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Colorful Rainbow Oobleck

May 16, 201375,194 views
Messy Play
Quick Play Idea with colorful oobleck Save
colorful goop Save
messy play ideas Save
colorful goop oobleck Save
pig play with goop Save
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set up for messy play Save

by TurkeyMom in Messy Play

Ages2–6 yrs
Prep15 min
Activity30 min
Leveleasy
MessHigh
Works for1:1 · Small group · Class

Mix cornstarch and water into oobleck, tint seven cups in rainbow colors (plus pink), and pour them into a clear bin for squishy, swirly messy play. When the colors turn muddy brown, add toy pigs for pigs-in-mud fun.

⚠️ Safety first

  • Supervise messy sensory play at all times, especially with toddlers who mouth things.
  • Taste-safe is not a snack: cornstarch and water are non-toxic if mouthed, but don't let kids eat the oobleck.
  • Food color can stain hands, clothes and surfaces. Use a drop cloth and play clothes.
  • Spilled oobleck makes floors slippery. Play outdoors or on a drop cloth and wipe up spills.
  • Don't rinse large amounts of oobleck down the sink. It can clog drains, so scrape it into the trash.
  • If you use paint instead of food color, choose washable, non-toxic kids' paint and keep it away from children who still mouth materials.

Steps

  1. Lay a drop cloth outdoors and set the clear flat bin on it.

  2. Put cornstarch in each of 7 small clear cups.

  3. Slowly add water to each cup, stirring, until it feels squishy.

  4. Test it: it should act like a solid when you squeeze it and flow like a liquid when you let go.

  5. Add a different food color to each cup: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple and pink.

  6. Pour the colors into the bin one by one.

  7. Dig in with your hands and feel the oobleck.

  8. Swirl and mix the colors, and watch them turn muddy brown.

  9. Add toy pigs to the brown goop and play pigs in the mud.

Tips

  • Don't be afraid! Grab a drop cloth and head outdoors for some glorious messy goopy fun.from the author
  • Over-mixing the rainbow colors gives you muddy brown. It didn't stop my 4 year old. We threw in a couple of pigs and kept playing.from the author
  • Pour the colors in one by one. They look so grand and vibrant that my preschooler gave out a bunch of 'ooohs and aahhhs'.from the author
  • Surprisingly my sensory-loving toddler was on and off with this one, but my 4 year old was completely engrossed and played for a very long time.from the author

Make it your own

  • Use paint instead of food colors.
  • Once it turns brown, add toy pigs for pigs-in-mud play.
  • Try goop on pinecones or an oobleck fountain (see the author's earlier oobleck posts).
  • Try the author's sudsy goop recipe for a different texture.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · May 2013
Quick Play Idea with colorful oobleck
If you haven't made oobleck before, your kids HAVE to mess around with this awesome substance at least once. Grab a drop cloth and head outdoors for glorious messy goopy fun.
1 / 7

Colorful Rainbow Oobleck: the original post

Welcome to this week’s quick play idea. If you have made oobleck before then you know how much fun it is for the kids. If you haven’t then this post is for you and I’d like to say ” Cmon, your kids HAVE to mess around with this awesome substance atleast once” . Don’t be afraid, grab a drop cloth and head outdoors for some glorious messy goopy fun. We played with this vibrant oobleck when the weather started warming up and we could do activities outside. To make goop or oobleck all you need is cornstarch. We have explored oobleck before and even played with pinecones and goop.

Oobleck Recipe

Slowly add water to cornstarch until you get to a squishy consistency. The substance should act as a solid when you try to hold it but act as a liquid and easily flow when you stop applying pressure. This is when you know you got the perfect play material and the oobleck recipe was a success! I made oobleck in small clear cups and added food colors ( you could use paint) to create 6 colors of the rainbow. We also added pink because you know it is PINK!

set up for messy play

I poured all the 7 colors into a clear plastic flat box a.k.a our sensory bin one by one. The colors looked so grand and vibrant and my preschooler gave out a bunch of “ooohs and aahhhs” It really is amazing to see the kids enjoy all the hands on activities we do together.

colorful goop After that, it was simply time to dig into the oobleck and have some sensorial fun. How easy was that? Yeah cornstarch, water and color.

messy play ideas

After doing multiple art projects my 4 year old is very much aware of the consequences of over mixing the rainbow colors— muddy brown. It didn’t stop her.

colorful goop oobleck

We kept playing with the rainbow oobleck and ended up with a super muddy brown goop. Well, we threw in a couple of pigs and continued the play. The oobleck didn’t look quite as pretty as before but pigs in mud was so much FUN.

pig play with goop

Surprisingly my sensory loving toddler was on and off in this activity. But my 4 year old was completely engrossed with feeling the oobleck on her hands. She played in there for a very long time. Pigs and cornstarch mud seemed like a fun way to enjoy the afternoon.

goop play

Thanks for reading

You can see our sudsy goop play and life after goop play for additional oobleck recipes for play

fb sensory activities with goop

This is a GREAT sensory play activity even babies and toddlers can enjoy.

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Some highlights

Previous installments rainbow rice play idea baby play imaginative play farm

What readers say

💬 3 comments

✨ Readers' twist

Made with liquid laundry detergent

A reader made it with a toddler using liquid laundry detergent. Caution: detergent isn't taste-safe and can irritate eyes and skin, so supervise closely.

“I made this with my toddler using liquid laundry detergent. Success!!”
Dawn, Feb 2014

Tried it?

Reviewed before it appears. No links, and please no children's names.

Read all 3 comments

  1. Dawn · Feb 2014

    I made this with my toddler using liquid laundry detergent. Success!!

  2. Maureen · May 2013

    this activity is so beautiful - I would be right in there playing too

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