Parent Tip: How to Make Coloured Playdough

There are a variety of benefits achieved from playdough play including fine motor skill development as the playdough is great for strengthening muscle tone in little hands – squishing, squashing, rolling, flattening playdough all develops the children's muscles and encourage prewriting and other skills such as cutting with a scissors, using a tweezers, holding a pencil and more. Children can also work their stress out through their hands, so playdough is not only loads of fun, but can be another useful way to help your children to release stress.

You will need the following materials to be able to make your own playdough at home:

• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup salt
• 1 tablespoon cream of tartar
• food colouring
• 1 cup flour
• saucepan
• measuring spoon and cup

Step-by-step directions to make your own coloured playdough:

1. In your saucepan, combine; water, oil, salt, cream of tartar, and food colouring.
2. Heat until warm.
3. Remove from heat and add flour.
4. Stir, then knead until smooth. The cream of tartar makes this dough last six (6) months or longer. Dust the covered countertop with a little flour and turn out the dough on top of the flour. Knead the play dough for about ten (10) minutes to make it smooth and soft. Add a little more flour if your dough still feels sticky after 10 minutes, and continue kneading until the playdough no longer feels sticky.
5. Store the completed cooled dough in an airtight container or a ziplock bag.
6. To restore the softness to playdough, try adding water one drop at a time and working it in to moisten the playdough. You can also try wrapping the playdough in a damp paper towel, returning it to the container and replacing the cover. Let it sit overnight.

AMouseWithAHouse Toy Store has many different toys where playdough can be used together or as part of the play scenario and enhance the creative play possibilities. Try these NIC – Mini Cookie Cutter Set – 6 Assorted Animals. Children delight in making their favourite biscuits with these cute and practical mini cookie cutters. Includes elephant horse sitting rabbit pig butterfly and flying bird. To keep playdough from sticking to the cutter dip in flour before cutting. These cutters measure between 3 – 6 cm. Part of the Nic – Gluckskafer range of high quality kitchen play products – suitable for imaginative play at home pre-schools and schools.