This week I made play dough for Liam and the little girl (S *) I watch during the week. It was so much fun seeing them react to this new texture. Surprisingly, neither of them tried to eat it and both seemed utterly alarmed at how it stuck to the table and their fingers. I gently helped them press their fingers into the dough and pat it to see indentations afterward. It was great to see their little brains working to figure out this new thing and once again I am reminded why children are so beautiful and amazing.
Like my favorite educational philosopher, Maria Montessori, once wrote, "So Here Begins the New Path, Wherein it will not be the Professor who Teaches the Child, but the Child who Teaches the Professor." I am always learning from children. I will always be learning from children.
My recipe for Play Dough is below. It's quite easy and I look forward to all the play dough worms that lie in my future.
Play Dough, from the book How it All Vegan
Ingredients
1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 2 tbsp oil, 2 tbsp cream of tartar, 1 cup water, food coloring
In a medium saucepan, cook the flour, salt, oil, tartar, and water over medium-high heat, stirring constantly until stiff. Cool and knead out clumps while kneading in the food coloring.
Add a few pinches of flour if it gets too sticky in the weeks to come. Store in a container with a tight fitting lid.
Makes 1 cup of dough.
Enjoy!
(S * is the girl that I watch Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. She is not my child, so she will be known only as S in this blog. She is a real treasure in our lives, and it is great to watch the two babies together.)
