Have you heard of it? Neither had I—and I thought I'd heard of everything kid-art related! A friend introduced me to the recipe, and I knew my three-year-old would love it. The consistency of the dough is lovely to feel and hold. It can be powdery like flour one moment, and moldable (like damp sand) the next. This brought HOURS of fun to my home, and maybe it'll do the same for yours!

Materials:

• flour
• oil

• We started off with 4 cups of flour and 1/2 cup of oil, because the original recipe is an 8:1 ratio.

Instructions

1. Mix with your hands for about five minutes. That’s it!

My daughter took the mountain-making and oil-mixing job very seriously. We mixed the dough with our hands for about five minutes, until it held together when we squeezed it. We could still see some oil lumps in the dough, but it didn’t have an adverse effect. The original recipe called for baby oil, but canola worked beautifully for us. However, my friend did mention the lovely smell of the baby oil, so we added a healthy dose of lavender oil drops (found at our health food store) to scent our batch. Heavenly!

I find it fascinating to sit back and observe how my kids explore new-to-them materials. The first thing my daughter made was a wall.

Then she crafted the dough into a bakery and soup cafe. These silicone molds are wondrous for activities like this.

She enjoyed picking up and squeezing small handfuls of dough. The texture was phenomenal.



To learn more about the benefits of sensory play, visit Sensory Play and Early Child Development.