I am such a sucker for a rainbow, so when my big boy spied this packet of plasticine at the local shops I gladly kicked in the extra fifty cents so he could afford it, but I didn’t realise how much fun we would have with it!
My boy loves playdough, and initially he was a little taken aback by the fact that this didn’t feel or move like play dough. Plasticine is stiffer, with a kind of greasy and odd feeling in your fingers and it smells different too. But pulling the sticks of plasticine apart he quickly decided he could make something with the ‘snakes’.
He could make letters and write his name!
He could make a rainbow, and a face!
By then the plasticine had started to warm up and become more pliable so it was time to experiment and make all kinds of creations.
Plasticine is cheap and easy to find, and offers something a little different to our usual play dough. It’s very good for small muscle development, all those finger and hand muscles that kids need to use to hold a pencil and write get a good work out with plasticine. Unlike play dough it will keep for ages and we’ve stored ours in a container because we’d really love to try Filth Wizardry’s idea of printing with plasticine.
Have you played with plasticine lately?
What’s your favourite thing to do with it?
I forgot about these! And yes they are a smart idea to keep kids entertained for a small cost. Must get a pack later for an upcoming playdate. Thanks!
Looks great to me.xoxo
Love it, simple crafty non-tv related quiet fun.
We actually bought some this morning! Along with some more chalk and a couple of other crafty bits & pieces.
What a lovely post Kate, and thank you so much for sharing that blog at the end. I love all these ideas. Presumably we can’t make plasticine? Where’s a good place to find it?
I love when I find something inexpensive & ordinary that gives my children hours of fun! My daughter has spent the last 4 days creating with rolls of colored masking tape. Seriously, she got 8 rolls (rainbow colored…you should check it out!) for her birthday & hasn’t stopped playing since.
But I think plasticine is next on our list of must buys. :)
I adore Plasticine and so do my girls. They far prefer the texture to regular playdough and it is great for plane trips as it isn’t as crumbly.
That looks like fun! I don’t know what plasticine is or where I could find it. We’ve played with modeling beeswax, which is fun. We can’t do playdoh because it has wheat.
I found this, it looks like what you are talking about!
http://www.amazon.com/Plasticine-Classic-Color-Play-Visions/dp/B002IXS54A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331654622&sr=8-1
Yes that’s it!
Though over here you can pick it up at the supermarket for a few dollars. It’s has a different consistency to play dough but can be used in very similar ways so might be a perfect alternative to wheat based dough.
Oh that looks great. My daughter loves playdough but I get sick of the little ‘crumbs’ that inevitably find their way into the grout of our slate floors. And it always dries out!
I’m going to get some this week!