What kid doesn’t love slime? Regardless of how their parents feel about the gooey mess, kids LOVE it. In our house, we just embrace it, because slime has SO many sensory play benefits that can foster healthy development of a child’s cognitive functioning, emotional regulation, and motor skills! Slime can be especially beneficial when you incorporate loosely structured activities to turn passive squishing and molding into hours of developmentally-friendly fun! 

All slimes have their pros and cons, but one of the most versatile is butter slime! Of course, it’s got that satisfying slime texture, but it’s also super soft and pliable, making it work for lots of sensory activities. What kind of activities, you ask? That’s what I am going to go through today! I’m going to give you some of my favorite (I mean, my kids’ favorite) stimulating activities to do with butter slime!

Here are some ideas to level up butter slime play time:

What To Do With Butter Slime

Ocean Clean-Up Activity 

Dye your butter slime blue and hide inside miniature sea creatures as well as random bits of plastic trash. (Think bottle caps, juice pouch twist tops, buttons, or these bingo chips etc.) The object of the activity is to locate and remove the trash!

*Be cautious of choking hazards depending on the age of your children!

Letter and Shape Find Activity 

Use my hot glue 3D letter and shapes instructions and use the final product to make a fun activity perfect for preschoolers practicing letter recognition or older kiddos practicing spelling! Just integrate the shapes throughout the slime and let them explore! 

Make Your Name Activity

Spell out your name with slime on a flat surface. If your little one is having some trouble with this, they can also cut their name out of the slime with cookie cutters.

Slime Volcano Activity

Create a mini volcano out of slime by molding it into the shape of a cone. Create a hollow in the middle and fill it with baking soda. Pour a small amount of vinegar over the baking soda and watch the volcano erupt with fizzing lava!

Hidden Treasure Activity

Dye your slime yellow to create the illusion of sand. Then hide some “treasure” in there for your kids to unearth! You could use some wooden scoops to dig up things like plastic coins and other pirate-inspired toys! 

Slime Garden Activity

Create a miniature garden scene using a light green slime as a base. You can then add small plastic plants, painted rocks, and some garden figurines.

Self-Portrait Activity

Enjoy a self-portrait activity with your little ones with butter slime. Self-portraits are such a good activity for a child’s development as they help children develop perceptual awareness of their body while they have some sensory fun!

What Is Butter Slime?

Butter slime (AKA butter slime) is a popular type of slime that is known for its smooth, rich consistency similar to soft butter. It is made using a base of white glue combined with lotion and cornstarch. Unlike regular slime, butter slime relies on a completely different activation method to create its unique texture.

Here’s one of my favorite butter slime recipes:

How To Make Butter Slime

Butter Slime Materials

• 1 cup of white school glue

• 1 cup of shaving cream

• 1 tablespoon of cornstarch

• 2 tablespoons of lotion

• 1 tablespoon of baby oil

• Food coloring (optional)

• Activator (borax solution or contact lens solution with baking soda)

• Model Magic

Butter Slime Instructions

Step 1: Gather your ingredients.

Make sure you gather all of your ingredients beforehand so you’re not grabbing things with sticky hands when you need them later on! It is best to already have everything ready!

Step 2: Mix glue and shaving cream.

Now, grab your shaving cream and glue. Combine 1 cup of Elmer’s glue with 1 cup of shaving cream. Mix them together until they’re completely combined and smooth. 

Step 3: Add cornstarch and lotion.

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of cornstarch into the glue and shaving cream mixture. Add 2 tablespoons of lotion at this time as well. Mix everything together until it is all incorporated.

Step 4: Incorporate baby oil and food coloring.

Pour 1 tablespoon of baby oil into the mixture. If you want your slime to have a color, just add a few drops of food coloring. Mix everything until the color is distributed evenly.

Step 5: Activate the slime.

Now it’s time to activate the solution with the slime activator! Mix 1 tablespoon of baking soda with 1 tablespoon of contact lens solution containing boric acid. Slowly add the baking soda solution to the slime mixture, only a small amount at a time while stirring continuously. 

Keep adding the solution until the slime begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl and becomes less sticky. And, remember to avoid adding too much activator, because it can make the slime too sticky!

Step 6: Add model magic. (optional)

To make the texture more stretchy, you can incorporate Model Magic clay into your butter slime. Simply tear small pieces of model magic off the block and knead them into the slime turns into your desired consistency!

Step 7: Knead, stretch, and play!

Now it's time for the kids to knead, stretch, and play! If your slime is a little sticky, add in baking soda and knead it until it is more buttery. If you have the opposite problem, here’s what to do if your slime is too runny.

Butter slime is the perfect tool for lots of sensory activities!

I hope this becomes one of your kids’ favorite slimes! If you enjoy sensory play with your littles and would like to enjoy some more ideas on how to incorporate these in your classroom or at home, check out the Mothercould In Your Pocket Resource. I have curated tons of sensory play video tutorials, printable slime recipes, cleaning hacks, and so much more. You can also find great content on the Mothercould blog to get you started on your families’ sensory play adventures! Have fun!