Children love playing with playdough. Although it is a simple messy play, you may find it surprising that playdough has a wide range of developmental, learning, and sensory benefits for kids. Therefore playdough is a must in almost every early childhood classroom. Its versatility makes playdough one of those items that should be a part of every childhood. But store-bought playdough may have many chemicals that may cause some harm to their gentle akin. So, to help you out Day-care La Habra CA caregivers have shared 4 homemade playdough recipes below.

Coloured Playdough :

Materials :

• 1 cup of water
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• Half cup salt
• One tablespoon cream of tartar
• Food coloring of your choice
• A big mixing bowl
• 1 cup flour

Directions :

• Put water, oil, salt, cream of tartar, and food coloring in the mixing bowl and heat it until warm.
• Once it is warm, remove it from the heat and add flour.
• Stir all the ingredients properly and knead it until it becomes a soft dough. The cream of tartar works as a preservative here which can make this dough last for 6 months or longer. So, resist the temptation to omit this ingredient if you don't have it handy.
• You can store this dough in an airtight container or a ziplock freezer bag.

Kool-Aid Playdough :

Materials :

• Half cup salt
• Two cups of water
• 1 large mixing bowl
• Food coloring or kool-aid powder for coloring
• Two cups sifted flour
• 2 tablespoons alum

Directions :

• Put salt and water in the mixing bowl and boil the water until the salt gets dissolved.
• Then, remove from heat and red food coloring and kool-aid power.
• Add oil, flour, and alum.
• Knead the entire thing properly until you get a smooth dough
• As this dough will last at least for 2 months or longer, Day-care La Habra CA caregivers store it in an airtight jar and refrigerate.

Basic Uncooked Playdough :

Materials :

• Mixing bowl
• 1 cup of cold water
• 1 cup of salt
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• Tempera paint or food coloring
• 3 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Directions :

• In the mixing bowl, put water, salt, oil, and enough tempera paint for food coloring to make a bright color.
• Gradually add flour and cornstarch until the mixture reaches the consistency of bread dough.
• Your Playdough is ready and you can cover it in a tight jar and store it.

Oatmeal Playdough :

Materials :

• One cup flour
• Water as required
• 2 cups oatmeal
• Large mixing bowl

Directions :

• Combine all ingredients in a bowl, mix and knead the ingredients until you get a smooth dough.
• This playdough is not intended to be eaten but if any child by chance puts it in his mouth, it will not harm in any way.
• You can store this Playdough in an airtight jar and refrigerate.
• In Day-care La Habra CA, children make this playdough independently. However, it does not last as long as cooked Playdough.

So, if you want your children to play with harmless playdough, then encourage them to use homemade playdough.