Strawberry Play Dough Recipe
Looking for a fun and fruity way to spark creativity in your little ones? This homemade strawberry play dough is the perfect sensory activity for preschoolers and young learners. It’s soft, smells amazing, and is super simple to make with ingredients you likely already have in your kitchen!
Whether you’re planning a summer activity, a Valentine’s Day craft, or a strawberry-themed unit, this play dough is sure to be a hit. Plus, it’s a great opportunity to engage the senses while strengthening fine motor skills.
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Ingredients
You can make this recipe in just about 10 minutes. Here’s what you need:
- 1 cup of flour
- 1/2 cup of salt
- 1 tablespoon of cream of tartar
- 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
- 1 cup of water
- pink gel food coloring
- strawberry flavoring oil
How to Make Strawberry Play Dough
Let it cool – Remove the dough from the pan and place it on a clean surface. Allow it to cool for a few minutes before kneading it until smooth.
Combine dry ingredients – In a medium saucepan, stir together the flour, salt, and cream of tartar.
Add wet ingredients – Mix in the water, vegetable oil, a few drops of pink food coloring, and several drops of strawberry flavoring oil.
Cook the dough – Stir the mixture continuously over medium heat. As it heats, the dough will start to thicken. Keep stirring until it forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
Once the dough is fully in a ball, take it out of the pan and knead it on a board with flour. Then it’s all ready to play with! You will also notice that your kitchen will smell amazing!
Why Kids Love This Play Dough
- Smells amazing! The strawberry scent adds a fun sensory element.
- Soft and squishy texture perfect for little hands.
- Great for imaginative play – Use with cookie cutters, play dough tools, or pair it with a strawberry theme unit.
- Strengthens fine motor skills while encouraging creativity and open-ended play.
All three of my boys enjoyed playing with it. It’s smooth, silky, and smells incredible! (I wish we could’ve used real strawberries in the recipe, but it makes it easier to use the flavoring oil!)
We made patterns with hearts!
And we made faces with the hearts!
We even made prints with the strawberries. They thought this was neat!
In the end, we were left with this…
Ideas for Play
- Pair it with a strawberry-themed book or lesson
- Create pretend strawberry desserts
- Set up a strawberry stand or bakery dramatic play area
- Practice letter formation or shape stamping
Homemade play dough is a low-prep, low-cost way to entertain and teach at the same time. This strawberry version is always a crowd-pleaser and will fill your classroom or home with the sweet smell of summer!
i use an envelope of kool-aid for color and smell
That’s a terrific idea!
I felt like a kid myself while reading this. Anyway, congrats for the very creative idea. I knew that you can make playdough on your own, but never thought about adding some flavors to it. I think I might as well give it a try, with some other flavors as well!
have you tried using fruity tea bags in boiling water no need to cook your playdough? makes it smell good and changes colour too.
No, but that is an awesome idea! Thanks, Trudy, for your idea!