With the right play dough ideas for toddlers, your kids will not only have fun but also enjoy immeasurable benefits in their development and general well-being. Among the greatest benefits of play dough activities for early years include:
- Developing fine motor skills while molding play dough into various shapes
- Boosts creativity
- Has a calming effect on the kids
- Improves hand-eye coordination
- Enhances playtime
- Boosts social skills
- Promotes literacy, vocabulary, and numeracy
And so much more… if you’re searching for activities that will calm your toddlers, let them release their storm, and distress them, here are out top 10 play dough ideas for toddlers:
Top 10 Play Dough Ideas for Toddlers
1. Roll the Play Dough with Hands
Though your kids cannot roll uniform balls at their age, appreciate every effort they make at rolling the play dough. For instance, they can practice rolling the play dough between their little hands to create something long- worms, hot dogs, etc.)
Also, they can roll the play dough while placing it on a flat surface like table either with one or two hands.
2. Play Dough Bug Digging
What You Need
How to Play
– Put your play dough in a tray
-Depending on your preference, you can mold it into a ball or make it flat. Maybe both in turns?
– Hide the bugs by pushing them into your play dough ensuring that they are completely invisible.
– Ask your toddler to look for the bugs in the play dough
3. Play Dough Stamping
What You Need
- Play dough
- Rolling pin
- Plastic toys for use in stamping
How to Play
– Place the play dough on a flat surface
– Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough ensuring it is not too thin as this may lead to breaking of toys
– Pick your favorite plastic toys, press then on top of the dough to make some unique marks.
If your kids are still too young, you can help them in these play dough activities for toddlers by rolling out the dough. Then, give your child the plastic toys to make the amazing prints.
4. Smashing the Play Dough with their Hands
This is one of the simplest 2 year old playdough activities with no equipment. To play, you’ll place the play dough on the table and then, leave your child to smash it however he likes.
For instance, he can subdivide it and then, roll it into small balls, make sausage-like shapes, mold number and letters, and more. Also, your toddler can put their finger into the mold to create finger-like shapes which will greatly excite them.
5. Alphabet Play Dough
What You Need
- Play dough in different colors
- Foam alphabet letter stickers
How to Play
– Roll small balls of play dough using their fingers
– Take the foam alphabet letter stickers and press them on the dough- 1 letter per play dough ball
You can use these play dough ideas for toddlers to teach your kids how to spell simple words and learn the alphabet. Also, this is an ideal time to teach your child that you only play with playdough using your hands and not eating.
6. Monsters Play Dough Ideas for Toddlers
What You Need
- Googly eyes colored
- Bottle tops
- Pipe cleaner cuttings
- Glitters
- Pasta shapes
How to Play
– Place your play dough on a tray or on the take and shape it in any way you want.
– Pick as much glitters as you can and spread them all over the play dough. Then let your toddlers use their little fingers to mix the play dough, ensuring that every part has the glitters.
– Take your googly eyes and place as many as you can all over the play dough.
– Also, pick some pasta shapes and place them in different parts of your monster.
You can try with as many play dough colors as you can so you can come up with more monsters. And just like that, your little one will gain fine motor skills, become more creative, and acquire literacy knowledge as they try to express themselves through their creation.
7. Spaghetti Bead Tower Play Dough
What You Need
- Beads in different shapes and colors
- Play dough
- Spaghetti noodles
- Tray
How to Play
– Place your play dough on the tray and spread it to make a thick layer.
– Subdivide your spaghetti noodles into small bundles and pin them into your dough
– Put your beads in the spaghetti noodles, alternating colors to create something beautiful.
– Alternatively, you can put same colors in one spaghetti bundle and then, take time to identify the colors with your toddlers.
– If the beads are in different shapes, you can also put same shapes together and then use these play dough ideas for toddlers to learn about different shapes.
8. Play Dough Color Matching Activity
What You Need
- Play dough in different colors
- Multi-colored paper clips
How to Play
– Place the different colors of your play dough on the table or and roll them into small circles
– Help your child to name the different colors
– Take the multi-colored paper clips and show your toddlers how to pin then on your play dough. If possible, you can pin same colors into the same play dough and like the dough, work on identifying the colors.
These play dough activities for toddlers may be a bit harder at the beginning but once they get the hand of it, they’ll have so much fun!
9. Play Dough Counting Mats
What you need
How to Play
– Place the counting mat on the table
– sub-divide your play doh into small balls
– Place an equal number of ball on each number. For instance, place 9 play dough balls on the box with number nine and 1 playdough ball on the box with number 1.
This playdough idea for toddler will boost your toddler’s gross motor skills and make them better with numbers.
10. Learn to Count with Playdough
What You Need
- Playdough
- Bottle tops
- Rolling pin
- Tray
How to Play
– Take your dough and roll it to form several circle
– using a bottle top, poke some holes- 1 hole for number 1, 2 for number 2, and so on.
– Remove the excess play dough from the holes and put it aside
– Roll the excess play dough into round balls and leave it to dry. This may take several days where you’ll need to keep turning them to allow uniform drying.
– Once the small balls dry up, you can then give them to your toddlers and show them how to place the right number of playdough balls for each number.
– If your child isn’t yet familial with numbers, this may be harder to start with but get easier with time.
There you have it! 10 easy, super-exciting play dough ideas for toddlers. Don’t forget to check out other amazing play ideas on our blog: