Let’s play 20 questions. I’m thinking of a sensory play medium and you have to guess what it is. Ready?
Can you eat it? Yes.
Should you eat it? No.
Does it smell good? Yes.
Does it use kitchen ingredients? Yes.
Can I add sprinkles to it? Heck yes!
Is it cookie dough moon sand? YES!
Yay, you win!
Here’s the prize: my cookie dough moon sand recipe for sensory play!
How to Make Cookie Dough for Sensory Play
I turned an easy moon sand recipe into a cookie dough sensory play activity for my two-year-old by adding a couple extra ingredients.
Moon sand (a.k.a. cloud dough) is this weird crumbly-textured dust that holds together when you squeeze it.
Think of wet sand that can keep its shape to form a sandcastle, but if you push on it, will crumble. Only this is way better, because you don’t have to keep going back to the ocean to add more water to the sand!
It’s always in a perfectly mold-able, yet crumbly consistency!
It’s just as messy as regular sand, but it’s also more fun and a lot less crunchy if you accidentally get some in your mouth!
I made this recipe by myself this time, but normally my daughter loves to help out when I’m baking.
She loves getting to work beside me, and I love getting to use these opportunities to teach her about food and kitchen safety, measuring, and following directions while making something that’s not stressful if we don’t “get it right.”
And this cookie dough recipe will turn out right, even if you don’t level off the measuring cup!
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!
How to Make Moon Sand (or Cloud Dough)
Here’s how to make moon sand/cookie dough for sensory play.
Measure four cups of flour.
Any kind. The cheapest kind you have!
Then add half a cup of oil. I used canola to make it more like real cookie dough and make it taste-safe.
Other recipes call for baby oil or mineral oil, and that works too.
Sprinkle a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract over the top.
This is one of the ingredients that turns the moon sand into “cookie dough.”
Mix the oil, flour, and vanilla in a large bowl or directly in a sensory bin.
Now you’re ready to play!
How We Turned the Moon Sand Into a Cookie Dough Sensory Bin
I made one fatal mistake when we did this sensory activity.
And that was letting a toddler handle a full bottle of sprinkles.
“Put a little bit in,” I said.
“OK, Mommy!” she said.
*dumps ENTIRE 9 ounce bottle of rainbow sprinkles in*
Well, I didn’t really have any other plans for those sprinkles I guess.
So if you’re doing this at home, you probably don’t *need* the whole bottle of rainbow sprinkles.
But then again, why not?
Look how happy it made her:
To this delightful bin of oversprinkled cookie dough, I added silicone muffin cups, a cookie scoop, cookie cutters, and a few measuring spoons.
The cookie scoop was difficult for my two-year-old, Ella, to squeeze, but her hand muscles got a good workout from trying!
She liked squeezing the moon sand and feeling the flour compact in her hands.
One thing you should know though, is if you drop the compacted moon sand, it will disintegrate into a big pile of dust on your floor.
But look at how much fun she’s having!
I was worried about calling the moon sand “cookie dough” because I thought my daughter would want to eat it, but she never even tried licking it or eating the sprinkles.
She did hold it suspiciously close to her mouth a couple times to “smell” it.
Sensory Bin Benefits I’ve Noticed
Sensory bin activities are great for my daughter because they help her develop her fine motor skills from squeezing the dough and manipulating the various tools she was able to work with.
We both loved the cookie dough theme, because as I said before, Ella loves to bake with me, and this was a great way for her to practice real-life skills and get her hands messy with real kitchen ingredients and kitchen tools.
Today she also worked on counting and measuring by counting how many scoops she could fit into a muffin cup.
She also worked on refining her cookie dough shaping skills.
I think she’s a natural!
Your Turn to Make a Cookie Dough Sensory Bin
Moon sand is what gives this cookie dough its crumbly, squeezable texture without being as greasy as real cookie dough.
You absolutely must add the sprinkles and vanilla extract to get the full sensory experience!
Also, don’t stress about the mess. Part of the sensory play experience is getting to make a mess! Though there are ways to keep messes from getting too out of control.
Here are a few tips to help keep the mess contained:
- Spread a plastic tablecloth or tarp under the play area to catch crumbs.
- Put the sensory bin inside a larger bin or on an extra large cookie sheet.
- Set some rules before playing. No throwing is our #1 rule.
- Play outside!
Scroll down for more ways to play with moon sand / cloud dough!
Cookie Dough Sensory Bin
Supplies
- 4 cups flour
- 1/2 cup oil
- 1 cup rainbow sprinkles
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients together. If you want the dough to hold together even more, add more oil. Conversely, if it’s too greasy, add more flour!
- Add the dough to your sensory bin along with fun tools (cookie cutters, measuring spoons, muffin cups, etc.) for cookie dough play.
More Ways to Play with Moon Sand (or Cloud Dough)
Moon sand is super adaptable. Think of it as a very crumbly, powdery play dough.
Try these other ways to play with moon sand, sprinkles optional!
- Add magnet letters or letter cookie cutters.
- Have your child write letters or shapes in the sand using a stick.
- Throw in some sandcastle building molds and build a powdery sandcastle.
- Mix gel food coloring with the oil to dye your moon sand (Parenting Chaos).
- Double the recipe (8 cups of flour and 1 cup of oil) for a bigger mess!
- Add googly eyes and craft sticks to make little snowmen or monsters just like Nerdy Mamma.
Would your kids enjoy playing with a cookie dough sensory bin?
Pin the recipe and make it with them today!
Looking for More Sensory Play Activities?
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!
