When using play dough with toddlers, be sure to use the home made kind.  This way, if they happen to put it in their mouths, it will be safe and non-toxic.  Look for home made recipes at the Art Station.  Be sure to supervise all dough play with toddlers.

COLOR PLAY DOUGH – add food coloring to the water in your play dough recipe to make brightly colored dough.

RAINBOW DOUGH – give your child three different balls of colored play dough.  Encourage them to mix the dough and soon they will have a dough of many colors.

COLOR BLENDS -  give your toddler two balls of play dough, such as; red and blue and watch while they discover that they soon have purple play dough.  Other blends, would be yellow and blue to make green and red and yellow to make orange.

BOX OF SAFE TOOLS – make up a box of safe instruments for your toddler to use when he is playing with play dough.  Suggestions include:  craft sticks; round edged butter knife; small plastic flowers; plastic animals; pieces of straws; child’s hammer, potato masher; small coffee measurer; etc.

MAKING IMPRESSIONS – also look around your house for small flat plastic or wooden things that have ridges or lines in them that would leave impressions if pressed down on some play dough.  Poker chips work well, plastic coins, gears from plastic gear games, and of course plastic cookie cutters.

CUTTING PLAY DOUGH -  Make some long thin play dough ropes for your child.  Then give her a craft stick, butter knife or some plastic scissors and show her how to cut the play dough into smaller pieces.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PLAY -   Set out a small cake pan, or other small pan and fill it with play dough.  Then set out some 3-4 inch pieces of plastic straws for candles and other small safe items.  Encourage your child to decorate the play dough cake with candles and other items.