My plan
Fun Littles

Fun and easy kids activities

Silky Soft Goop

Apr 9, 202056,440 views
Messy Play
Sensory Activities for Kids : Silky Soft Goop Recipe Save
soft goop recipe Save
sensory activities for kids goop in hands Save
mixing colors in soft goop recipe Save
flowing silky smooth goop recipe Save
smooth oobleck play Save

by TurkeyMom in Messy Play

Ages2–6 yrs
Prep10 min
Activity30 min
Leveleasy
MessHigh
Works for1:1 · Small group · Class

Mix cornstarch with liquid starch to make a free-flowing, silky smooth goop that oozes through fingers. Unlike regular oobleck, it doesn't turn solid when pressed, which makes it a great prompt for describing words and science questions.

⚠️ Safety first

  • Not taste-safe: liquid starch is a laundry product that contains soap and other substances. Keep the goop out of mouths and eyes, and supervise closely, especially with toddlers.
  • Wash hands well after play.
  • Kool-Aid, food color and liquid watercolors can stain hands and clothes. Use smocks or old clothes.
  • Scrape leftover goop into the trash rather than the sink. Cornstarch mixtures can clog drains.

Before the kids arrive

  • Make sure you have enough liquid starch: plan on a bit more than 8 oz for 2 cups of cornstarch.
  • Cover the table and set out the tub, with smocks if you plan to add color.

Steps

  1. Pour 2 cups of cornstarch into a large tub.

  2. Add about 2 oz of liquid starch for every 1/2 cup of cornstarch, so about 8 oz for 2 cups.

  3. Mix with your hands, adding a little more liquid starch until the goop is free-flowing and silky soft.

  4. Pick up the goop by the handful and let it flow back into the tub.

  5. Keep squishing. It starts a teeny bit sticky and gets softer and smoother the more you play.

  6. Try pressing it and rolling it. Does it turn solid or make a ball? Talk about what you feel.

  7. When you want color, add a little unsweetened Kool-Aid, gel food color or liquid watercolor and swirl it in.

  8. Wash your hands. An adult scrapes the leftover goop into the trash.

Tips

  • Play with it plain white first. With all the white you can see how smooth and fluffy the actual goop is. I was surprised the kids waited that long for color!from the author
  • The texture is squishy, but it won't mold into a ball or anything. It is very free flowing.from the author
  • It really brings out the vocabulary. My kids called it 'fur goop', 'cloud goop', 'glue goop' and 'super soft goop'. Ask kids to find their own names for it.from the author
  • Use it for science talk. My 5 year old asked why it doesn't turn solid when pressed. Regular cornstarch and water oobleck does, but this goop uses liquid starch instead of water, so it doesn't have that property.from the author
  • Involve the kids in experimenting with the materials. Many of our sensory activities become science experiments that way.from the author

Make it your own

  • Make a batch of regular cornstarch and water oobleck alongside it and compare how each one behaves when pressed.
  • Add a little unsweetened Kool-Aid, gel food color or liquid watercolor and swirl the colors through the white goop.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · April 2020
Sensory Activities for Kids : Silky Soft Goop Recipe
This is only the smoothest, softest goop! It enthralled my kids so much that they christened it fur goop, cloud goop, glue goop and super soft goop.
1 / 8

Silky Soft Goop: the original post

2 ingredient silky smooth goop recipe!

We usually do all of our sensory activities on a whim. I almost always involve my children when we are experimenting with a few materials and they love that part the best. By that process many of our sensory activities for kids become science experiments as well.

So what is this silky smooth goop recipe?

It is only the smoothest, softest goop that has enthralled my kids to no bounds that they christened it” fur goop”, “cloud goop”, “glue goop”, “super soft goop” . Just a few names they used to express the fantastic smooth texture they were experiencing with this awesome goop.

flowing silky smooth goop recipe

Doesn’t this sensory activity look so fun? It sure was. The goop oozed and flowed freely. They picked it up by the handful and let it flow back into the tub…

sensory activities for kids goop in hands The goop started off a teeny bit sticky. But the more they played with it the softer, smoother and less sticky it became.

smooth oobleck play

The texture was squishy although they don’t mold into a ball or anything.. It is very free flowing.

soft goop recipe

flowing goop

The kids finally requested color ( I was surprised that they waited that long for color!) But it turned out great since with all the white you can see how smooth and fluffy the actual goop is.

We added a bit of Kool-Aid (unsweetened drink mix) to it. But you could add any color ( we love the Wilton Gel Food Colors and the Sax Liquid Watercolors)

mixing colors in soft goop recipe

Sensory Activities for language skills and critical/scientific thinking

I can’t say enough about engaging in sensory activities with the kids! It really brings out the vocabulary in them. My kids used so many words to describe the texture. My 5 year old asked quite a few science based questions in terms of the ingredients ( why doesn’t it turn into solid when I press it” - you will understand the meaning of this question when you see the materials used )

Materials Needed( links to products used provided below) Liquid Starch Cornstarch

Process

making smooth goop

For very 1/2 cup of cornstarch (cornflour) add 2 ounces of liquid starch and go from there.

For our activity I had about 2 cups of cornstarch(cornflour) and a bit more than 8 ounces of liquid starch.

Keep mixing the liquid starch to the cornstarch until you get a free-flowing silky soft goop.

Please Note : this will NOT be a non-Newtonian substance meaning it will not behave like regular oobleck. Regular cornstarch+water mixture will behave like a solid when applied pressure (pressing it) but will behave like a liquid when let loose. This silky smooth goop does not have that property since we are using liquid starch instead of water but the texture is to die for!

Liquid starch in itself is a mixture of cornstarch, oil, soap and other substances.. Combining these two materials has resulted in a goop with an amazing texture.

Thanks for reading

More sensory activities for kids can be found on our category page

Check out our sudsy goop recipe

Our super fun color changing goop

Rainbow Goop here

Here is a gorgeous edible glow in the dark goop from Fun at home with kids

A frozen watermelon goop from Learn Play Imagine

A dancing Goop from Housing A Forest

A new goop recipe which is SILKY SMOOTH from Blog Me Mom

What readers say

No comments yet. Be the first to tell us how it went.

Tried it?

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

Similar activities

1-Ingredient Edible Rainbow Slime

40 min2–6 yrs

Lemon Suds Eruptions

40 min2–7 yrs

Colorful Rainbow Oobleck

45 min2–6 yrs

Homemade Rocks and Gems

40 min4–8 yrs
🛒 Materials