Easy Homemade Playdough: How to Make and Free Printable Recipe
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This easy homemade playdough recipe is a frugal and fun way to provide your kids with super cool hands-on activities.
With only a few ingredients and a bit of work, you'll soon have a vibrant variety of playdough colors to play with and enjoy.
Find out my tips and tricks for making this DIY playdough and get this free printable recipe so you can quickly and easily join all the fun with your kids!
Homemade Playdough Can Turn Frowns Upside Down
Need a quick and easy ways to turn a bad day around?
Or maybe you'd like some frugal ways to enjoy homeschool fun activities with your kids?
Perhaps you want to inspire creativity in your kids and create custom playdough colors for learning fun and beyond?
Well, you're going to LOVE this easy homeschool playdough recipe!
DIY playdough has been one of my top secrets for making learning fun for my boys.
My mom (a retired preschool and Kindergarten teacher) passed down her favorite recipe for making playdough at home. As soon as my oldest was old enough to play with it (and not shove it in his mouth), I made our first batch. And we had a bunch of fun playing with it for weeks to come.
That's what's so cool about homemade playdough - with the right recipe and storage, you can keep the playdough fun going to a long time!
I'll be sharing my tips for making and creative ways to customize below. Make sure to grab the free printable easy homemade playdough recipe so you can enjoy your first of what I'm sure will be many more batches to come!
Suggested Ingredients for This Easy Homemade Playdough Recipe
To get started making this recipe on your own or with your kids, you'll first want to gather all the ingredients first.
Here is what you'll need to make 6 cups of playdough:
3 cups
all-purpose flour
3 cups
water
6 tsp.
cream of tartar
1 cup
salt
3 Tbsp.
canola oil
variety of
food coloring
How to Make This DIY Playdough
If you haven't made homemade playdough, you're in for a real treat. It can be so much fun to watch the transformation from sticky, gooey mess to smooth ball of color to play with!
You'll need about five minutes to gather the suggested ingredients (see above) and materials:
- large cooking pot
- spoon (I prefer using a wood spoon. I find it more sturdy and less likely to have the playdough stick to it while I'm stirring.)
- wax paper
- sealable plastic sandwich bags (or other containers that can be sealed) for safe storage and to extend the life of your homemade playdough
Cook time for this playdough recipe is approximately 5 minutes. Only 10 minutes for super cool homemade playdough!
Step-by-Step Directions for Making Easy Homemade Playdough Recipe
01
Add all ingredients
In a large cooking pot, add all the ingredients (except the food coloring). Stir to mix.
02
Cook over medium/low heat.
Continue to stir as the flour mixture cooks.
03
Stir as mixture thickens.
Keep stirring as the mixture thickens and begins pulling away from the pan's bottom.
04
Remove pan from heat.
Once a dough ball forms, remove the pot from the heat and place on a safe surface.
05
Place dough on wax paper.
Place a piece of wax paper on a work surface. Carefully place the dough onto the center of the wax paper.
06
Cut dough into 6 equal parts.
Use a knife, dough cutter, or pizza cutter to separate into 6 pieces.
07
Add food coloring.
Make an indent with your thumb or spoon into the middle of the playdough. Add a few drops of food coloring. Slowly knead the dough until food coloring is spread evenly and desired color is reached.
Tips and Tricks for Customizing and Enjoying Your Easy Homemade Playdough
Squeal! I'm so excited to share some of the amazing things that we've tried and learned about over our years of making homemade playdough.
If you'd like more colors to work with (or have multiple kids using the playdough), I recommend dividing the dough into 12 portions. OR make a double batch!
You'll want to wait until the dough is completely cool before storing. This step helps prevent condensation from building up in the plastic bag (or other storage container).
Use one bag per color of playdough - unless you don't mind a bit of mixing.
Vegetable oil can be used in place of canola oil in a 1:1 ratio.
Have fun with the colors of your playdough! You can make the primary colors (red, yellow, blue) and mix those for varieties. Or just add a few drops of one color and a few of another to see what you get.
Add coloring mixing activities to your playdough fun! Grab our free printable color mixing pack to get started.
Easily add some fun to your playdough with glitter. My boys and I LOVE mixing in some glitter. It makes the coolest effects (especially in black - it's like outer space playdough!).
We've also added drops of essential oil to our playdough for yummy smells. Our favorite essential oils to use are lavender, peppermint, and orange.
Get Your Free Printable Easy Homemade Playdough Recipe
High five! You're on your way to making your very own playdough in frugal and easy ways!
This free printable homemade playdough recipe is on one page (PDF).
Please print as many copies as you need to enjoy for personal use (non-commercial use) at home, in your classroom, and at your library. If you have a friend or co-worker who might like this printable recipe, share this post - thanks!
To get this printable playdough recipe, simply subscribe to Rock Your Homeschool!
⭐️ You’ll receive an email from me with a PDF file PLUS a password to open the VIP Resource Library to all RYHS freebies. Email Amy at rockyourhomeschool@gmail.com if you have any problems!
You’ll also get emails with ideas, resources, and encouragement to make life and learning fun 🙂
(If you're a current RYHS member, go to the VIP Resource Library and enter the password in your welcome email.)
Get your FREE Printable Easy Homemade Playdough Recipe by tapping HERE or on the image below.
Once you make this homemade playdough, I'd love to hear about your experiences! How did it go? What colors did you make? And what type of playdough activities did you and your kids enjoy? Let me know in the comments area at the bottom of this post!
