DIY Mint Playdough Kids Sensory Activity

Making playdough is a great activity for any afternoon, especially to entertain antsy kids! On days my kids can’t easily go outside due to weather, making playdough is a purposeful hands-on creative project. This DIY mint playdough uses my BEST homemade playdough recipe, with added mint extract!

All you need to make a batch of great playdough is water, vegetable oil, salt, cream of tarter, flour and (optional) food coloring and fragrance.

Best Homemade Playdough Recipe

I’ve used this tried-and-true homemade playdough recipe to make all sorts of playdough colors!

• 2 cups water
• 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup salt
• 1 tbsp. cream of tartar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• Green gel food coloring
• Mint extract or essential oil

Begin mixing up a batch of homemade playdough by combining the water, salt, cream of tarter and oil in a medium sauce pan. Heat these ingredients until the mixture is fully dissolved.

Once the salt is dissolved into the water, give the mixture a stir add a few drops of food coloring and (optional) fragrance). Adding the color at this liquid stage is the easiest way to fully mix the food coloring into your homemade playdough. If you wait until the dough stage, you will have to knead the food coloring in.

Next, slowly mix in the 2 cups of flour. The mixture will start out gooey at first, and thicken as the flour cooks. Once the playdough becomes doughy and less sticky, remove the pan from the heat. Dump the playdough out onto a piece of parchment paper to cool. Caution! The playdough will be very hot!

Minty Fresh Soft Playdough

This homemade playdough is soft, brightly colored and minty fresh! I used 2 drops of green gel food coloring and 2 capfuls of mint extract. My kids can make all sorts of creations with it by rolling it out, cutting the playdough with cookie cutters, and balling it up.

I especially like homemade playdough because it’s very soft and more malleable than store bought playdough. Plus you can make this playdough in larger quantities. I’ve made a lot of playdough as a preschool activity or afternoon sensory activity for my kids. I’ve even made rainbow unicorn playdough and playdough party favors for each child at my daughter’s birthday party!

If your kids enjoy playing with playdough, this minty green sensory dough is definitely worth trying out! Kids can knead it, roll it out, ball it up and cut playdough into pieces to practice their motor skills. Cutting playdough with cookie cutters and arranging it into silicone cupcake liners is a fun way to practice making treats. Best of all, when you make your own playdough, you can mix up a batch any afternoon. Kids can help choose the colors and watch the cooking process (from a safe distance from the stove of course.) Happy playdough making!

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