I’ve seen a lot of dinosaur egg toys in stores lately. They look like sandy rocks. The idea is that you gradually scrape them away or break them open to find the toy inside. They don’t cost that much, but it is fun to make your own. Plus you can do different toys and different colors if you make them yourself. These are fun surprises to hide in the sandbox or around the yard. But they are also really fun for the kids to make themselves. It’s like mud pies with a purpose.
To make dinosaur eggs, all you need is flour, dirt or used coffee grounds, sand, salt and water. You can use sand from the sandbox or fancy colored craft sand. You’ll want something like an old margarine tub to stir it all in. Put in about 2 ½ cups flour, 2 ½ cups of dirt or used coffee grounds, about a cup of sand, and 1 and ½ cups of salt. Mix all that up. Don’t worry too much about the measurements, a little more sand, a little more dirt, it really won’t matter. If you want to, you can add a tablespoon of powdered tempera paint for color. Add only as much water as you need to get it to all stick together. Shape the “dough” around the small toys. Put them in a sunny place and let them dry out and harden. Depending on the sunshine and the weather, it may take a few days. It’s a good idea to turn them occasionally so that the bottoms will dry out too.
When they are dry you can hide them or give them to the kids. To break them open they can scrape away the sand and dirt with an old spoon or edge of a rock. If they are in a bigger hurry they can break the eggs apart with a hammer, or by dropping them. Do supervise the hammers and dropping. Sore toes and fingers would not be fun.
Also See:
Homemade Play Dough and Clay Recipes
Frugal Kids: Make Your Own Play Dough