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Missy's Play Dough

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by
Missy Maxwell
• Published on
Playdough is a colorful, squishy way to express creativity and a unique way to manage overwhelming emotions through sensory play. Join Missy as she steps you through a tried and true playdough recipe.
Credit: Missy Maxwell
PBS KIDS Utah

Hello everyone. It’s Missy, guest blogger and artist, here again with an arts and crafts project. It is helpful for little hands (and brains) to experience many tactile sensations. And these experiences can build up and stimulate fine motor skills. Kids with sensory issues are often calmed by playing with certain tactile toys and objects. I thought it would be fun to create a tactile experience by making our own play dough. 

Supplies:

  • 2 C flour
  • ½ C salt
  • 2 TBSP cream of tartar
  • 2 TBSP vegetable oil
  • 1 ½ C boiling water
  • food coloring (optional)
  • large bowl
  • spoon
  • disposable gloves (optional)
  • parchment/wax paper
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Instructions:

  1. In your large bowl, mix flour, salt and cream of tartar using your spoon.
  2. Add the vegetable oil and the boiling water (I just heated mine in the microwave) and stir with your spoon until smooth and doughy.
  3. Let the dough cool.
  4. Divide your dough into balls, one for each color (I made 4 balls because I had 4 colors).
  5. Put on your gloves.
  6. Make a little depression in the top of each dough ball.
  7. Drop food coloring into the depression and knead it in. (I used liquid food coloring. 10 drops for yellow, and 20 drops for red, blue and green).
  8. Once thoroughly mixed, you are ready for some tactile play!
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Combine the ingredients as instructed
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Mix it up until smooth and doughy
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Separate dough, roll into balls, press a depression, and squeeze 10-20 drops of food coloring in each depression
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Knead and Squish the coloring into the dough

Wrap Up:

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Enjoy hours of molding and creating!

You can make a million different things with play dough as well as just… playing with it. You can make long snakes, you can make small balls, you can make pretend pizzas. Be creative and have fun!