Work on early math skills and improve fine motor development by teaching students to create basic shapes out of modeling dough. Teach children to form a circle by rolling the modeling dough in their hands. Progress to more difficult shapes as your students' dexterity begins to improve. Once your students can easily form several shapes, work on classification exercises. Group the modeling dough based on color, size or shape. Teach the children how to create a pattern with different shapes or colors. Count how many patterns your students can create, and then use the pattern to learn how to count using odd or even numbers.
Modeling dough can be used to represent many scientific principles. Help your students simulate a volcano erupting using modeling clay, a plastic water bottle, baking soda and vinegar. Watch the volcano erupt as you pour the vinegar into the water bottle and discuss how science is involved in the experiment. "Scholastic" recommends creating a group science project to create modeling dough. Encourage kindergarten students to select proper ingredients, allow children to help measure, and let each child take a turn stirring the mixture. Further lessons could involve experimenting with colors, as sections of the modeling dough could be colored and then mixed.
Give the children cookie cutters or stamps and help them learn to stamp letters into modeling dough. Encourage students to use their fingers to trace letters and words. According to Kinesthetic Learning Strategies, children who love to work with their hands can have lessons reinforced by using materials such as clay or modeling dough to provide a tactile way for kindergarten children to improve early literacy skills. "Scholastic" recommends using large learning mats to work on letters or words. Have students roll the modeling dough into long pieces and then mold it into the letters.
Kindergarten children learn best through play. Allow your kindergarten students to have access to modeling dough during free play. Encourage interdisciplinary learning as children use their imagination to create play food, people or buildings. Gradually add extra tools, such as rolling pins, utensils or small toy cars and allow children to explore and have fun using modeling dough.