Playdough for Sensory Play

Playdough is one of my favorite and most basic sensory toys. It's cheap and easy to make and it can stimulate multiple senses at the same time. Depending on the recipe you use, a child can engage the sense of smell, taste, touch, and feel. They can work their fine motor skills by rolling, tearing, squashing or stretching the dough to creating objects.

Playdough is a wonderful resource that we make use of before and after handwriting lessons.

First of all, I use Handwriting Without Tears for Caibry's handwriting work (see my sidebar for the link. This is a great program that works well for us, but sometimes his hand needs to warm up before handling the pencil. A few squeezes now and then seem to be all it takes.

If he completes his work well then I reward him with a little more creative playdough time.

One of my favorite play dough resources is SparkleBox. They provide playdough mats that are free for you to download and laminate. The mats are hard to describe. Check it out though. I'm sure you'll find them great educational support that guide children to use playdough to add, subtract, form letters, support storytelling adventures and simply create.

Here are some basic recipes I've come across and tried with success:

Rubbery Playdough

2 c. baking soda

1 1/2 c. water

1 c. cornstarch

Mix with a fork until smooth. Boil over medium heat until thick. Spoon onto wax paper to cool.

Alum Playdough

2 c. flour

1 c. salt

2 tbs alum

1 c. water

2 tbs oil

liquid food coloring

Mix liquid ingredients into dry ingredients and stir. Squeeze and knead the dough. Add more flour if it seems sticky. Store in the fridge.

Just Like the Real Thing

1 c. flour

1 c. water

1 tbs oil

1 tbs powdered alum

1/2 c. salt

2 tbs vanilla

food coloring

Mix all dry ingredients. Add water and oil. Cover over medium heat, stirring constantly until reaching the consistency of mashed potatoes. Remove from heat and add vanilla and food coloring. Divide into balls and work in color by kneading the dough.

My Favorite Scented Doughs:

Gingerbread Playdough

5 1/2 c. flour

2 c. salt

8 tsp cream of tartar

3/4 c. oil

4 c. water

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp allspice

Mix together, cover over medium low heat and stir until lumps disappear. Knead dough on a floured surface until it reaches the desired consistency. Add a few drops of red and green food coloring to get a brown color.

Kool-Aid Playdough

2 1/2 -3c. flour

2 c. boiling water

1 pkg. any flavor Kool-aid

3 Tbsp alum

Mix ingredients. Knead on a floured surface. Add more flour if needed.

Jello Playdough

1 c. flour

1/2 c. salt

1c. water

1 Tbsp oil

2 tsp cream of tartar

1 (3-1/2 0z.) pkg. unsweetened jello

Mix ingredients and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mashed potato consistency. Let cool. Knead on floured surface. Do not store until completely cooled.

Peppermint Playdough

2 c. water

2 c. flour

1 c. salt

4 tsp cream of tartar

4 Tbsp oil

4 Tbsp peppermint extract

red food coloring

red glitter

Mix together. Cook over medium- low and stir until lumps disappear. Knead dough. Add the glitter while kneading.

Lemon Playdough

2 c. water

2 c. flour

1 c. salt

4 tsp cream of tartar

4 Tbsp oil

4 Tbsp lemon extract

yellow food coloring

gold glitter.

Mix together. Cook over medium-low heat. Stir until lumps disappear. Knead and add glitter while kneading.

Textured Playdough:

Oatmeal playdough

1 c. flour

2 c. oatmeal

1 c. water

Gradually add water to flour and oatmeal. Knead until mixed. The texture is what makes this dough unique. You could also add small amounts of cornmeal or coffee grounds to enhance the texture experience.

Edible Playdough:

Peanut Butter/ Graham Cracker Playdough

Equal parts Peanut Butter, Marshmallow cream and graham crackers

Crunch graham crackers into crumbs. Mix peanut butter and marshmallow cream. Roll in crumbs.

Peanut Butter Playdough

1 (18 oz.) jar creamy peanut butter

6 Tbsp honey

3/4 c. non-fat dry milk

Mix together. Add more dry milk until it's the right consistency. Knead with fingers.

Girl Scout Peanut Butter Playdough

1 c. peanut butter

1/2 c. honey

2 c. powdered sugar

Mix using your hands. It should feel soft and pliable.

Smooth Peanut Butter Playdough

2 c. smooth peanut butter

2 c. rolled oats

2 c. dried milk

2/3 c. honey

Combine and mix.

Cream Cheese Playdough

8 oz. pkg cream cheese

1/2 c. non-fat dry milk

1 Tbsp honey

crackers or bread slices (for eating dough)

Combine ingredients and mold on wax paper. Decorate with edible objects or place on crackers for a healthy and fun snack. I do not recommend storing this playdough.

Frosting Playdough

1 can frosting (any flavor)

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 c. creamy peanut butter

Mix ingredients to desired consistency. Store in the refrigerator in an air tight container.

Chocolate Playdough

8 oz. semisweet chocolate

1/4 c. + 1 Tbsp light corn syrup

Melt chocolate in a double boiler. Stir chocolate until smooth, then add corn syrup. Stir until combined. Refrigerate until firm. Knead.

*Unless otherwise specified, store all playdough in an air tight container. I usually store my non-edible doughs in ziplock snackbags. I fill several of them. Each bag is the perfect amount for one child to use. I only give one bag/ child that way if the dough is too messy to save I still have more stored. I always place these ziplock bags inside of a medium sized air tight crafting box.

Many of kids that struggle with sensory issues have opted to avoid gluten. That makes playdough a little more challenging. This blogger explains ways to adapt playdough to make it gluten-free and provides her recipe for doing so. Another gluten-free option can be found here. She uses cream of tarter in place of the more expensive gluten free flour. Here is a link to a great post about scented playdoughs. I love the cute containers she uses to store her playdough.

I'm attaching a MckLinky to this post. If you have any great recipes for playdough or creative ideas for using playdough this is your opportunity to share them. Please blog about your recipe linking back to my blog. Then visit this post again and leave your direct link to the relevant playdough themed post. This is my first MckLinky so please be patient with me. Have fun!