Make some Sand Cloud Dough for Your Preschoolers this summer

Can’t get to the beach right now, but your kids want to play in the sand?

Make this summertime Sand Cloud Dough for your toddlers and preschoolers today.

It’s super easy to create some mold-able sand cloud dough to promote tons of fine motor hand strengthening and sensory work!

Have your kids ever played with cloud dough? It’s very similar in texture to kinetic sand or moon sand. It sticks together like play-dough when squeezed, but comes apart easily.

Sandy Cloud Dough Sensory Play

Did you know that playing with cloud dough is considered “heavy work” from a sensory standpoint? (Get 25 more heavy work ideas here)

That means that it helps the body focus and relax! (You can learn more about heavy work at My Kid’s Table.)

That’s why cloud dough is a fabulous brain break activity in between harder school subjects like math and writing. Or just as a boredom buster on a hot summer day.

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It’s fun to use cookie cutters or sand castle toys as well as just using your hands to shape it. This cloud dough is the perfect consistency for building sand castles.

My kids get so excited when they find cloud dough in their workbox because it helps them re-charge and get their body and mind prepared for the next subject. (Find out more about how we use workboxes.)

If you are looking to add more heavy work to your child’s daily routine, check out this list of heavy work activities for school.

My kids love to play with sand castle beach toys in their beach cloud dough!

We used our Melissa and Doug Speck Seahorse Sand Ice Cream Set with our Sandy Beach Cloud Dough.

Extend Your Sand Cloud Dough Fun & Talk about the Beach

One of my favorite books to use when I worked with kiddos on their language skills as a pediatric speech-language pathologist was Just Grandma and Me by Mercer Mayer. It’s the sweet and funny story of the day that Little Critter spends at the beach with his grandma.

There are so many things happening on each page of the book! It makes learning fun when you and your toddlers and preschoolers explore the pages and talk about all of the objects you find–it’s great for vocabulary development!

One of my kids’ favorite games is Cranium’s Sounds of the Seashore listening memory game. Sadly, Cranium no longer makes it (look for it at garage or tag sales). But, one of our favorite game makers, Educational Insights, (who also makes The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel game) has a pattern-matching game, Sophie’s Seashell Scramble that’s just right for 3 to 6 year old kiddos.

And your kids will love the Free Printable Seashell Activity Placemat over at The Art Kit.

Create some mold-able beach sand cloud dough with these instructions. It’s super easy!

Ingredients Needed for Sandy Beach Cloud Dough

5 to 6 cups play sand
4 cups baking soda
1 15-oz bottle of conditioner

Stir together 1 bottle of hair conditioner (I bought a cheap bottle of Coconut scented from the dollar store so it’ll even smell like the beach!) with 5 to 6 cups of sand and 4 cups of baking soda. (FYI, you can get big bags of baking soda at large box stores like Costco and Sam’s Club).

That’s it! Just stir it until it’s all mixed together! Super easy!

Get a FREE printable copy of the recipe PLUS a printable play mat for your sandy cloud dough from our Free Resource Library

Storing Your Cloud Dough

I stored this in the garage in a covered container (away from cats! 💩) I’ve heard other people say that theirs lasts from anywhere from one week to one month without getting moldy. However, if it starts to smell funky, throw it in the trash! 😊