Play dough Elephant

Did you know that play dough is a great toy to encourage children development? They have a fun time squeezing, squashing, and pushing the interesting dough. What is even more exciting is that there is no need to spend a lot of money on this great toy. Here is a recipe for home made play dough for parents to use!

2 cups flour
1 cup salt
2 cups water
2 tsp. cream of tartar
2 Tbs cooking oil
Food coloring


Stir all the ingredients together over medium heat until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan. Then, knead the warm dough and store in a plastic bag. After the mixture cools, let the kids play!

One fun activity that parents can do with their children is to encourage them to make different shapes. A child's first three shapes are usually snake, ball, and pancake shapes. Try making an elephant with just these three shapes. Start with two balls, one for the head and one for the body. Next, make two pancake shapes to make the ears. Next, make two snake shapes for the trunk and the tail. Finally, make four fat snakes for the legs. Put them all together and you get this!


See how many animals or objects you can make out of play dough with those three shapes. Have fun teaching your child about texture, animals, and play!