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Summer Fun for KIDS!
This page is to help parents and grandparents to find some really fun recipes for play dough, chalk, bubbles and more to keep those little ones happy during the summer months.

Bev's Homemade BUBBLES
bubbles
Ingredients:
  • 2/3 cup Joy dish soap
  • 1 gallon water
  • 3 tablespoons of corn syrup  (or use glycerine from the drug store)

    • Directions:
    Mix ingredients together and blow bubbles.  Lots of fun!

     
     

     Colored Noodles
    Macaroni Coloring
    Ingredients: Macaroni, food coloring, small ziploc baggies
    In a small ziplock type bag add 1 cup of macaroni type noodles and several squirts of one food coloring. Seal the baggie and let the kids shake their bag until the macaroni is nicely colored. Lay noodles out on paper towels to dry.  These colored noodles can be glued onto construction paper to make pictures.  You can also make neclaces by having the kids thread colored noodles onto yarn.  This is easier to do if you place masking tape on the ends of the yarn.

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    Home Made Stickers
    Ingredients and Materials:
    small bowl
    2 TBS cold water
    3 TBS boiling water
    1 envelope unflavored gelatin
    1/2 tsp. corn syrup
    5 drops of banana extract (or your favorite tasting extract!)
    pictures cut out from a drawing you've made or from a magazine, etc.
    small paintbrush
    container with an airtight lid (baby food jar is good)

    Directions:

    Pour 2 TBS cold water into bowl. Add gelatin and stir until gelatin is dissolved.  Add hot water (parents do this part!).
    Add 1/2 tsp. corn syrup.  Stir into gelatin mixture until well mixed.  Add 5 drops of banana extract.  Stir into mixture.

    Using small paintbrush spread a thin layer on picture you want to make into a sticker.  Let the back of picture dry.  When ready to place sticker where ever you want it (and where it is o.k. with Mom and Dad to put it!) lick or lightly dampen the back of picture and stick your stickers to dry surface.

    Store sticker glue in cool place.  Glue will thicken in jar.  To reuse it, place jar in a bowl of hot water until glue thins.

    Bev's Thumbprint Critters


    Materials needed:
    Washable ink-pad
    paper
    thumbs!

    1) Show your child how to gently roll his/her thumb onto the ink-pad.
    2) Place the thumbprint onto a sheet of paper.
    3) Make several, and then show your child how to make them into critters, or let them show you.

    My 5 year old and her little friend really had a lot of fun making thumb critter pictures and I cut and folded them some little cards to decorate too! 



    Fun Salt Glitter designs

    Materials needed:
    1 cup flour, 1 cup salt, 1 cup water, food coloring.

    Mix together flour, salt, and water. Pour into plastic squeeze bottles. You can buy these at the store, or use clean empty ketchup and mustard bottles. Add a few drops of food coloring. Squeeze onto heavy construction paper or cardboard. When the salt dries it makes lovely glitter in various colors.  Remind the children to squeeze squiggly designs and not to make huge blobs of the glitter or will take forever to dry and may not work at all.



    Sidewalk CHALK
    chalk
    Materials Needed
    • 2 cups water
    • 2 cups plaster of paris
    • 2 TBS tempera paint(liquid or powder)
    • foil or wax paper
    • cookie sheet
    • Bathroom tissue paper tubes with duct tape over one end.

    Instructions:

    Combine ingredients and stir together. Let mixture stand for  a few minutes. Place tubes on a cookie sheet lined with foil or wax paper. Pour mixture into tubes. Let stand until semi-hardened.  Carefully peel off  tubes and let chalk dry completely. Ready to use in about 2 hours.


    SOAP CRAYONS
    Materials:
    • 2 c. Ivory Snow soap powder
    • 1 c. water
    • liquid food coloring (colors your choice)
    • ice cube tray or cookie cutters and wax paper
    Directions:
    Mix soap powder and water  until thick and creamy. Add food coloring for color.  Pour into ice cube trays or into cookie cutters that have been placed on wax paper and  let soap harden overnight.  Carefully remove soap from ice cube tray or cookie cutters.  Use soap as crayons for fun bathtub play.

    SMELLY PUTTY

    Materials Needed:
    • 1 small package of sugar-free fruit flavored gelatin
    • 2 cups flour
    • 1 cup salt
    • 4 TBS cream of tartar
    • 2 cups boiling water
    • 2 TBS. cooking oil

    Directions:
    Mix the dry ingredients in a pan. Add the boiling water and cooking oil. Stir over medium high heat until the mixture forms a ball. Place the ball on waxed paper to cool. Store in an airtight container. Use different flavors to make all different colors and smells

    COLORED SAND

    Materials Needed:

    • 1 cup of sand (or cornmeal)
    • 2 tsp. of dry tempera paint
    • 1 tsp. water
    Directions:

    Add the dry tempera paint to the sand. Mix well with a wire whisk or fork. Stir in the water. Let the sand dry for several hours before using.

    Bev's Nursery School Dough - best play dough recipe ever!
    1 cup water
    1 cup flour
    1/2 cup salt
    1 TBsp vegetable oil
    2 tsp cream of tartar
    food color or jello

    Dump all the ingredients in a medium pot in order listed above.
    Start cooking it on low-medium heat (You can separate the mixture into 2 pans and add a color in each one.) and stir continuously till it forms a ball in the middle of the pan.  It takes a little while to get there and you will think it is nothing but a globby mess, but it will work.  
    Now flour a wooden board or the counter and remove the dough ball/s.  Knead them on the board until they are the right texture, and store in airtight containers.


    BATH SALTS for mom

    2 1/2 lb. Epsom Salts; Food Coloring; Perfume

    In a medium bowl, combine Epsom salts with a few drops of food coloring and some of mom's fave perfume-- with her permission of course!   Mix well until color is even. Place into smaller jars and let stand 4-6 weeks before using. This causes the odor to blend with the salts.

    Place a couple of tablespoons in each bath, placing them under the running water coming out of the faucet!  Hmmmm- relax mom!


     


    Edible Peanut Butter Dough

    1/2 cup peanut butter
    1/2 cup honey
    1 cup powdered milk
    Make sure the kids hands are clean!  Knead dough until smooth. They can make this into shapes, or just into balls and eat them.



    Graphics by JAS - copyright 2004 - All Rights Reserved


    LINKS on other websites
    Kids Domain Kids Crafts
    Just Kids Recipes - 222 recipes for fun things to make!
    Scouting-web Crafts for kids - has tons of links to fun projects


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