These easy cloud dough recipes for hands-on sensory play will delight any child! There are two simple ways to make cloud dough, or as it’s also called, moon sand. Cloud dough is one of our favorite sensory recipes, and these simple cloud dough variations below add a fun twist with different scents!
What Is Cloud Dough Made Of?
Cloud dough is a simple recipe of two ingredients, flour and oil. The combination creates a silky mixture that can be packed and molded but is still crumbly. It is light, airy, and doesn’t leave a sticky mess on the hands. Bonus, it sweeps up easily too!
There are two simple ways to make cloud dough. One is completely taste-safe{vegetable oil} and the other is the original{baby oil}. Both use only two ingredients and can be made in two minutes. All you need is flour and oil.For the full cloud dough recipes and more fun variations, read on…
Watch Cloud Dough Recipe Video!
Is it Cloud Dough or Moon Sand?
Often, the two names are interchangeable. However, we have an entirely different recipe for moon sand. While the cloud dough recipe is a mixture of flour and oil, it is considered taste-safe if made with vegetable oil.
On the other hand, our moon sand recipe is a mixture of sand, cornstarch, and water which is not taste-safe!
Also check out our sand dough recipe, a fun mix of sand and oil!
PinIs Cloud Dough Taste Safe?
Yes, if you use flour and vegetable oil (not flour and baby oil), our basic cloud dough recipe is taste-safe or non-toxic, making it a great sensory play recipe for kids of all ages! However, raw flour may contain harmful bacteria. You can review this guide on heat-treating flour.
NOTE: Cloud dough is NOT edible, and we do not support encouraging kids to taste the flour and oil mixture.
How Long Does Cloud Dough Last?
Cloud dough is quick and easy to throw together, and it does last for a while! I store our cloud dough in a container loosely covered with a lid. Make sure to check the contents for mold before use. If the cloud dough feels dry, add a touch of oil and mix!
10 Cloud Dough Recipes to Try
Once you have tried the basic recipe, there are a few variations to change it for different seasons or themes! You can easily add scents, colors, and an extra ingredient or two for a cool twist on classic sensory play.
Cloud Dough (Original Recipe)
This has to be our all-time favorite recipe! Whether you make it with vegetable oil or baby oil, you must try this amazing sensory play recipe.
Apple Pie Cloud Dough
Whip up a pretend pie! This is a perfect cloud dough activity for the baking season! Set your children up with their own pie-making cloud dough station. You get to bake, and they get to play!
Hot Chocolate Cloud Dough
Perfect for winter sensory play. Take your basic cloud dough and add some cocoa powder! We had some extra marshmallows too!
Christmas Cloud Dough
It smells like cookies! We used our taste-safe recipe to make this awesome-smelling cookie cloud dough recipe. We added a common scent and some sprinkles!
PinScented Cloud Dough
Adding extracts and natural flavorings to your cloud dough is so much fun. There are many ways to scent dough, from fragrant kitchen spices to beautiful essential oils. What will you try? Make a sniffing contest out of your cloud dough.
PinBuckwheat Cloud Dough
You can use whatever flour you have on hand for making cloud dough. You will get a different color and slightly different texture. I had an enormous amount of buckwheat flour a relative left with us, gave it a try, and it turned out great!
Fizzing Cloud Dough
We love bubbling and fizzing science experiments so we added a couple of extra ingredients to our cloud dough after we enjoyed it for the week. Simple, hands-on science is terrific for young children!
Pumpkin Cloud Dough
For fall, I added a fun ingredient to our cloud dough. Our basic cloud dough recipe is so easy to change with the seasons or for your favorite themes!
Beach Theme Cloud Dough
Instead of beach sand or outdoor sand, use the cloud dough recipe to create a sandy beach! Add seashells, plastic crabs, and small sand castle molds!
PinOcean Cloud Dough
You can also add a few drops of blue food coloring to the original cloud dough recipe to create a theme like this ocean cloud dough sensory bin!
Making Moon Craters
Add this to your space exploration unit and learn all about craters using this cloud dough recipe!
More Fun Sensory Recipes to Try
- Super Soft Cornstarch Dough
- Clean Mud
- Kool-Aid Playdough
- Sand Foam
- Magic Mud
- Chick Pea Foam
- Soap Foam
- DIY Kinetic Sand
Free Sensory Play Guide
Click on the image below or the link for our complete list of sensory play ideas for kids and to grab the free sensory play guide!
