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Clay, but not clay


Hot Lava Mama
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I need some sort of material that we can use in our science class to mold various models, for example an animal cell, a model of a bone, a model of a brain, etc.  We have a number of little ones and clay is a bit hard for them to mold. Their hands are not strong enough to manipulate it easily.   I HATE Playdoh, so that isn't an option.  Besides the fact that it crumbles everywhere, it also hardens so we can't reuse it very well.  I was thinking of Sculpy, but that too is a bit hard for little hands.  Is there some amazing product out there that anyone knows about?  :)

Hot Lava Mama

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We use Van Aken - Plastalina Modeling Clay. It is used in clay animation. I use it at co-op with kids as young as 5 or 6 as well as at home with my kids. You can buy it online at Mister Art for $2.67 for a 1lb bar or $2.83 for a set of 4 different colored 0.25 lb bars. I've seen it sold other places as well. I would post a link, but I no longer seem able to do so. 

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I have made something like this before a few years ago but can't do anything with flour currently.  After it cooks and cools it lasts for a few months.  

 

http://www.nickjr.com/home/homemade_play_dough.jhtml

 

ETA: I just noticed you said that you don't want it to dry out.  So, you might want to disregard the rest of this.

I have used homemade model magic http://www.southernasbiscuits.com/2011/11/homemade-model-magic.html

 

The plus of it is that it is cheap. It does dry out fast, so if you need it for a few days you should put a damp towel over it and check it every day.  

 

Some things you should know: it does dry pretty hard but I tried using it for a contour map and it cracked a lot. So I am not sure I would recommend it for something where you are pushing it down onto a piece of cardboard. It looks great if you use it for other "clay" type applications.  

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Is there some amazing product out there that anyone knows about?  :)

 

 

Yes, there is an amazing product.  It's called  EZ Shape modeling clay.  It's non-hardening and you don't need to bake it either.  It's really easy to mold.  We have the "20 color sampler" and the "52 piece variety pack" (the first two pictured) and JB loves it.  The price is great too!

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How about kinetic sand?  It does not dry out, but I'm not sure how intricate your models will be. 

 

Just a suggestion, model magic may be better.  I don't know.  I've never used it. 

 

I'm going to retract my suggestions.  Whatever everyone else is saying will work.  Kinectic sand will not. 

 

Sorry about that!

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Can the EZ Shape be used like PlayDoh? DD loves playing with PlayDoh but I hate it. Dries out, feels nasty, smells terrible,

 

You should be able to.  It won't dry out or feel nasty.  I don't remember if it has a smell.  If it does, I don't think it's terrible.  

 

A reviewer on Rainbow Resource says they replaced using Play-Doh with the EZ Shape clay. 

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You should be able to.  It won't dry out or feel nasty.  I don't remember if it has a smell.  If it does, I don't think it's terrible.  

 

A reviewer on Rainbow Resource says they replaced using Play-Doh with the EZ Shape clay. 

Thank you! Off to order some for dd stocking!

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