Don’t wait for vacation to play in the sand! This beach sand play dough is squishy and gritty and makes a great foundation for sensory beach scenes all year round.
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Setting the Scene Before Playing with Sand Dough
I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, just a few minutes drive from the rocky shores of the Pacific Ocean. The water was cold and the skies often gray, but the sound of the waves and smell of seaweed still speak “home” to me. And now that we’ve moved from Kentucky to Washington, I’ve been itching to take my kids to an “ocean beach.”
We don’t live as close to the water as my childhood home, so we’ve taken advantage of the nearby river shores for our beach playtime. And that’s been a lot of fun!
But there’s something different about looking out over the expansive ocean water and sky while the salt water washes over your toes. Dramatically, like Moana, “it calls me.”
So we’ve been counting down the days until we could take a summer trip to the ocean with lots of beachy stories and playtime!
This soft and gritty Beach Sand Play Dough was one of the beach-themed activities we loved and it was the perfect indoor way to squish sand between our fingers.
Some things I especially love about this dough is that it’s MUCH easier to clean up than regular sand, and it’s mold-able — practically begging to be built into a sand castle!
WHY Playdough is Good for Preschoolers
Though it can be a bit messy, I love encouraging play with dough because it’s FUN, keeps kids BUSY, and helps develop their fine motor skills. As kids move towards school-age they need to have strong muscles in their hands for writing, cutting, and other tasks. And playing with dough is a great way to build those muscles as they: roll, flatten, chop, cut, poke, squash, pinch, cut, pound, and manipulate!
How to Make Beach Sand Play Dough
INGREDIENTS FOR BEACH SAND PLAY DOUGH:
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup fine beach sand*
- 1/4 cup salt
- 1 TBSP cream of tartar
- 1 TBSP oil
- 3/4 cup boiling water
- Beachy add-ins such as shells, pebbles, pieces of driftwood, beach glass or glass gems, etc.**
*You can find bags of sand in a home improvement store usually in the garden play ground section. Avoid craft sand from a craft store as this doesn’t work as well.
**Get creative with your add-ins! We gathered our items from outside or the dollar store.
DIRECTIONS FOR BEACH SAND PLAY DOUGH:
In a large bowl, mix flour, sand, salt, and cream of tartar.
Add oil and boiling water and mix well with a wooden spoon.
Dough will look sticky, and will seem like it needs more flour, but resist the urge to add more! As you knead the dough, it will come together and lose its stickiness.
When cool enough to handle, dump onto the counter and knead. Allow to cool completely.
Time to build and play!
