Do you need a fun way to engage young kids in hands-on learning? Look no further than our list of free printable playdough mats you can download! From weather, rainbows, flowers, bugs, and more, these fun playdough mats are an excellent activity for improving fine motor skills, language development, and awesome sensory play for preschoolers and kindergarteners. Grab some playdough and a playdough mat to get started!
What Are Playdough Mats?
Playdough mats are printable mats that you can download and are a great tool for different things like sensory play, explaining life cycles, teaching sight words, learning the alphabet, etc.
These free mats are the perfect way to engage kids in their lesson plans and help them build essential skills like language, social, creativity, and important fine motor skills!
Benefits of Playdough Mats
- Perfect for kids of all ages: Young children can learn basic concepts like shapes and strengthen fine motor muscles, while older kids can work on their focus, creativity, and social interaction!
- Fine motor skills: Kids can use their hand muscles to manipulate play dough into different shapes according to what they need.
- Sensory experience: Using fun materials like Kool-Aid or Jello exposes kids to different colors, textures, and smells.
- Emotional development: Kids can express their feelings and gain a better sense of self by using the play dough to solve problems.
- Social interaction: Kids can work on these mats together, building new relationships and working together to solve problems.
- Independence and confidence: Kids can also work on their mats by themselves, allowing them to solve problems and create masterpieces.
- Focus and attention: Using playdough mats requires kids to place their attention on the task at hand, enhancing their focus.
- Math skills: Playdough mats help kids to recognize basic shapes and patterns.
- Language development: Helps children to practice letter sounds and letter recognition.
How to Make Your Own Playdough
Making play dough is not only a great way to save money, but it is also a fun indoor activity to do with the kids! Our favorite no cook playdough recipe is a great one to make! Or try one of these unique playdough recipes below:
- Super Soft Playdough
- Kool-Aid Playdough
- Taste Safe Frosting Playdough
- Even MORE Homemade Playdough Recipes
Tips For Using Printable Playdough Mats
Tip 1: Protect your mats by laminating or placing them in clear page protectors!
Tip 2: Set up your area with playdough, a few tools, and mats. Less is more when it comes to accessories or tools, as it may overwhelm your kiddos and decrease their attention span!
Tip 3: If working in a large group situation, try rotating three kiddos through the station at a time, so it does not become chaotic.
Tip 4: There is no wrong way to play with the playdough mat but you can demonstrate how to roll playdough if your kiddos need help getting started. Or they can roll balls and squish them into the shapes. They can also use a playdough knife to cut chunks as well.
Tip 5: Add letter stamps for kiddos who want to stamp related words if more time allows.
Tip 6: Read about each playdough mat and ask questions to encourage discussion. But also, allow for creative playtime without instruction or talking if desired. Keep in mind that you can interrupt their thought process as well if they are calmly playing. It’s a balance!
Free Printable Playdough Mats
Add playdough mats to our Preschool Themes Bundle!
Playdough Mats For Art
You can easily add playful art projects to your playdough activities when even explore famous artists with our printable Famous Artist Playdough Mats.
More Fun Ways To Combine Art & Playdough
Alphabet Playdough Mats
This Alphabet playdough mat bundle covers letter recognition and sounds to help kids strengthen their language development and become better communicators!
Shape Playdough Mats
Learn all there is to know about different shapes using our Shape playdough mats! This fun mat set covers everything from squares to hearts for the ultimate sensory experience!
Earth Day Playdough Mat
Learn about Mother Earth and recycling with this Earth Day playdough mat! This fun mat consists of a recycling lesson that teaches kids about the importance of recycling in protecting the Earth!
Pond Life Playdough Mats
These Pond Life playdough mats explore the different types of animals that live in a pond with fun facts about each one! Talk to your students or kids about pond life while doing this activity, and maybe even take them to your nearest pond for real-world experience!
Bug Playdough Mats
Bugs are everywhere and help our planet thrive! This Bug Life Cycle playdough mat teaches kids about the life cycles of different bugs, from caterpillars to flies and ladybugs! If you want to take this activity even further, go outside and find some bugs to observe.
Weather Playdough Mats
Weather is all around us and changes daily. The weather helps us decide what to wear or what activities to do! This weather playdough mat set is a great way to teach kids about the different types of weather and what they mean.
Explore all of our weather activities here.
Garden Playdough Mats
Learning about gardens is a great idea for a spring theme! These Garden playdough mats show everything you need to know to plant a garden. This also makes a great sequencing activity for early math skills.
You might also like: Fun Plant Activities for Kids
Rainbow Playdough Mat
Practice early math skills and colors with this build-a-rainbow playdough mat game. You can also use our rainbow foam playdough recipe! You can find the rainbow playdough mat here.
Roll A Skeleton
Awesome, spooky fun for Halloween with a roll-a-skeleton playdough mat!
Grow a Flower Playdough Mat
What does a flower need to grow? Use playdough and this free printable flower playdough mat to learn what plants need!
Plant Needs Playdough Mats
What does a plant need to grow? Learn more about the process with playdough fun! Get the free plant needs playdough mats here.
Find more plant activities for kids here and grow something today!
More Fun Preschool Activities
Printable Playdough Project Pack
With tons of easy-to-print recipes and exclusive playdough mats that encourage early learning, look forward to a year of sensory-rich play!
- Homemade Playdough Recipes including traditional, no-cook, super soft, and even taste-safe ideas!
- Playdough Mats with an Early Learning Theme, including space, seasons, volcanos, bees, ABCs, 123s, shapes, weather, insects, plants, and more!
- Playdough tips, tricks, and ideas!
