Home-Made Play Dough Poke Pasta and Count

Have you ever made no-cook home-made play dough? The process is so easy and the end-product is so much better than any store-bought version. And the best part is that by making it yourself, you know exactly what is going in it, and the process of making it is so satisfying! If you have little ones, you can make it TASTE-SAFE, by skipping essential oils, glycerine, and shaving foam!

Play dough is such an amazing and safe sensory and fine motor tool to engage the little hands! And, you can customize it in so many ways, such as adding food coloring, natural dyes and flavors, or essential oils. Kneading it can also be quite therapeutical! I hope you will love my easy no-cook play dough recipe with a special ingredient! And it should take you just five minutes to make! Did I mention, it can last for up to six months with proper storage? Read the tips below.

What you will need to make the best ever no-cook play dough:

• 1 cup of white all-purpose flour (measure accurately and tap any air bubbles from flour)
• 1/4 cup of table salt
• 2 tablespoons of cream of tartar, also known as potassium bitartrate, which is the powdered form of tartaric acid. This organic acid is found naturally in many plants and also formed during the winemaking process. Cream of tartar helps stabilize whipped egg whites, prevents sugar from crystallizing and acts as a leavening agent for baked goods. If you do not have it, you can substitute it by adding 1 tsp of vinegar plus 1 tsp of salt.
• 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil (olive oil or coconut oil can work too)
  
• optional: 1 teaspoon of glycerine for shine, however, play dough won’t be taste-safe any more
• 1/2 cup of boiling water. *If making dyed play dough, add 1/4 teaspoon of food coloring (or gel food coloring) to the water BEFORE mixing it with other ingredients!
  
• optional: 3-5 tablespoons (squirts) of shaving foam if you are Ok with dough NOT being taste-safe
• optional: essential oils (remember, when you add scented oils, play dough is NO longer taste-safe)

HOW: in a bowl combine flour, salt and cream of tartar. Mix well and add the oil. Then, add boiling water (having coloring already in it if dyeing your dough). Mix everything well and add shaving foam. Keep kneading with your hands until the mixture is no longer sticky.

TASTE-SAFE FLAVORED: skip essential oils, glycerine, and shaving foam, and add spices, chocolate powder or flower petals to boiling water (use a blender for flower petals or chamomile to help color the dough). If you do not have a blender, soak petals in water for a while and crush them with a pestle or stir/smoosh around with a fork.

Store your play dough in an air-tight container or a zip-lock bag (wrapped in a cellophane or food wrap), preferably in a fridge. It can last for up to six months!

TIP: if, after use or storage, play dough becomes dry or crumbly, add a little more oil and/or more shaving foam. You can download a PDF with details here.

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There are so many ways your child can enjoy play dough! By simply kneading the dough, they are exercising muscles of the hand and developing gross motor strength. By rolling, pulling and pinching play dough, your little one is developing hand-eye coordination and dexterity. Really little ones, starting at eight months, will enjoy simply poking, pressing and squeezing play dough. Older children can be invited to make a letter or a number, which is a great way to learn the formation of the alphabet or numerals. Here, Adrian made numbers one through three. You can make all nine numbers and offer your child to trace them as if they were writing them. This activity is very similar to using Montessori Sandpaper Numbers.

If you have older children, use play dough to reinforce numeral to quantity association by offering manipulatives. Offer dried pasta (penne or spaghetti) or drinking straws or even pencils to poke each number with the exact quantity that numeral represents. Explain to your child that a numeral is a written symbol representing the actual quantity, so we use manipulates or counters (penne pasta) represent that. This activity is perfect for ages two to three years old. Please, always supervise your children while they are learning through play. You can see this post on Instagram here.

Or see here Kid’s snack plate Farm Animals Invitation to Play.

Leave a comment, which one is your favorite?