Playdough has to be one of my most favourite activities!

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We all know children love to play with playdough and can get very busy playing and creating all sorts of creations.

But other than FUN, it has many benefits too.

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Playdough works those little fingers, developing fine motor strength and dexterity as they squeeze, roll, pinch and squash the playdough.
Playdough is a great way to introduce using scissors and even a knife and fork. Adding an assortment of buttons, beads, pipe cleaners etc encourage the use of little fingers and helps to develop hand-eye coordination as they use both hands to reach and create.

 

For many children the heavy work of rolling and squashing is a great regulator, helping to calm their sensory systems and bring a balance back into their bodies. Just like adults flick a pen in and out or squeeze a stress ball, children reduce their anxiety by squeezing a ball of playdough. Pushing cookie cutters into the dough and taking them out again or pushing and pulling the rolling pin all provide deep pressure input, otherwise known as proprioception, for their joints.

 

Playing co-operatively with siblings or friends as they create and share items helps to build their social and emotional skills, self-control as well as their language and communication skills.  Parents or caregivers can use this opportunity to model words of kindness and encouragement as children play together.

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Playdough can open up opportunities for creative thinking and imaginative play. As children mature, their creations become more complex and involved as do the stories behind their creations.

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Mathematical concepts are best learnt in a concrete way, and playdough is a wonderful way to learn to sort colours, sizes and shapes. A solid number concept is formed as children create and count balls of playdough. You can readily find printable playdough mats online to help with number and letter formation. Using playdough to learn how to recognize and form letters, shapes and numbers is so much more fun compared to using a pencil and paper.

 

Playdough is amazing and should be used in every home!  Jenna’s Raindough is loved by Fox Box and we are so proud of all Jenna’s achievements.

“Play is our brain’s favourite way of learning” Diane Akerman

 

Shelley Grunewald

Fox Box

@foxboxtime