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I love Valentine's Day. Not because of the candy (but I do love candy!), but because of all the fun things you can do with kids. There are no shortage of props you can purchase for inexpensive that can enhance any activity. The dollar store is full of fun items to craft with, add to playdough, or use to create a fun sensory bin. Valentine activities can be used all month long and is a wonderful way to teach kids about the heart shape and the colors red, pink, and purple (and how you mix those colors).
Playdough is quite popular in our house. My youngest (of 3) benefits from 13 year of collecting supplies, cookie cutters, and various tools which she can enjoy with her playdough. I always have some on hand or am ready to make it, trying different recipes along the way.
This beautiful, rose colored playdough is a no-cook recipe from The Imagination Tree. I added some red food coloring (less for pink, more for red), glitter
, and rose oil
for a complete sensory experience.
As an invitation to play, I put out the playdough, some red faux diamonds
, silk roses, foam heart picks
, and heart DecoPics (cupcake decoration) . Most of this stuff I purchased at the dollar store. There were no instructions, no "you must create this..."; just a table full of tools to explore. 
When you provide an open play experience, you never know what your child will create. It's all up to them.
Materials:
- Your favorite Playdough
- Various Valentine type/inspired items such as flowers, gems, cupcake decorations, floral decorations, etc
Don't forget to leave a comment about your experience. And feel free to share your pictures on my Facebook page!
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