Play Dough

If you have an aspiring cook in your home (that also likes to play with their food!)  why not whip up some play dough with them?   This is a great way to practice their measuring and they will LOVE it.   This is the best recipe I've found...please share if you have one that you love.    


cook.
Play Dough 
*2 cups of plain flour
*4 tablespoons of 'cream of tartar'
*2 tablespoons of cooking oil (I've also heard of people using baby oil) 
*1 cup of salt
*2 cups of boiling water
*Food Coloring OR unsweetened Kool Aid


Directions
1) Put in a mixing bowl and stir! 
2) It looks like it's not going to work at first, but hang in there and place it on a table and knead (rocking back and forth with the heels of your hands).   The parent should knead first until you feel it's cool enough for your kids to try out.   
3) Have fun with this!  You can add glitter, sand and/or spices and flavorings (pumpkin, vanilla and peppermint are best)


grow. (taken from teacherresources.com)

• Make playdough alphabet letters or numbers - children fill thealphabet stencils / number stencils with playdough...
• Use the playdough to make 2d and 3d shapes...
• Make up lots of small playdough balls - how many playdough ballsfill up different small containers...(eg..cups, bowls etc)
• Make lots of playdough sausages - braid 2 or 3 sausages together.
• Provide lots of different textured materials for children to press into the playdough and uncover the patterns (eg. sandpaper, corderouy, rope, lace,
• Find different shaped lids and 'around the house' objects for children to press into the playdough and uncover different shapes..
• Make faces from playdough and make them express different feelings..
• Different playdough colour each week - gather playdough utensils in that colour also.
• Children stand coloured popsticks into the playdough to form patterning by colour - also great for early addition games and activities - stand 5 red popsticks together - stand 3 yellow popsticks together - how many altogether...

read.

I intentionally left this last.  Depending on how you want to make your play dough you can hand select your story.   For example if you want to read about pumpkins, add pumpkin spice.  If you want to read about fairies/princesses you or outer space you can add glitter and so on and so forth.  Above all else just have fun!