Shark Week, so we are learning about all things ocean.
You will need
You can use an empty water bottle, but we had empty pickle jars. I love to reuse those when possible.
- Empty & Clean clear Jar or Bottle with Lid
- Water
- Vegetable or Baby Oil
- Water
- Blue Food Coloring
- Seashells (optional)
- glitter (optional)
How to Make an Ocean in a Jar
We filled our jar about 2/3 of the way full with water. Then we added a few drops of blue food coloring until we got it just the right shade.
Next, we carefully plopped in our seashells and then filled the jar the rest of the way with oil. Make sure you screw the lid on as tightly as possible. You do not want any leaks.
Our ocean was pretty cool as is, but we are girls, and girls love glitter…am I right?! So we opened our ocean back up and sprinkled in some gold glitter.
As you move the jar from side to side, it creates wave-like motions on the inside because the oil & water don’t mix.
Educational
This is an excellent way to throw in some learning with that summer fun! Let your kids learn more about Why oil & water don’t mix! Here is a link to Chemistry for kids that has some super info.
This indeed kept her fascinated for a while. She loved seeing that the glitter stayed mostly in the oil. She loves her Ocean in a jar so much; it’s on display in her room. AND…the big kids, may or may not have asked for their ocean in a jar. Hmmm…guess you are never too big to do a craft project with mom 😉
This was a huge hit that didn’t cost us anything. A WINNER in my book.
This sounds like a great project. I think I would add some beach sand with the shells to give it an even more authentic look.