Homemade Silly Putty

Some of our most powerful memories are triggered by the senses. The smell of your mom's flowers, the taste of your grandma's cooking, the look and feel of the macaroni cup holder you made for your dad. Engaging in sensory activities helps children learn, comparing the feel of two different textures, playing with different smells, etc.

A great sensory activity is to play with silly putty. Stretching it then squishing it around in your hands, watching it pick up different colours, and more. Why not make some of your own silly putty to play with this weekend? There are only a few ingredients, and they're usually found around the house.

Homemade Silly Putty

1/4 cup glue

3/8 cup water

1 Tablespoon Borax

Combine glue with 1/4 cup of water. Set aside. Dissolve Borax in 1/8 cup of water. Combine the two mixtures together. Add additional Borax 1 teaspoon at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.

To enhance the sensory effect, add food colouring to make it a different colour, or add some essential oil to add scent. 

My personal favourite thing to do with silly putty is to press it onto coloured comics, and see the silly putty pick up the images.

Silly putty can be a choking hazard, so we recommend it only for older children who are no longer interested in putting everything into their mouth.

More on this topic: - Kids