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Princess Snot

Aug 30, 201334,242 views
Messy Play
Sensory Activities: Princess Snot Save
sensory snot Save
sensory snot Save
golden snot Save
drip gooey Save
pink gooey stuff Save

by TurkeyMom in Messy Play

Ages3–8 yrs
Prep10 min
Activity30 min
Leveleasy
MessHigh
Works for1:1 · Small group

Stir unflavored gelatin into hot colored, scented water, let it start to thicken, then add corn syrup to pull out stretchy, gooey snot strands. Add glitter for pink, sparkly Princess Snot and let kids squish, pull and pinch.

⚠️ Safety first

  • Adult handles the boiling water. Kids add gelatin only with an adult right there.
  • Check that the mixture has cooled before hands go in. It starts with boiling water.
  • Taste-safe at most, not a snack. Craft glitter and food color are not food, so don't let kids eat it.
  • Very sticky. Clean bowls and surfaces as soon as play ends, because dried gelatin is hard to get off.
  • Food color may stain hands and surfaces.
  • Keep sticky hands away from eyes, especially in spice-scented bowls such as cinnamon.
  • Supervise sensory play at all times.

Before the kids arrive

  • Cover the table. This gets messy and sticky.
  • Set out one small heat-safe bowl per color or scent, plus spoons.
  • Plan to clean up right after play. Have warm water ready for soaking the bowls.

Steps

  1. Add a scent (pumpkin, apple, vanilla or cinnamon) to each small bowl.

  2. Adult: pour 1/2 cup boiling water into the bowl and add food color.

  3. With an adult close by, add 3 envelopes (7.5 tsp) of unflavored gelatin to the colored water and stir.

  4. Let it sit about 5 minutes until it starts to thicken. Don't let it get too thick.

  5. Stir in 1/4 cup corn syrup, then lift the spoon to see the snot strands.

  6. Add glitter. Lots of it!

  7. Check that it has cooled, then stretch, pull and pinch the goo.

  8. Dip hands into all the bowls and mix the colors.

  9. Clean up right away. Soak the bowls in warm water and wipe the table before the gelatin dries.

Tips

  • The original recipe calls for much less gelatin. It made a perfect mock snot but wasn't thick enough to play with. More gelatin gave us a thicker goo that worked for us.from the author
  • Don't let the gelatin get too thick before you add the corn syrup.from the author
  • As the gelatin gets thicker it loses the snot-like consistency and gets more slime-like.from the author
  • Quick science: protein from the gelatin + sugars from the corn syrup = gooey snot strands.from the author
  • The kids loved and played only with the pink and the vanilla snot. I wouldn't bother with the rest. Bright colors and glitter were enough.from the author
  • It's quite sticky with the corn syrup. Clean up as soon as the activity is done: soak the containers in warm water and clean the surface ASAP, because missed gelatin is hard to get off once it dries.from the author
  • Making snot at an 8-year-old's birthday party? You might as well call yourself 'favorite person in the room!'from the author

Make it your own

  • Make it green for classic fake snot.
  • Princess Snot: pink with lots of glitter, because when princesses have the sniffles, their snot is pink and sparkly.
  • Golden vanilla snot with gold and green glitter and lots of orange food color.
  • A reader's 3rd grade class made gelatin sun catchers with gelatin, hot water and food coloring. Pour the mixture into a lid (like a Pringles lid), let it dry, hole-punch it, add ribbon and hang it on a window latch.

Questions readers asked

How messy is cleanup? Do the kids get very sticky?

Yes, the corn syrup makes it quite sticky. Clean up as soon as the activity is done: soak containers in warm water and clean the surface right away, since dried gelatin is hard to remove.

How much gelatin is in an envelope?

1 envelope of unflavored gelatin = 2.5 tsp, so the recipe uses 7.5 tsp.

Are the recipe amounts for each container?

The post doesn't say. The photos show several bowls, one per color or scent.

Can kids eat it?

Treat it as a play material, not food. The post puts 'edible' in quotes and doesn't cover eating it, and craft glitter isn't edible. Supervise so kids don't eat it.

What makes the snot strands?

Protein from the gelatin plus sugars from the corn syrup.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · August 2013
Sensory Activities: Princess Snot
Today we share something so icky, gooey and sticky that it is supremely fun for your mess-loving kids. We are making gooey stuff which looks like SNOT!
1 / 9

Princess Snot: the original post

Today we share something that is so icky gooey and sticky that it is supremely fun for your mess loving kids. These sensory activities for kids does so much for your child- a quick personal observation, language explosion during sensory play, curiosity piques and many interesting questions come about. TwoDaloo has a fantastic article on “Sensory Play- Is it necessary?” While you are there, check out her series on language development through sensory play. On to today’s fun.

Sensory Activities: making”edible” fake snot!

We are making gooey stuff which looks like SNOT! Yes, it is apparently a very popular science experiment for school age kids. I have seen this idea on many science for kids websites. Here is one. The recipe calls for unflavored gelatin and corn syrup. Check out all our previous sensory activities using gelatin. Be warned that this is a messy and sticky activity. I added few fall scents ( pumpkin, apple, vanilla and cinnamon) to small bowls. I added hot water to the scents along with food colors and set them on the table.

materials for sensory play

Th kids added unflavored gelatin to the colored water. We let them set for about 5 minutes until they start to thicken. Don’t let the gelatin get too thick. Once soft, we added corn syrup. You should be able to see strands resembling snot! quick science : protein from the gelatin + sugars from the corn syrup = gooey snot strands. The original recipe calls for much lesser gelatin. While the snot was great it was not thick enough to manipulate and play. It was indeed a perfect mock snot. Since we increased the gelatin we achieved a thicker consistency that worked for us.

pink gooey stuff

Now the original experiment true to the name makes only green colored gooey stuff. Did we stop with just the food colors? We certainly DID NOT? What other crazy thing did we do? Add glitter, yes glitter.

sensory snot

The kids went to down mixing and playing with the resulting gooey substance. The best of all, my older kid came up with this ingenious name - Princess Snot because we like to think that when princesses have the sniffles, their snot is pink and has lots of glitter. The substance is stretchable and can be pulled and pinched in many ways. As the gelatin gets thicker it loses the snot like consistency and gets more slime-like!

sensory snot

Since we had made multiple colors, te kids were so excited to dip their hands in all the bowls. Also the kids were attracted towards the vanilla scent and added lots of gold and green glitter and a ton of orange food color.

golden snot

Of course mixing happened.

sensory play with cornsyrup

The kids loved and played only with the pink and vanilla snot. I wouldn’t bother with the rest. Bright colors and glitter were enough.

drip gooey

Here is our reality shot- unedited, uncut version..

our sensory table

Recipe for this sensory activity

  • 1/2 cup boiling water
  • Add 3 envelopes of unflavored gelatin
  • 1 envelope = 2.5 TSP
  • 1/4 cup of corn syrup

Thanks for reading

What readers say

💬 9 comments ✍️ 2 answered by the author

Answered by the author

“Were the kids very sticky? How is cleanup for a party of 8?” · Julie

Author Yes, the corn syrup makes it quite sticky. Clean up as soon as the activity ends: soak containers in warm water and clean surfaces quickly, since dried gelatin is hard to remove.

“How much gelatin is that if I only have it in a tub?” · Kristy

Author One envelope of unflavored gelatin equals 2.5 tsp.

🛠️ Troubleshooting

Clean up right away

The corn syrup makes it quite sticky. Soak containers in warm water and wipe surfaces quickly, because dried gelatin is hard to remove.

“As long as you do the clean up as soon as the activity is done you are good.”
TurkeyMom, Oct 2013

🛠️ Troubleshooting

Only have gelatin in tubs?

A reader could only find gelatin in tubs. The author's conversion: one envelope equals 2.5 tsp, so the recipe's 3 envelopes is 7.5 tsp.

“1 envelope of unflavored gelatin = 2.5 tsp.”
TurkeyMom, Feb 2014

✨ Readers' twist

Gelatin sun catchers for a class

A 3rd grade teacher poured gelatin, hot water and food color into lids, let it dry, then hole-punched it and hung it with ribbon.

“I used to use gelatin, hot water, and food coloring to make sun catchers with my 3rd grade class.”
Keitha, Aug 2013

Tried it?

Reviewed before it appears. No links, and please no children's names.

Read all 9 comments

  1. Shazam · Jul 2014

    You show multiple containers . is your recipe amts. for each container?

  2. Kristy · Feb 2014

    Hi, just wondering the grams of gelatine used? I have only seen gelatine in tubs! :)

  3. TurkeyMomAuthor · Feb 2014 · replying to Kristy

    Hi Kristy, 1 envelope of unflavored gelatin = 2.5 tsp.

  4. Claudette Furrer Conklin · Nov 2013

    Could one use vanilla flavoring, flavored gelatin, and edible glitter so that the girls could eat/drink their Princess Snot?

  5. Julie · Oct 2013

    Just wondering - I get that this is messy and that's part of the point. But I'm wondering about the cleanup! :) This might be cool to do at ds' Harry Potter birthday but I'm not sure about doing it with 8 kids and how the clean up would go! Were the kids very sticky? :)

  6. TurkeyMomAuthor · Oct 2013 · replying to Julie

    With the corn syrup yes I would say it is quite sticky . As long as you do the clean up as soon as the activity is done you are good. Soak the containers in warm water that's all. The surface also needs to be cleaned ASAP since the concoction has gelatin in it. Hard to come off if you miss a spot and let it dry. But making snot on a 8 year boy's birthday- you might as well call yourself "favorite person in the room!" Good luck and hope the kids have fun.

  7. Keitha · Aug 2013

    Your title for this activity is BRILLIANT! Looks like such a fun and messy sensory activity. I used to use gelatin, hot water, and food coloring to make sun catchers with my 3rd grade class. You pour it into a lid (like a Pringle lid) and then let it dry out. After it dries, you hole punch it, thread a piece of ribbon through it, then hang it on the window latch.

  8. Asia Citro · Aug 2013

    HAHAHAHAHA! I love the name!!!!! So awesome, Blog Me Mom!

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