Fun Fall Sensory Recipes for Kids

Here's my favorite play dough recipe:

1 cup flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup salt
3 tablespoons cream of tartar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
food coloring

Combine dry ingredients in medium pan. Add water and oil. Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly. When mix pulls away from sides and forms a large ball, turn into small bowl and cool. Knead and divide into 4 equal parts. Knead in food coloring. Store in tightly sealed container.

There are so many things you can add to make your play dough more fun and more fall oriented. Try adding cinnamon or apple cider powder for an added fall scent (just like apple pie). Pumpkin pie spice and orange food coloring make play dough smell and look just like pumpkin pie. Oats can add a harvest theme. Adding cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg can create gingerbread play dough, just in time for Christmas . . . and mint extract with green food coloring works well for Christmas too. Kool-Aid powder also can be used to add colors and scents.

Photo Credit: Nevit Dilmen on Wikimedia Commons.

Mix in a bowl:

1 1/2 cups very warm water
2 cups Elmer's glue (use the original Elmer's glue, not the school glue like the picture above)
food coloring

Mix in a separate bowl:

1 1/3 cups very warm water
2 level teaspoons Borax

Mix the contents of the two bowls. Knead the substance. Discard, or squeeze out, any remaining liquid.

If you're looking for something just for Halloween, check out this orange flubber that's made in a really interesting way!

Photo Credit: space_monkey340 on Photobucket.

1 cup Elmer's glue (original)
food coloring
1 cup liquid starch

Pour glue and coloring in a plastic container and stir until color is mixed in. Add starch a little at a time while stirring. Keep stirring until it holds together like putty. Add more starch if it's too sticky (until it's smooth and rubbery).

Photo Credit: Kungfuman on Wikimedia Commons.

Want to hear your kids or students in a chorus of, "Eewww, gross" . . . or maybe cheers?

Then check out this disgusting Halloween form of slimy Gak!

2 cups cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water
food coloring

Place the cornstarch in a bowl. Add the water slowly until the cornstarch is just barely saturated. Add food coloring.

Variation:

2 cups cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water
food coloring

Mix the cornstarch and water in a bowl until smooth. Boil until thick. Add food coloring. Remove from heat and cool.

Photo Credit: Captain Z on Flickr.

This one is really simple!

Just mix food coloring with shaving cream and you have a great paint!

A cool thing to do is to mix it inside a zip-lock bag. The kids can learn about color mixing this way and then they can have fun squishing it and drawing shapes and letters in the cream by running their finger along the bag (and it's cleaner . . .).

Photo Credit: jek in the box on Flickr.

1/2 cup liquid hand soap (clear or white)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
food coloring

Combine the soap and cornstarch. Divide. Add different colors to the parts.

This recipe is great for at home - - use it in the tub!

Photo Credit: bizeliz on Photobucket.

Kool Paint

1/4 cup glue
orange Kool-Aid (or use whatever colors you like)

Mix together using a paintbrush. Paint!

Edible Pumpkin Paint

1/2 cup canned pumpkin pie filling
1/2 cup vanilla pudding
1/2 cup cool whip

Mix together and paint with your fingers . . . as you taste the yumminess!

In any paint, you can add textures to the paint (e.g. coffee grounds) and you can incorporate different items for painting with (e.g. string, toothbrushes, sponges).

Photo Credit: nevit on Wikimedia Commons

2/3 cup liquid dish soap (Joy, Dawn or Palmolive are best)
1 gallon water
3 tablespoons glycerine

Gently stir together and store in sealed container over night.

Try blowing bubbles outside in the winter (if you're in a cold climate). They freeze and when they pop, they shatter like glass (with no harm!).

Photo Credit: Jeff Kubina on Flickr.

Ever wondered what to do with all the broken crayons you end up with at home, or in the classroom?

Well, visit this fun craft site to learn a really cool and fun fall recipe to reuse all those crayon bits by making chubby fall crayons.

Of course, you can make them whatever color you want!

Sensory tables are extremely versatile. You probably think of water tables and sand tables when you think of sensory tables, but you can use almost anything in a sensory table. Use orange shaving cream, ice cubes, colored rice, oatmeal, pumpkin flesh and seeds, leaves and dried seeds and beans. Kids love to play in sensory tables and . . . as the name suggests . . . they can stimulate the senses of sight, hearing, touch and smell (and even taste!). Different items can be used with the materials that can bring in math and science concepts, such as measuring cups, spoons, cups, scoops and buckets.

Photo Credit: smallwoodjess on Photobucket.