I’m not sure who the original creator of this cotton ball snow cone activity is, but one thing’s for sure: it’s fun and messy.

It’s also really quick and easy to set up. In fact, the toughest part of this activity was finding the darn twisty dropper.

Now, one of my big things on Entertain Your Toddler is keeping your activity supplies in one place so that you can whip up some toddler fun in minutes anytime you need it.

And of course I was smacking my head with how today I did NOT follow my own advice. I did eventually find the twisty dropper… days later… in a random cabinet in the bathroom.

I’m not sure who is exactly to blame here. It’s probably me, but I’m sure the kids played a role somehow as well.

Back me up here.

How to Set Up a Fluffy Rainbow Snow Cone Activity

First things first, lay out one of those shower curtain liners to protect your tables or floors or whatever from all the colored water that is sure to spill everywhere.

Unless you’re outside, you lucky dog, you.

Now for the supply list:

• cotton balls
• plastic bin
• water + food coloring
• bowls and spoons
• any of the following: pipettes, turkey basters, medicine droppers, squeeze bottle, etc.

Fill a bin with cotton balls. Make your “syrup” using water and food coloring. I used all primary colors.

Now to drizzle the syrup onto the snow cones, you have a few options here:

1. Fill squeeze bottles with colored water. (Note: you’ll run out of colored water really quick with this option, so you better be ready with more.)
2. Have kids use a pipette or dropper (Nose Frieda? Just kidding) to suction colored water out of a cup or muffin tin.
3. Use a spoon to drizzle water onto snow cones.

We picked option two.

Playtime

Elena shoveled cotton balls into a bowl and drizzled them with colored water. It was fun watching the colors get soaked up by the cotton balls and mix together.

The turkey baster was too large, IMO. I would’ve liked to use our darn missing twisty dropper or at least a small pipette.

In a stroke of absolute genius, I grabbed a medicine dropper to use for round two of the snow cone making.

This was a much better size as it didn’t grab as much water as the turkey baster so I didn’t have to refill the “syrup” so often.

What We’re Learning

I’ll admit, this activity doesn’t look like much learning is taking place, but you have to remember kids start out knowing practically nothing, so every new experience teaches them something.

First off, my kid is not learning to make snow cones. I’m not trying to train her for a future career in snow cone making, though I wouldn’t be opposed to moving to Hawaii for that purpose… or any purpose, really.

What she IS learning is:

• how red and blue mix together to make purple
• blue and yellow make green
• cotton balls are absorbent, meaning they suck up water
• if you squeeze saturated cotton balls, they drip water
• there’s a limit to how much cotton balls can absorb
• there’s a limit to how much water and cotton balls a bowl can contain

Also, she’s strengthening her fine motor muscles. This is a big deal because these muscles give her the ability to hold a pencil, tie her shoelaces, and zip zippers.

Your Turn to Try This Activity

OK, now it’s your turn to get messy. Try out this activity and see if you can spot new things your child is learning.

If they seem to be particularly fixated on some part of this activity (like filling bowls over and over again until they run over), think about ways to replicate that in another activity.

Chances are, you’ve discovered a play schema that they’ll want to try over and over again.

Do you know where your turkey baster is?

The New Activity Playbook!

Looking for an organized guide of fun, easy activities to do with your toddler that also encourages their growth and development?

I’ve created a 3-month activity planner just for busy parents like you! The plan includes 65 detailed, simple, and stress-free activities including: arts and crafts, sensory play, motor skills, and STEM–all using easy-to-find supplies.

Let me help make planning activities for your toddler easy, so you can skip the stress and get straight to the fun!

CHECK IT OUT!