We love to read at our house. LOVE.to.read. In fact, we just moved into our house and the biggest problem we have is that we don’t have bookshelves. So, we can’t unpack the books…! Anyway, odd moving problems aside, my preschooler’s absolute favorite book (this week) is “That’s Not My Panda”. Today we had some fun with the book then…she took a nap. Okay, so actually my first grader played with the panda bear play dough activity. She had lots of fun too!
Materials needed for Panda Bear Play Dough Time:
“That’s Not My Panda” from Usborne Books & More
Conditioner
Corn Starch
Black (& optional white) pom poms
white buttons
Paw print cookie cutter
Bamboo & leaves
Our new home has a wall of bamboo at the fence line. Which is pretty cool since it makes it a privacy fence without the extra cost of real fencing. It had to be trimmed this week, leaving us with a bunch of awesome bamboo stalks.
If you don’t have bamboo available, you could substitute green pipe cleaners and pretend that it’s bamboo. A little imagination won’t hurt!
If you haven’t seen the “That’s Not My…” collection from Usborne, you MUST check it out! We absolutely adore them. So far we have the pig and the panda.
I love them because they help my special needs preschooler understand different types of adjectives. Plus, and a major bonus, she is so interested in feeling the different parts of the animals that she will actually sit still and let me read to her. She’s a little over four years old and I have never had a book capture her attention like these do. I’m plotting ways to get the whole set…
So to make the play dough, I combined a squirt of conditioner and 1 cup of corn starch in a bowl. I did not measure the conditioner. Start with a small amount and increase bit by bit until it combines into a ball. If it gets too goopy, just add more corn starch.
Super easy.
I love it because it’s a very bright white that is hard to accomplish with a flour-based play dough.
Jaida had fun making pandas and feeding them bamboo.
Our Favorite Panda Books For Kids:
We can’t live without these!
Once your child’s creativity is sparked with this fun activity, take it a step further with these engaging resources:
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National Geographic Kids Mission: Panda Rescue: All About Pandas and How to Save Them (NG Kids Mission: Animal Rescue)
Panda Facts Book For Kids: Interesting Facts About PandasLittle PandaGiant: A Panda of the Enchanted Forest (Happy Fox Books) An Educational Fairy Tale in a Children’s Picture Book that Teaches Respect for Animals & Provides a Way for Kids to Get in Touch with NaturePandas Love PizzaThank You, Mr. Panda
More from our Shop
Find even more engaging activities in the Life Over C’s shop!
Planning for an Animal Theme? We’ve done all the work for you!
We now have interactive thematic lesson plans for toddlers (18-35 months) AND preschoolers (3-5 years)! Get ready for fun and learning with unit lesson plans for your ANIMAL THEME. Explore a variety of themed hands-on activities! Easy to follow lesson plans include activity modifications and adaptations to meet the needs of all learners. For more information, click on the graphics below:
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Here are some other great ideas for activities to accompany some really great books!
Poisonous Animals and Itsy Bitsy Spider Craft
Dogs, Dogs! Memory Matching Game
Activity Basket for Kids: I Can Draw Animals!
Sea Animal Paper Plate Aquariums
You may also enjoy these Reading Calendars from Growing Book by Book! Reading ideas and book suggestions for every day!
