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February 13, 2013

How to Make Slime and Valentines

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My son really wanted to make his own valentines this year and after a couple different ideas settled on passing out slime!  Making slime is really fun, super easy, and (surprisingly) not messy.
How to Make Slime with glue and Borax

How to Make Slime:

(Click here for the Borax-free recipe)

  1. Pour 8oz of Elmer’s glue into a glass bowl.
  2. Add in 8oz of warm water. (You can just fill up the empty glue bottle to save on dishes!)
  3. Add whatever color food coloring you choose.
  4. Stir the mixture.
  5. Put 1 teaspoon of Borax (a laundry product) into a small cup.
  6. Fill the cup up most of the way with water.  I just eyeball it.  I’m guessing 2/3 of a cup of water.
  7. Slowly add the Borax water to the glue bowl.  Keep stirring.
  8. Knead the slime until it’s absorbed the water.

Since you’ll be working with Borax the actually making of the slime should be done by a grown-up.  As you begin to add the Borax solution the glue starts to become rubbery and super cool.  The two products actually react together and become polymers so making slime also doubles as a science demonstration!

Slime Valentines for Kids

Once we were done making (and playing with) the slime we divided it up into snack sized bags.  One batch of the recipe above made enough for 12 bags.  I typed up Happy Valen-slime’s Day! bag toppers and stapled them to the top of the bags.  You can print out the free printable Valenslime bag toppers by clicking on the link below.

Valenslime Free Valentine’s Day Printable

Slime is such a great sensory experience for kids–definitely something worth trying!  Especially since there are so many learning activities involved.  While preschoolers may not remember the term polymer they are exploring their world and building the vital background knowledge that will help them succeed in school.  Plus, it really is just plain cool to play with!

More Valentines Kids Can Make:

  • Car Painted Valentines
  • Homemade Window Cling Valentines {free printable}
  • Snowman Play Dough Valentines

About Megan Sheakoski

Megan is the creator of Coffee Cups and Crayons, a blog full of simple fun and learning. She believes that kids’ activities don’t have to be complicated to be fun and that learning is better with play.

Homemade Valentines for Kids: Car Painting
Kids for Kindness: Happy Notes

Comments

  1. Erica @What Do We Do All Day? says

    February 14, 2013 at 10:00 am

    This is the most original Valentine idea I’ve seen all month!

    Reply
    • Megan Sheakoski says

      February 14, 2013 at 7:48 pm

      My kids get all the credit for the idea, but I totally thought of valen-slime! Super cool and crazy easy…I see many more valen-slime cards in our future! Thanks Erica!

      Reply
      • Dianne says

        January 26, 2014 at 4:55 pm

        Very cool! But, I can’t get the toppers for the bags. When I click on them it just takes me back to the same page.

        Reply
        • Megan Sheakoski says

          January 26, 2014 at 8:06 pm

          Aaaah! I have no idea why it wasn’t working! It should be fixed now. If you still can’t get it let me know and I can email it to you. 🙂

          Reply
  2. jane says

    January 26, 2014 at 1:54 pm

    How do you store it? And how long does it keep? Thanks for the great idea! Definitely going to try it!!

    Reply
    • Megan Sheakoski says

      January 26, 2014 at 8:05 pm

      We stored it in a plastic bag. It should be good for a month or two but I’ve only ever kept it a couple weeks. 🙂

      Reply
      • jane says

        January 27, 2014 at 1:31 am

        In the fridge?

        Reply
        • Megan Sheakoski says

          January 27, 2014 at 2:37 pm

          Nope. It’s fine just in the ziploc bags!

          Reply
  3. crystalandcomp says

    January 26, 2014 at 4:08 pm

    I am in love with the Megan. I’m totally sharing it on Facebook.

    Reply
    • Megan Sheakoski says

      January 26, 2014 at 8:06 pm

      Thanks Crystal!

      Reply
  4. Stephanie says

    January 27, 2014 at 5:24 am

    Super cool idea, how do you dispose of it though? Is it reusable or do you need to get rid of it once used? Thanks 🙂

    Reply
    • Megan Sheakoski says

      January 27, 2014 at 2:37 pm

      We kept ours in the ziploc bags for weeks and it was fine!

      Reply
  5. Ariadne says

    January 27, 2014 at 11:52 am

    That looks fun to play with and very creative idea as a valentines card!!

    Reply
    • Megan Sheakoski says

      January 27, 2014 at 2:36 pm

      They loved it! Thanks Ariadne!

      Reply
  6. Amy says

    January 27, 2014 at 2:33 pm

    Great idea, but in a couple of pictures…..the word placenta keeps coming to mind! Gonna have to use a different color for mine.

    Reply
    • Megan Sheakoski says

      January 27, 2014 at 2:35 pm

      LOL! We made some pink ones too using less food coloring that may look better for you!

      Reply
  7. Kathy Lobb says

    January 28, 2014 at 3:32 pm

    These are wonderful ideas for daycares…thanks so much for the idea!

    Reply
  8. JDaniel4's Mom says

    January 28, 2014 at 5:00 pm

    What an awesome class gift! I just love it.

    Reply
    • Megan Sheakoski says

      January 29, 2014 at 10:28 am

      Thanks Deirdre!

      Reply

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