This fun hands-on playdough brain activity will bring any anatomy lesson to life. Also, I have this Human Body Crafts page for more hands-on ideas. And this Beautiful Human Body Lapbook and Fun Unit Study.
This homemade playdough brain activity is a great way to teach your child about the different parts of the brain and their functions.
You can let them oversee the experience from start to finish by letting them make a soft safe moldable homemade playdough.
In addition, they can divide and color the dough, pressing it into the mold to build a complete brain, removing it, and labeling.
Learning what the brain is made of and how it works is a very important part of any anatomy studies and this hands-on activity lets them really be involved.
If you store the playdough brain properly you will be able to use it time and again over the course of a week or two before it dries out.
6 Parts of the Human Brain
You can make small cards to identify the differences between the left and right sides of the brain for your child to put into place as well.
And you will see this simple activity has several applications and can be adapted for all ages and skill levels.
Label each of the 6 parts.
But beyond just labeling the parts you can turn it into a game by asking questions like
- Which part of the brain is responsible for processing and
- Which part takes care of automatic behaviors like breathing, heart rate, sleep, and temperature control?
Now, let’s look at what each part of our model is responsible for.
- Frontal Lobe- manages thinking, emotions, your personality, judgment, self-control, muscle control and movements, and memory storage.
- Parietal Lobes –Sensory perception and integration, such as taste, hearing, sight, touch, and smell.
- Occipital Lobe-Visual perception includes color, form, and motion.
- Temporal Lobe-Processes auditory information and the encoding of memory.
- Cerebellum- Coordinates your movement and balance. It is also known as the little brain.
- Brain Stem-The brainstem is the stalk-like part of your brain that connects your brain to your spinal cord.
Next, look at some of these resources for learning about the human body.
16 Human Body Books & Hands-on Resources
Add a few of these fun resources whether you do a couple of lesson plans about the human body or a unit study.
One of the resources we used as a reference for this activity was The Way We Work, it covers a lot of interesting topics on the human body.
Vivid Human torso organ structure: 15 Pcs Removable Organs including: Torso, Brain (2-part), Heart, Esophagus and Aorta, Lungs (4-part), Cranial Cap, Stomach, Diaphragm, Liver, pancreas and spleen, small and large intestine. The torso structure showing the relative position, morphological features, anatomy of the head, neck and internal organs, especially the respiratory, digestive, urinary and nervous systems.
[HUMAN ORGANS SILICONE MOLD]: 8 Pcs Human Organs Mold With Different Shapes, Include 1 Human Heart Mold, 1 Brain Silicone Mold, 1 Liver Mold, 1 Intestinal Mold, 1 Lung Mold, 1 Stomach Mold, 1 Brain Stem Mold, 1 Kidney Mold.
This human body with squishable organs is another great way to identify the organs and become familiar with their layout in the body, it has that gross factor that so many kids love.
8PCS Human Organ Figures Set:Human organ anatomy parts display model children learning toy include small intestine, large intestine, lung, brain, stomach, heart, liver, kidney. Suitable for boys and girls over 6 years old,good for brain ability and imagination.
Complete labeled illustrations of over 1,400 anatomical identifications. Loaded with beautifully illustrated diagrams clearly and concisely labeled for easy identification.
Basher Science: Human Body, A Book with Guts! Created & illustrated by Simon Basher, written by Dan Green
From the best-selling team that brought you The Periodic Table, Physics, Biology, and Astronomy comes a topic that's close to our hearts-literally! Meet the characters and processes that that keep the human body chugging along. From the basic building blocks like Cell, DNA, and Protein, to Bones, Muscles, and all of the fun-loving Organs, readers will cozy up with the guys on the inside. Trust us-Liver has never looked better!
High-quality 3 MIL LAMINATION for added durability
Tear Resistant
HUMAN ORGANS LEARNING: Marvel at the rich complexities of the human heart muscle! Every piece has a unique shape designed to outline each major part of the heart organ, making these an exciting challenge to assemble. Each puzzle includes an Anatomy Reference Guide, so you can learn as you build!
- Authentic x-ray images
- Works with any light source or light table)
- Matching facture card
- Detailed teaching guide
- Set of 4 Posters Made in the USA
- Posters are 18" x 24” in size
- High-quality 3 MIL lamination for added durability
- Tear Resistant
Discover the workings of the body's most complex organ! How does the brain control the rest of the body? How does it enable the senses to function, regulate speech, affect balance, and influence sleep and dreams? These 25 illustrations to color explain every aspect of the brain's important jobs, from communicating with the central nervous system to retaining memories. Suitable for ages 8–12.
Enjoy This Coloring Book with 34 Beautiful Human Skull Anatomy Coloring Pages.
The Human Skull Anatomy Coloring Book Provides A Means Of Learning About The Structure And Function Of The Human Skull Anatomy Through A Process Of Coloring-By-Directions.
Coloring The Human Skull Anatomy And Its Nerves Is The Most Effective Way To Study The Structure And Functions Of Human Skull Anatomy. You Assimilate Information And Make Visual Associations With Key Terminology When Coloring In The Human Skull Anatomy Coloring Book, All While Having Fun.
Fall is a great time to grab a set of hands at Dollar Tree but also here is a pair if you're doing a unit study and need one now.
This poster makes a great reference and can be used with older children to help them add more detail to their project.
Our bodies contain a super highway of blood vessels that carry nutrients, waste, and much more from our heads to our toes. This network is the circulatory system! Beginning with a deep breath in, this fact-filled title uses easy-to-follow text and diagrams to allow readers to dive inside the bodys circulatory system!
The human body is a complex being made up of systems that keep us alive and moving! In this series, readers will dive into the bodys systems though engaging, leveled text and related diagrams that follow the parts and functions of each system. Get a microscopic view inside the body with A Closer Look, and put new knowledge into action with a hands-on activity. Check out what is happening inside the body with each title!
Also, look at these other activities to learn about the human body.
More Human Body Crafts
- Simple and Easy Circulatory System Hands-on Activity for Kids
- How to Turn a Pizza Into a Fun Edible Human Cell Model
- How To Make A Fun Bones Of The Hand Labeled X-Ray Craft
- 7 Human Skull Facts and Cool Human Skull Anatomy Activity
- How to Make a Fun Hands-on Playdough Brain Activity
- Major Organs of The Human Body Labeled Fun Felt Anatomy Activity
- Fun Resources and Books About The Human Body For Preschoolers
- 8 Eye Facts & Human Body Activities Middle School & Fun Eye Model
- 12 Human Body Games For Middle School & High School
- Craft a Fun Hand Straw Model to Explore Human Anatomy Muscles & Tendons
- How to Make a Human DIY Heart Model Easy Craft for Kids
- 8 Facts About the Respiratory System & Fun Lung Craft for Kids
- 7 Human Body Facts and Kids Human Body T-Shirt Project
- Fun Edible Spine
- Making Blood + What Are the Components of Blood
- DIY Heart Pump
- Kids Stethoscope Activity
- Build An Edible DNA Model
- Edible Skin
- Rigid versus Flexible Bone Activity.
- Pregnancy Belly Female Study of Human Anatomy Kids Fun Craft
- Look at my Beautiful Human Body Lapbook and Fun Unit Study
Finally, look how to make this fun playdough brain activity using a mold.
Playdough Brain Activity
You will need:
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups of table salt
- ¼ cup of vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons cream of tartar
- 4 cups of water
- Food coloring
- brain mold
- Toothpicks
- cardstock/pen
- rubber gloves
First, place flour, table salt, vegetable oil, cream of tartar, and water in a large saucepan over medium heat.
Stir well and often until the mixture begins to pull away from the sides of the pan into a solid shape.
Remove from the pan and place on a counter to cool until it’s comfortable to touch.
Divide Play-Doh into six separate piles, you can make one smaller because you will not need as much for the brain stem.
Human Anatomy Playdough Brain Activity
Use Gel or liquid food coloring to color each of the parts a different color of your choosing just be sure to notate which color represents which part.
You may want to wear rubber gloves for this part to protect your hands from staining.
Start with the frontal lobe and press a nice thick layer all around. Be sure that they press it into each groove so that it picks up the shape.
Continue adding on the next part by placing the parietal lobe and the temporal lobe on each side in their respective colors.
Next, you want to add the cerebellum and occipital lobe finishing up with the spinal cord/brainstem.
At this point, you should have plenty of playdough left over as well as a sizable hole in the center of the brain. To be able to flip it over, you can fill it in by pressing in all the leftover dough.
Have your child go around the edges and flatten and smooth it out.
Flip it over and carefully remove it from the mold onto a tray or wherever your child will be doing the activity.
Have them write each of the parts, including the spinal cord, the parietal lobe, the occipital lobe, the frontal lobe, the temporal lobe, and the cerebellum.
Take these small strips to a toothpick.
And now they can stick the tooth again to label each section of the brain.
When not in use between lessons you can put the brain back in the mold and slip it inside of an airtight bag to keep the playdoh fresh a 2-gallon ziploc bag will fit it well.
