Have you ever wanted to make play dough with students at school, but can only find directions that use hot water or cooking? This is a “recipe” for disaster when working with students in the classroom. You can use my homemade play dough recipe no cook that works perfectly in the classroom. I love using dough in my STEM classroom because you can use it to address so many standards and topics in a meaningful, engaging way for your students.
Why dough in the classroom?
I love making dough with my students for several reasons. It is engaging for students, it provides opportunities for teaching several different topics, it is affordable, and it is FUN!
It is Engaging
Making play dough with students is one of those magical unicorn lessons, where every single student is on task and students are learning without even realizing it. We all could use a few more of those in our lives!
Opportunity to Teach
With dough, there are so many topics that I can teach in different subject areas. While we are mixing the dough we can learn:
Science – Solids/Liquids, Properties
Art – Color mixing
After we make the play dough we can use it to continue learning in different ways:
Language Arts – building characters and then using adjectives to describe what we have built. Students can also use dough to form letters or words
Math – Use play dough as a math manipulative to show different math concepts
You might enjoy my Monster Dough Activity Kit to help you teach these topics in your own classroom.
It is High Impact and Low Cost
This project is a high impact lesson for students and relatively low cost for teachers. It is also a way to involve parents. They are usually VERY happy to donate items, especially if they are ones they can find in their pantry.
It is FUN!
I am one of those teachers that think FUN is one of the most important things we can do for students to help them build a love of learning. This lesson will be one of those that students will remember for YEARS to come.
If you use this no cook salt play dough recipe, please tag me on instagram or tik tok to share the results!
Play Dough Recipe No Cook
Play Dough Recipe (No Cook)
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup salt
- 2 tsp. cream of tartar
- 1/2 tbsp. oil
- 1/3 cup water
- food coloring
Instructions
- Start with your gallon storage bag. Pour your flour, salt, and cream of tartar into the bag.
- Seal bag completely. Mix ingredients by gently shaking and pressing with your hands.
- Open bag and add water, oil, and food coloring.
- Seal bag completely. Mix ingredients by gently massaging bag with your hands.
- **Mixing will take quite a while, especially if you are using cold water. Once it becomes less sticky, you can take out of the bag and continue to work the dough. If it is still too sticky, then you can add a touch of flour. You may need up to 1/2 cup of water.
Notes
You might enjoy my Monster Dough Activity Kit to help you teach these topics in your own classroom while students create their own MONSTERS!
