Why do kids love sand so much? I mean, they are so obsessed with it. You can get them hundreds of expensive and latest toys, but they’ll always come back to the good old sand. It’s a win-win situation for both mother and kids, because sand encourages creativity and independent play, thereby being the perfect sensory activity. Not to forget, it’s cheap as well!
We’ve seen several types of play sand being invented in the past and many new will continue to come up in the future. The one that’s trending these days is moon sand.
What Is Moon Sand?
Moon sand, also known as magic sand, moon dough, sand dough, or cloud dough is made with oil and all-purpose flour. In case you’re wondering how it got the name moon sand, it’s because of its soft and crumbly texture, which looks like the moon’s surface.
How To Make Moon Sand?
Making moon sand is extremely easy and requires ingredients that you’re likely to find lying in your pantry. You just have to mix all-purpose flour and oil in 1:8 ratios and your moon sand is ready. Ensure that you mix it well enough so that no lumps are formed.
You can use any type of oil for making moon sand, however, coconut oil and cooking oil are most preferred. If you’re making moon sand for an infant, we would suggest you use coconut oil instead of vegetable cooking oil. This will ensure his safety, even if he puts it in his mouth.
Note: If the flour feels a bit damp, add a little more flour to it. And if it isn’t molding easily, add a teaspoon of oil. You need to keep experimenting till you get the desired texture.
If you want to make the moon sand jazzy and colorful, add powdered paint or spice such as turmeric to it. However, that won’t exactly be ‘moon’ sand. But it will give you a chance to teach your kids about the basics of colors. And they will definitely enjoy mixing colors, so it isn’t all bad, you know. If you want, you can add powdered glitter to the moon sand. It will make it even more inviting and interesting to combine.
You can add food coloring as well, but that will add a bit of moisture to the sand and the texture won’t be the same. The entire idea behind moon sand is that it should be moldable when squeezed in the hand so that kids can make whatever they want with it.
Moon Sand Storage:
Moon sand will easily last two months if you store it in an air-tight container or a zip lock bag, in a dry and cool place.
How To Play With Moon Sand?
Well, that’s something you don’t have to teach a child because they will find a plethora of ways to play with moon sand on their own. Sands are just perfect for open-ended plays. So just sit back and observe your kids stretch their imagination and creativity while playing with moon sand. You won’t even realize when the hours have passed.
If you want to make the session interesting, you can provide your kids plastic spoons, measuring cups, or cupcake and cookie molds. It will help them learn about basic skills such as pouring, tipping, and scooping. Or give them toys, especially toy rockets or spaceships. They will totally enjoy recreating their own version of the moon landing.
As for infants, they’ll simply love running hands through cool and soothing moon sand. You can even teach them to make balls with it by simply squishing with the palms.
Just remember, playing will moon sand can cause a lot of mess, so we would advise you to keep it outside for kids to play. This way, you can easily sweep it or hose it off.
Is Moon Sand And Kinetic Sand The Same?
If you’ve made moon sand before, you must have noticed how similar it is to kinetic sand. But moon sand and kinetic sand are not the same at all. Kinetic sand is basically regular sand coated with silicon oil. Hence, the texture of kinetic sand feels smooth and silky while moon sand feels crumbly.
Since the kinetic sand is extremely smooth and silky, anything that you make with it will start falling apart in just a few minutes of building it. But in the case of moon sand, it will stay put for a long time, all thanks to its coarse texture. This makes moon sand even more popular with the kids as they can make several things out of it and it won’t fall down.
We hope our article answered all the questions on moon sand, especially on the similarity and dissimilarity between moon sand and kinetic sand. If you have any more questions about moon sand, let us know in the comment section below.
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