Good old fashioned bread dough clay is the best treat for the children during our Little Red Hen unit.
Basic Bread Dough Ornament Recipe
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup salt
1 1/2 cups warm water
I make my dough in my Kitchen Aid mixer with the dough hook. I mix it until it is very much like a clay. Add more warm water if it is too dry. Bake your “pretend” bread in a 325 degree oven until hard (about 45 to 60 minutes.
I put out sheets of parchment paper for each child to work with their “bread dough.”
They spend quite a bit of time just seeing all the different ways of creating a bread item – rolls, biscuits, donuts, muffins, pizza. . .
cinnamon rolls!
Look at all our bread goods!
Which one is yours?
Here they are just out of the school ovens!
Off the bread goodies go to housekeeping center! It is the “Little Red Hen's Bakery.”
The bakers are checking the bakery and stocking the shelves.
“What would you like today? A pretzel?”
Oh, so much goodness. . .
I love this! I’m preparing to make it with my children now and they are pretty excited 🙂
is it 325 degrees F
Yes!
How long doest keep in your dramatic play
I normally have it in the center about 4-6 weeks.
Can these be painted?
YES! acrylic paint works best – the dollar bottles you can get at craft stores.
Sorry, do you bake them after letting the children work on the dough, or before they do?
Hello Ally! Thank you for asking, yes, first we prepare the goods with the children and after we bake them in the kitchen ovens.
Bread dough clay looks like the way to go we used play dough and it didn’t last long. The children wanted to make cookies and bread everyday, they also look more lifelike.
Will adding food coloring to water give the dough a real look? How long can you make the dough ahead of forming into bread shapes?
Hi Joyce, you can certainly add food coloring to the dough. I would allow the children to decide if they desire to do so. The dough can be made up to a week ahead of time if you store it in a Ziploc bag in the fridge. However, I encourage you to allow the children to be a part of the dough making process.
Let me know if you have any more questions.
Nice idea! Thanks for sharing