I’ll never forget my first day student teaching as an undergrad student at NYU. I was placed in a Reggio-inspired preschool in NYC (where I later got my first teaching job).
We were doing all the things to get our classroom ready for the 3’s first school visits – I remember I was using goo gone to scrub off old labels on cubbies, when the beloved school aid, Z, knocked on our door asking if we’d like her to make us some fresh playdough. Everyone immediately said yes and cheered and hugged her and thanked her profusely.
I made a mental note:
1. You can make your own playdough.
2. Teachers are very excited about this.
About an hour later, Z knocked again, this time pushing a cart that held about 10 bowls of dough. She handed us a big batch of fresh, orange, still-warm playdough before moving on to her next delivery! Again, the teachers hugged and kissed her and thanked her profusely and we all took a small piece.The warm dough felt glorious.
The next morning, we set up a few invitations to play around the room as children were scheduled to come one by one to explore their new classroom and meet their teachers. One by one, they looked around the room quietly – some more apprehensive than others. And one by one, they started talking when they sat down at the playdough table. Again, I made a mental note.
After that first day, playdough was a big part of my teaching experience.
The more time I spent with children, the more I understood why teachers put out playdough on the first day of school – and 2nd and 3rd and 4th……etc.
It’s because giving kids (and grown ups) a ball of dough is basically like giving them a big ball of comfort. It’s familiar, it’s soft, and you don’t have to “know how to play.” You can just start with a small touch.
All open ended materials, like dough, inspire creativity and critical thinking.
And because dough also has the sensory element, it can also help with focus, self-regulation, social interaction, language development, etc. Dough can pretty much be used as a tool to support ANY sort of learning. I think that’s my most favorite thing about it. It’s not a tool for X, Y, or Z. It’s simply a tool.