The delicious and distinctive smell is so inviting in this Holiday themed gingerbread playdough activity. Gather your little ones around the table and watch their imaginations at work, as they create their very own Gingerbread Men.
Gingerbread Playdough Recipe
Ingredients for homemade playdough recipe
Makes enough for 4-5 children to play.
- 2 cups of all-purpose flour
- 1 cup of salt
- 2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 cup of water
Gingerbread Play Dough Directions
This gingerbread play dough recipe couldn’t be easier to make and you will love the smell!
- Start by placing all of your dry ingredients into a large pan and mix with a wooden spoon.
- Next, add the water and oil. Over a medium heat, keep mixing the ingredients together until the consistency begins to resemble thick cake batter.
- Continue stirring constantly until the mixture in the pan forms a ball and is smooth not sticky.
- Take out the ball of dough and knead it for a few minutes, before letting your kids play with it.
Gingerbread Playdough Troubleshooting
If your dough feels too sticky, add more flour.
If it feels too dry, then add more water or vegetable oil.
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This cooked play dough recipe and couldn’t be easier. It makes a much better quality play dough that will last a long time if stored in an air-tight container after use.
Invitation to Make Gingerbread Playdough People
An invitation-to-make play activity is all about giving your preschoolers the freedom to explore the materials in front of them. If they just want to add buttons, that’s perfectly fine. If they don’t want to add any googly eyes, then that’s fine too. It’s all about the process at this stage of their development, rather than achieving a perfect Gingerbread Man.
Along with the Gingerbread Play Dough you may also want to provide your children with other materials such as:
- A Gingerbread Man Cookie Cutter
- Rolling Pins
- Pom-poms
- Beads
- Buttons
- Googly Eyes
These are just suggestions for making play dough gingerbread men. Raid your craft supplies and see what you may already have on-hand to create your own gingerbread men.
Once you’ve laid out all of your supplies, invite your preschoolers over to make their own Gingerbread Men.
Some children may prefer to explore the items individually before using them to decorate their gingerbread men.
Benefits of an Invitation-to-Make
Creativity – Give their budding imaginations a thorough workout by encouraging them to use their own ideas rather than a set template to follow. This will help them to become much better problem solvers in later life.
Communication – A nice relaxed environment to chat with children or encourage storytelling about what they are making.
Solo or Group Work – Perfect for children to do alone, with a group of friends or siblings, or in a preschool classroom setting.
Fine Motor Skills – Picking up and placing small objects onto the play dough in this activity is great for strengthening those all-important fine motor skills which is essential for young children.
Add some literacy to your invitation by reading gingerbread books, too!
More Playdough Recipes And Activities
- Candy Cane Playdough Activity-A candy cane play dough invitation is perfect for a gingerbread or holiday theme.
- Halloween Playdough Activity- Play dough is a great exploration for creativity. Your preschoolers will enjoy rolling, squeezing, and pressing with the materials on this Halloween playdough tray.
- Easter Playdough Activity for Preschool- This Easter playdough activity tray is super quick and easy to set-up at home or in your classroom. But don’t be deceived by the simplicity of this activity, it actually supports the development of many crucial skills that will help your kids be successful in school – and life!
More Gingerbread ideas
This seems to be a really good idea. My kids live making ginger bread man out of play dough but this is a really creative thing to do with kids. Thanks !
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