How to make nature goop

We cannot overemphasise the importance of engaging in sensory activities. Making homemade nature goop is simple and fun for children.

Making nature goop is fun and a great craft to help develop your child's fine motor skills.

“Nature goop” gives the traditional 2-ingredient oobleck recipe a fun, outdoory twist.

What is nature goop, you may ask? Simply put, it’s a fun science activity for toddlers and preschoolers that requires only two main ingredients and a few items you can find in your back garden.

What you need

Cornstarch
Icy water
Nature’s treasures – flower petals, leaves, grass, or whatever items your child wants to include
A baking sheet or a plastic container
Food colouring (optional)

How to make it

Begin with 1 cup cornstarch and 1/2 cup water, and adjust as needed until the consistency is just right.
Allow your child to assist you in adding a little more cornstarch if it’s too watery, or a little more water if it’s too powdery.
When you have the proper proportion of the two ingredients, the substance will be easy to pick up in your hands but will lose its shape as it drips through your fingers.
You can add food colouring to your goop to make it more visually appealing.
Let your child mix in the items they found in the garden.

Top tips

If you put too much water in your goop, the cornstarch will settle at the bottom, and your goop will not solidify.
Too much cornstarch in your goop produces the opposite effect. Your goop is going to be too stiff. We found that two-parts cornstarch to one-part water yields the best goop.