Frozen Ice and Sand Comets

We love to learn about space! When learning about what comets are really made of, we decided to make our own. This fun experiment with sand and ice turned out to be a great sensory project.

  1. Ages: 0 - 8

  2. 2+ hours

  3. Super messy

  4. Grownup needed

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Materials you'll need

Step-by-step tutorial

  • Step 1

    After learning that comets are truly large balls of ice and gritty dirt-like sand, we got out our winter gloves and set to work making our own.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 1

  • Step 2

    We used a small bin of sand with a scoop.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 2

  • Step 3

    Next, we prepared a large bowl of crushed ice.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 3

  • Step 4

    The kids placed a pile of ice, topped by sand on a tray.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 4

  • Step 5

    They experimented with adding water to get the mixture to stick together a bit. They moved the mixture around with their gloved hands as well to get it good and mixed up.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 5

  • Step 6

    Next, they scooped the mixture into a small bowl.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 6

  • Step 7

    They added more water to make a nice soup. Then we put the bowls in the freezer for a couple of hours.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 7

  • Final result!

    When the mixture had frozen solid, we dipped the bottom of the bowl into warm water to loosen our comet, then flipped it over onto our tray. Here is our finished comet. We took them outside and threw them off our second story deck to demonstrate what happens when a comet crashes onto a planet. Smashing them onto the patio below was a fun sensory experience, too.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 8

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