The Gingerbread theme in our house is no joke. It's a HUGE mess of AWESOME! It's also a delightful way to make my house smell delicious. We started off the day by playing a bit in the school room to make drop off consistent and normal. Then we headed to the kitchen for the rest of the day. Our first gingerbread activity was homemade gingerbread finger paint. I love making this finger paint. It is colored by spices and smells delicious! I even learned this year that I can make it in the microwave which means I can make it with my kindergarten class, yay!
Gingerbread Finger Paint, Combine in saucepan or glass bowl:
1/2 c. cornstarch
3 T. sugar
2 c. cold water
1 T. Cinnamon
1 T. Ginger
1 T. Cloves
Cook together until thickened. The spices make it a brown color and it smells lovely!
To cook in the microwave: stir, cook 1 minute, repeat until thick. If you decide to add some food coloring, and leave out the spices for regular finger paint, just add a squirt of liquid dish detergent after cooking it and that helps the food coloring to not stain. I don't add the detergent when I don't add food coloring (like today).
Our next gingerbread activity was based on the book "Gingerbread Friends" by Jan Brett. In the book the gingerbread baby wants friends to play with. We made him friends by making 3 gingerbread friends all holding hands. Then we decorated them with crayons and stickers.
At snack time each child got a gingerbread cookie, some frosting, and goodies to decorate with!
After snack we played with gingerbread play dough. We haven't pulled out the play dough since summer camps and I was surprised that everyone was engaged for a half hour or longer until pickup.
Stir together the flour, salt and cream of tartar in a large pot. Next add the water and oil. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. Make sure to use a super duty spoon because once it gets thick it's like stirring play dough! When thick, remove from head and knead until smooth.
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