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DIY: Play Dough

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My play dough making days have taught me three things:
-I don’t like the cooked kind.  I always burn it or it burns me.
-No recipe calls for enough flour.  Why is that?
-Things that are going to be ruined by children should not call for weird/expensive ingredients

Couldn’t find a recipe that fit my requirements, so I invented my own.  Makes great mold-able play dough (apparently also fun to eat-why child, why???) that lasts for quite a long time, especially when kept primarily in the fridge.  And the best part is that it is made up completely of items already found in your kitchen (alum? really?!? who has that just lying around?).

The BEST Play Dough

Ingredients:
1/4 cup salt
1 1/4 cup flour (amount of flour may vary slightly depending on altitude)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 T vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
food coloring

Combine the flour and salt in a mixing bowl.    Set aside

Boil water in microwave. Remove from microwave once it has started to boil (I realize you guys aren’t idiots, I just wanted to be clear).  Add baking soda, vegetable oil and food coloring to water.  I am generous with the food coloring.  I like the colors to be dark.  Let the water cool down enough that you can touch it.  If you don’t let it cool, your play dough will end up grainy-believe me.

Add the water mixture to the flour and salt combination.  Stir/knead adding more flour as needed until it isn’t sticking to your hands anymore.  Let the dough cool completely. Play time!

Store in Tupperware or be eco friendly and store in old cottage cheese/sour cream containers.  Lasts longer in refrigerator.

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Have you read?

Sensory Fun and Learning with Ice Cream Inspired Activities

When it’s hot outside it’s fun to do any kinds of activities that involve ice, water or anything cold. Check out my water and ice activities here, and read on for sensory and science experiments using and inspired by ice cream, and maybe grab a sweet treat after you’re finished. 

In the Playroom has a bunch of ice cream inspired STEM challenges that would be great for older kids. These include things like designing an ice cream cone holder that will hold cones upright, making the highest stack of “scoops” (using cotton balls) and making a cover that can keep ice cream from melting so quickly. The challenges and printable pages kids can use as they work on their experiments individually or in teams are included in a free download. 

This ice cream water table from Happy Toddler Playtime doesn’t use real ice cream, but you could try chilling the shaving cream for the fake ice cream base (though cans of shaving cream should not be frozen). Or just throw some ice cubes in there while you play. 

You could also make fluffy ice cream slime (not edible) with this recipe from STEAMsational Family and use that in a sensory tray or table if you like. 

Happy Toddler Playtime also has an ice cream cone volcano idea, which is the classic baking soda and vinegar project with an ice cream twist. 

Turn building an ice cream cone into a lesson about sharing with this idea from Extremely Good Parenting. Read the book Should I Share My Ice Cream? and then make paper into an ice cream ball you can share with someone else (or just make for fun). 

Learn about states of matter and sequencing with a melting Popsicle experiment (you could also do with ice cream) from Mrs. Jones’ Creation Station. This is a good one if you have a sunny spot on the playground or in the yard where kids can observe and time the melting of a frozen treat, ideally while eating their own. There’s also a free printable for kids to record their observations if they didn’t get too sticky. 

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