This easy two-ingredient sensory dough is one of my favorites to make. In honor of winter, we kept the dough snow white and added clear gems and sparkly sequins for decorating snowballs!
In our little corner of the world, winter = snow.
And on the day we made our snow day, our backyard was wintry white.
Why not play outside in the real snow? you ask.
Well, 1) it takes us longer to get ready to play in the snow than it takes to whip up a batch of fake snow.
And 2) in the words of my 17-month-old, it’s “Brrr… cold” out there.
Snow dough is one way we like to play with a snow-like substance while staying toasty warm indoors.
While it’s not a perfect substitute for real snow (this favorite recipe is actually a lot closer to real snow!), it sure is fun to make and play with!
Just watch this video or read on to find out how we did it!
How To Make Snow Dough
Snow dough is super simple to make. Just mix together 1/2 cup of white hair conditioner with 1 cup of cornstarch.
I will warn you that cornstarch will end up everywhere if you allow your toddler to measure it out for you, so maybe leave that part to the grown ups, k?
Also, adding glitter is optional, but encouraged.
If it’s too sticky, just keep adding spoonfuls of cornstarch until it’s about the consistency of soft dough or butter slime.
Make sure to use white conditioner because if you don’t… well… your snow dough won’t be white.
Looking for an organized guide of fun, easy activities to do with your toddler that also encourages their growth and development?
I’ve created a 3-month activity planner just for busy parents like you! The plan includes 65 detailed, simple, and stress-free activities including: arts and crafts, sensory play, motor skills, and STEM–all using easy-to-find supplies.
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Playing with Snow Dough
This fluffy dough is like a cross between play dough and slime.
It’s really soft and doesn’t hold it’s shape quiiiite as well as regular play dough.
It will hold long enough to be shaped, so in that sense it is closer to play dough than it is to slime.
However, it makes beautiful white dough that is really fun to play with!
I put a ball of snow dough on a tray with clear gems and sparkly sequins for my three-year-old to play with an decorate.
She chose to cover every inch of the ball of dough with gems and sequins.
Other times we’ve made this, Elena has pressed flowers into it to make little cakes, or built little snowmen.
As with all open-ended play, there’s no right or wrong way to play!
What We’re Learning
As with playing with regular old play dough, kids will be
- developing fine motor skills
- encouraged to create
- engaging in imaginative play
- engrossed in independent play
- learning to process sensory input (a.k.a. letting their senses tell them what’s going on)
All these skills are really great for helping toddlers learn to work hard at their play and feel good about themselves and their day.
I have more play dough recipes and ideas for play right here on Entertain Your Toddler.
Here are a few that we’ve really enjoyed!
Your Turn to Make Snow Dough
Whatever your kids decide to make is up to them. Just encourage them to play, be creative and imaginative, and most of all have fun.
And if they can do this while you sit on the couch alll the way over on the other side of the room with a nice hot cup of tea, cheers to you.
You deserve it!
Looking for an organized guide of fun, easy activities to do with your toddler that also encourages their growth and development?
I’ve created a 3-month activity planner just for busy parents like you! The plan includes 65 detailed, simple, and stress-free activities including: arts and crafts, sensory play, motor skills, and STEM–all using easy-to-find supplies.
Let me help make planning activities for your toddler easy, so you can skip the stress and get straight to the fun!