Growing a Jeweled Rose: Play Recipes, Science and Kids Activities

A child turns one smooth rock sideways and pauses. There is a mouth hiding in the edge. A little white paint makes a ghost. One round stone becomes an eyeball. The lumpy green one was clearly a stitched monster all along.   Halloween rock painting begins as a craft and quickly becomes a table full of characters. Children turn, study, paint, and rename each stone. There is no template to keep up with and no reason for two monsters to match. For more playful ways to celebrate, visit our Halloween Activities for Kids collection. Also check out our  Fall Activities for Kids collection to find more ideas for autumn afternoons.

A little hand becomes a smiling pumpkin. The next one turns into a friendly vampire. She looks across the table at the orange fingers, pointy teeth, and crooked smiles, then reaches for another piece of paper. “Can mine be a ghost?” Soon, another little hand is spread across the page.

It starts with a leaf. Two crooked eyes and a little mouth are all it takes. “It’s a ghost.” After that, they start turning up everywhere. One hides in the rice. Another stretches between two hands. One disappears beneath a pile of bubbles. Then a little white ghost shoots straight into the air. Apparently, ghosts don’t have very many rules.

There are some ingredients you can bring to the table without anyone noticing. Marshmallows aren't one of them. The bag isn't even open yet, and the kids already want in. A few tumble into the bowl. They know these soft, squishy things. They've dropped them into cups of hot chocolate, toasted them over fires, and eaten plenty straight from the bag. But today, we're going to find out what happens when we don't eat them. Soon they will puff and stretch and stick to just about everything. And somewhere in all that mess, the marshmallows will stop being a treat waiting in a bowl and become something little hands can really get into. Marshmallow play dough. For more homemade doughs that begin in the kitchen and end up on the play table, explore our Play Dough Recipes for Kids collection. And if this has the kids looking at the pantry a little differently, our Play Recipes for Kids collection is full of more ingredients that don't stay ordinary for long. What You...