Today I decided I wanted to make some play dough for my daughter. Play dough is an important tool in child development. Lets look at what skills it will help develop and how.
Motor Skill Development:
The manipulation of the dough will help strengthen finger and hand muscles. By kneading, poking, squeezing and pinching it gives those muscles a workout, which will later on help with simple things like writing.
Cognitive Development:
Using play dough helps a child practice using their imagination and other cognitive abilities such imitation, symbolism & problem solving. This helps the child learn more about his/her environment as he/she makes and mimics everyday objects with the play dough.
Emotional Development:
We can all get stressed, overstimulated or just in a bad mood, play dough can be a great mood changer. think of it as a stress ball, it has a calming effect which is useful for teaching anger management skills. Additionally, it may help them feel more comfortable to express themselves while their hands are busy or through pretend play.
Social Development
Using play dough can help develop your child's social skill if they are playing or sharing with other children or grown ups. It can also teach a child to share and co-operate with others.
Now here is the recipe I will be using today:
- 1 cup white flour
- 1/4 cup of salt
- 2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbsp oil
- Food coloring (add to your liking)
Mix flour, salt, and cream of tartar in a medium pot. Add water, oil and food coloring. Cook and stir continuously over medium heat. When mixture forms a ball in the pot, turn out and knead on a slightly floured surface.Let it cool & Store in airtight container or plastic bag. Rinse and repeat for more colors.
Hope you guys enjoy this and remember to keep an eye on your child, if they keep trying to eat it you may need to opt for an edible option which I will do another post about soon. Hope everyone has a great weekend!
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