Navigating Questions

In the last two posts, I shared the story of our dough exploration. The first post is the story of the children playing with premade playdough. As the children played, questions about the dough's origin, scent, and composition came up. In part two, inspired by premade dough, the children wanted to make salt dough and create a candy shop. If you wish to read the complete story and our insights from this work, parts one and two are in the archives.

In part three, we will share a few stories based on the children's questions about the dough-making process.

After baking the dough, I returned it to the children. They wanted to paint the dried shapes in bold colors for a candy shop. Acrylic paints were the best choice for this project. The children started painting their creations. As they worked, I asked them about the salt dough process. As our conversation continued, the children asked us questions about the process.

The children planned to paint the salt dough after baking it and wanted to use specific colors to create play candy. One child asked if we could add a base color to the next batch of dough?

During the excitement of making a new dough, the children did not consider mixing color into it. The plan was to create a dough and paint it. The children discovered how much effort making dough required, then modified the process. After a short discussion, the children decided to add color to the next batch of dough.

Another question came up about playing with the dough. After mixing the first batch of dough, some children, not part of the original group, wanted to play with it. These children did not want to make candy but whatever inspired them. The group of children that started the project only wanted to create a candy shop. While discussing how to share the dough, one child said, "playdough is for playing with." Then they pointed in the direction of the premade dough containers on a nearby shelf. The same child added, "the stuff we made is for painting." What would you say if you were the educator present during this exchange?

At first, I said nothing and continued to listen to the exchange. Often children will come up with a solution on their own. Often educators step into children's conversations too soon because the conversation touches a nerve and connects to our personal beliefs about fairness. The children could not compromise in this scenario, so I offered two solutions. I invited the original group to share some of the dough. I also suggested that the other children make a batch of dough. My suggestions started a discussion about fairness. In the end, the original group offered to share their dough.

The children continued to paint their dough candy. When finished, they used the dough creations as props as they played. As the days progressed, the dough exploration evolved as children became interested in making different types of dough. Together we explored more recipes from the Mudworks book. Some doughs were well received, and others were not. All of the children enjoyed the dough-making process. The science, texture, and messiness of creating dough are attractive to young children. A few weeks later, the children moved on to other projects.

Playing with dough is a classic activity. Interest in making dough will come and go but will always be a part of our work with school-age children. Simple ingredients create simple pleasures. The possibilities of flour, water, and salt are incredible.

What materials do the children in your program return to again and again?

How do you help children navigate sharing materials in your program?