FAMILY THINGS TO DO AT HOME
Craft Ideas from Highlights!
What You’ll Need
HOMEMADE CLAY
EXTEND THE FUN
2 cups baking soda Youngest kids: Count how many drops of food coloring
1 cup cornstarch you add to each piece of dough. How many drops of
coloring did you use for one piece? How many drops of
1¼ cups water
Food coloring
Wiggle eyes, feathers, chenille sticks, craft sticks,
pompoms (optional)
What You'll Do
1. Pour the baking soda, cornstarch, and water in a pot.
2. Cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring until it
looks like mashed potatoes.
3. Let the clay cool, then divide it into four pieces.
food coloring did you use all together? How many cups
total of baking soda, cornstarch, and water did you use?
If a friend came over to play and you wanted to double
the clay, how many cups total would go in the pot?
Younger kids: Many food coloring boxes have four
colors: red, yellow, green, and blue. If you make each
piece of dough one color, you have four colors. How
would you make a new color? What color clay would you
get if you mixed red and blue clay?
Older kids: Clay can be molded into shapes that are
useful as well as fun. What useful shapes could you
make? Are there shapes that you could make, such as
4. Add food coloring and knead until smooth.
5. Turn your clay into amazing shapes
and fun things. Add wiggle eyes,
feathers, and other craft supplies
to make cute critters!
6. Leave your art in a sunny place
to dry.
28 | S T. J O H N S parent M A G A Z I N E
bowls, that would be useful to other people? Think
about using some of your clay to make a small gift for a
friend or family member.