Have you ever seen a gallon-sized container of Play-Doh? Once, I worked for a program that had lots of money to spend on supplies and I was amazed to see 15 or 20 of these giant containers, all unopened, lined up in a storage closet.
As I never saw the children playing with any playdough or clay, I began to ask, “Why not?” The answers were it was too messy and the children really did not know what to do with it.
There is so much kids can learn from using playdough. It doesn’t have to cost much, the mess can be easily managed, and teaching children what to do with playdough can be fun and rewarding.
What follows is the world’s best playdough recipe. For about the cost of 5 pounds of flour, you can make lots of playdough. Five cups of flour will make enough for lots of kids to use for quite a while. You can find alum in the spices; it helps the playdough stay fresh longer, but you don’t have to add it.
Add just a drop or two of peppermint oil if you want a fresh smell. Let your children help you mix this up — that can be a learning time, also, as children find out that toy stores aren’t the only place to get funs to play with.
Playdough Ingredients
5 cups flour + 1 cup of salt + 3 cups boiling water
4 tablespoons alum + 2 tablespoons salad oil
Add food color to water if you want colorful dough
To make:
Mix all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add boiling water. Stir.
When cool, put on table and knead until thoroughly mixed.
Store in airtight containers in a cool place.
This will keep very well in covered containers such as butter bins or other small containers or plastic bags. Because this is so cheap to make, children can make things and let them air dry. Having plenty of materials to use is best for developing children’s interest and letting the save what they make provides a record of their accomplishments.
Messy activities always make moms nervous so keeping all the mess in one area is a big help. Decide where playdough will be used, like only at the kitchen table or only on the porch. Look at garage sales for large cafeteria-style trays or use cat litter pans while playing so the scraps stay in one place. Children who learn to put away their toys and projects gain some valuable self-help skills and can do this quite young, so help them to help clean up each time.
What children do with playdough is amazing. What children can learn with playdough is math, science, physics, creativity, art, the alphabet, language, plus the emotional enjoyment of the texture of the dough.
I can remember learning to make biscuits with my grandmother. I loved the feel of the dough and the kneading, the pounding, the rolling out, etc. Playdough offers the same tactile sensations as children feel the dough and move it around. Pretending to cut out biscuits is a great way to start with playdough.
Rolling pins can be made from short lengths of dowels or small cans. Cutters can be anything, such as biscuit cutters, round tin cans, oval tops from deodorant containers, and cookie cutters in many shapes.
Children usually begin clay play with mashing and slapping the clay. Rolling out balls and snakes can be the foundation for building many sculptures such as bird nests with eggs inside, people, etc. My children enjoyed making “supper” by rolling out tiny “peas” and putting them in TV dinner trays.
Coiling a long snake into a bowl shape is a basic skill used today in pottery making. An important math concept for children is learning about mass and volume. Playing with lumps and pieces of clay helps them discover that the amount of a piece of clay remains the same no matter what shape it takes. Long snakes can be formed into letters and shapes. Sculptures can be decorated by having lots of junk such as sequins, buttons, ribbons and pieces of wood.
Playdough is another activity that can be done in your kitchen even during your busy times. Our kids want our attention and interest; just being with you doing their thing as you are doing yours will create an opportunity for learning, fun, and enjoyment for everyone.
Darby Kethan has a master's degree in child development, and has experience as a social worker, educator of young children, educational consultant, and as a professional trainer for a national educational foundation providing professional development to teachers. Visit her website at darbykethan.com.
