Pschiiit Sensory Calm-Down Bottle for Children

The shoes will not go on, the tower has fallen over, and the voice is rising. Those are the minutes this bottle is made for. Handmade by Ambre & Sens and inspired by Montessori education, the Pschiiit Sensory Calm-Down Bottle for Children is a small object an adult offers when a feeling gets too big: something to hold and to settle on while the storm blows through.

What the Pschiiit bottle is for when feelings boil over

In the middle of a tantrum, words do not get through. Explaining, reasoning and asking questions all come too early. What helps is something simple to do with the hands and the eyes, and a grown-up who stays close without saying much.

That is the role of the bottle. You sit down beside your child, hold it out, and wait. When the breathing has slowed, the conversation can start: "You were cross because we had to leave the park." Ambre & Sens describes it as taming emotional storms, and the image is a good one: you do not stop a storm, you wait it out together.

It is one tool among several for learning to name emotions, next to a picture book about feelings, a cuddle or a few minutes of quiet. As with all Montessori educational toys, the adult offers and the child decides to take it: the calming down is their own work.

Introduce it on a good day

The mistake we see most often is bringing the bottle out for the first time in the middle of a meltdown. An unfamiliar object handed over at the worst moment is usually pushed away.

Show it when everyone is relaxed. Let your child handle it, decide together where it lives, and say what it is for: "This is your bottle for when things feel too much." A few days later, when the next storm comes, it is already theirs.

Keep it an offer, never an order. "Would your bottle help?" works; "Go and get your bottle" turns it into a punishment, and it will stay on the shelf.

Twelve colours, a surprise shade or a set of 6 or 12

The single bottle comes in twelve colours:

• black, white, brown and gold;
• blue, dark blue and sea green;
• light pink, raspberry pink and purple;
• orange and yellow.

There is no right or wrong shade, so let the child choose: a bottle picked by its owner is far more likely to be used. With brothers and sisters, a different colour each saves an argument at exactly the wrong time. If you have no preference, or the bottle is a gift, the "Random Colour" option leaves the choice to us.

The set of 6 suits a large family, a childminder or a home where you want one bottle per room. The set of 12 gives a class or a nursery group its own shelf of sensory play bottles, enough for several children to use one at the same moment.

Where to keep it: calm corner, classroom, car

At home. A calm corner does not need much: a cushion, one or two books and the bottle on a low shelf, always in the same spot, at a height the child can reach alone.

In class. Put the bottles in the quiet area and agree a simple rule with the group: anyone can go and take one, and it goes back in its place afterwards.

On the move. At 130 g a bottle weighs little in a bag or a car door pocket, which is useful for the tired journey home at the end of the day.

What a calm-down bottle does not do

It does not treat anything, it does not switch a tantrum off, and it does not replace you. It is a support for a child who is learning, with an adult nearby, to get through a strong emotion. Some days it will help within a minute; other days it will be ignored, and that is fine. For quieter play at other times, our sensory toys for kids are a good place to look.

Your questions about the Pschiiit bottle

What is a calm-down bottle for?

It gives a child something to hold and focus on during anger, frustration or tears, so that calm can return before any talking starts. It is used with an adult close by.

Can I choose the colour of my bottle?

Yes. Twelve colours are available for a single bottle, from black and white to gold, sea green and raspberry pink. You can also select "Random Colour" and let us pick.

Is it sold individually or in sets?

Both. You can order one bottle, a set of 6 or a set of 12.

Who makes the Pschiiit bottle?

It is made by hand by Ambre & Sens, with an approach inspired by Montessori education.

Specifications

• Maker: Ambre & Sens, handmade
• Options: 1 bottle in a choice of 12 colours, 1 bottle in a random colour, set of 6, set of 12
• Weight: 130 g (0.13 kg)
• Guarantee: 2 years