Creative Play - DIY Baked Clay Coral Activity

What you need:

• 4 x 57g oven bake clay 
• Baking Tray
• Baking paper
• Butter knife
• Chopstick 
• Skewer
• Large container
• Playdough
• Baby Donkie wooden toys

Step by step instructions:

Hot Cross Bun Coral

1. Cut the clay into 4 even sections using the butter knife
   
2. Warm up your clay by rolling each square into a ball in the palms of your hands. Make sure the ball is smooth and all the creases have been removed. TIP: Your clay will become softer and easier to mould the warmer is it. 
3. Flatten each ball out to about 2cm high using the tips of your fingers. 
4. Poke the chopstick into the middle of each flattened ball. Make sure you don’t go too deep and press all the way through. 
5. Use the chopstick on its side to gently press into the hot cross bun creating a cross coming out from the circle in the middle. 

Maccas M 

1. Cut the clay down the middle giving you two even pieces. 
2. Warm up each piece of clay by rolling it into a ball between your palms. 
3. Roll out the balls into two long sausage shapes approx. 10cm long.  
4. Flatten the sausage to be about 5cm thick using your palm. 
5. Gently fold the flattened sausage in your hand back and forth to create a soft M shape. 

Twirly Whirly

1. Cut your clay into 6 pieces. These do not need to be exactly even. 
2. Squeeze and roll each square into a ball to warm up the clay. 
3. Roll out each ball into a sausage shape approx. 8 to 10cm. 
   
4. Grab each sausage and hold it at the top and bottom and gently twist from each end to make a twirly whirly shape. 

Shrek Ears 

1. Cut the clay into 3 pieces using a butter knife. 
2. Roll each piece into a ball. 
3. Roll each ball into a carrot shape (bigger at one end and thinner at the opposite) 
4. Grab your chopstick and poke a hole in the large end only going half way down. 

Then place all the clay onto a tray with baking paper and cook in the oven.  (Most brands will be 130 degrees for approx. 50 mins – Check the packet for directions. Ensure no pieces of clay are touching each other.) Find a baking dish or tray and fill with mounds of your favourite playdough. Now create patterns in your playdough using your chopstick, skewer or knife. 

1. Once your clay has cooled, add it to your ‘underwater’ scene.Now it is time for your BabyDonkie creatures to join the fun in their new home. The beauty of this DIY is you can create a whole new looking scene again and again by moving the coral and toys around.We hope you have loved this super FUN creative play activity and a HUGE thank you to Lee for sharing this awesome activity with us on the blog today, please let us know in the comments below, how your creative coral play went!