My boys love slime! (And really, so do I!) Whether it’s playing the part of radioactive sludge engulfing their action figures, an alien blob, or just an enjoyable home gym for their fingers, one batch can keep them engaged for hours.
Making slime couldn’t get any easier than this quick individual batch method. It’s so simple and fast, you can help your kids mix it up at the counter right before starting dinner, and I’d be willing to bet they’ll still be playing there when you’re ready call them to the table.
So here’s the 4-1-1. 4 Tablespoons Water – 1 Tablespoon School Glue – 1 Heaping Tablespoon Borax.
Have each child hold a sandwich size ziplock baggie. (Be sure to let the air out completely before sealing each time to avoid any popping while the kiddos knead the ingredients.) To each baggie, add the water and the glue. Have the children work these two ingredients together by smooshing the baggies.
This is also a good time to add your color. If you’re working with a small group, it’s fun to let them each choose their own colors, but if you have a larger group, it may be easier to add the color directly to the water in a large cup or bowl, and then measure each batch’s water from that mix. Food coloring will work, but is more likely to come off onto little hands and more likely to stain. I prefer to use washable liquid watercolors because they’re just so much more vibrant and kid-friendly.
Once the water and glue are well mixed, add the Borax. (Borax can be found in the laundry section of the store. It’s well worth the few dollars you’ll spend on it. And a great opportunity for environmental print using the letter X — with its standard phonetic sound!) Seal and mix the baggie again. You’ll be able to feel the mixture begin to coagulate. Keep mixing it until it begins to feel like it has an even consistency.
It should be easy to peel the slime from the sides of the baggie when it’s ready. You may want to continue kneading it a bit after removing it to get all the Borax mixed in.
If the slime is too wet, work in a little more Borax. If it’s too stiff, add a little more water. It tends to firm up a bit simply by playing with it as well.
This slime is referred to as a Non-Newtonian Fluid, meaning its consistency and flow is unique, changing in response to movement or force. So if you simply hold it in your hand or set it on the counter, it flows like a liquid. But if you roll it into a ball or toss it from one hand to the other, it feels and acts like a solid. You can even break it or cut it with scissors like a solid. It’s a fun substance to use as you explore the different states of matter.
In addition to simply enjoying it as a fun sensory experience, you could also use this as an extension activity with Dr. Seuss’s Bartholomew and the Oobleck, as a fun Halloween activity, or as a fun “potions class” for your little Harry Potter fans.
As long as you use washable coloring, the slime cleans off of hands and out of clothes easily with warm water. Keep the slime stored in an air-tight container and it should be reusable for a few days. That should buy you enough time to get a few dinners made. That is if you can keep yourself from playing with this brilliantly gooey stuff!
Read more about the importance of sensory play.
*See the comments section for troubleshooting tips!*
I just tried this and don’t know what went wrong, but it was a *major* fail. Maybe I didn’t have enough glue (I didn’t measure the glue exactly, but I know it was close). It was an oozy, sticky mess that never came out of the bag — I kept adding more and more borax, but then it was just grainy and still goop. I made it once in a chemistry class, so I know how it is supposed to be, but mine wasn’t anywhere close 🙁
There may be a difference based on humidity and such. We’re quite dry here. Try reducing your water to begin with. Try 3 tablespoons water, and a tablespoon of glue. I do think you have to measure because when I tried different amounts of glue, it made big changes in the outcome. Then add at least 1 and maybe even 2 tablespoons of the Borax. You do have to work it in well to get that even consistency. Hopefully this will help. Keep me posted!
I was still thinking about this, and I’ve also heard of people mixing the Borax into water to make a solution before adding it to the glue and water. That would help dissolve some of the grittiness. So you might try mixing the 1 tablespoon of glue with 1 tablespoon of water and then mixing the Borax with another 2-3 tablespoons of water before adding it to the glue/water. Let me know what works for you!
You have to make sure to blend the borax in enough water, and don’t add it straight, or it will become grainy
We will give those things a try — we are pretty humid around here, so maybe that is part of it. I’ll see how it goes. I definitely need to get some watercolors because colored slime would be much more fun 🙂
I know that I’m super late, but if this ever happens again, just add some backing soda. My was just this super mess that wouldn’t come out. Adding the baking soda also makes the slime non sticky! I hope this helps in the future maybe ?
Hi there Amanda!
Is school glue the white runny craft glue?
Thanks!
Georgia
🙂
Right! Like Elmer’s. They also have a clear version that makes the slime more translucent.
My three year old students made blue Slime last month, and it was a huge hit ! The children were so excited, and so was I!
I get excited about it as well!
I also had a hard time making this. I ended up experimenting a little and here is what I came up with that worked: I mixed 1T of water and 1T of glue together, I then mixed in 1T of borax. Mix well. Came out looking like silly putty. Hope that helps someone 🙂
I just saw this used in a 6th Grade science classroom. It was a big hit with the students; they loved it! I believe it was part of their “States of matter” Unit; what great experiment to do!! 😀
Help…I thought this would be a fun easy project but it is horrible….I did everything I was suppose to do and mine came out like large balls almost like silly puddy….nothing like slime …and worse I do not know how to fix it….this was not fun at all
I just wanted to say THANK YOU!
I have made slime multiple times and I know it is simple but I could not for the life of me remember the portion size of the ingredients. I have been looking everywhere and all I could find was recipes but without it measured out. Anyways thank you!!!
Hi! Do you have any method of making slime out of laundry detergent? They don’t sell borax here in small packages that I can buy. So do you have an recipe to make slime with laundry detergent?
Thanks,
Lena
I don’t have a recipe for that, Lena. I’d love to hear if someone else reading here does!
Hey Lena!
We made slime today using glue, baking soda and contact lens solution. My daughter has been playing with it for over an hour now! She’s 7. If you do a youtube search for DIY slime, no borax you can find tons of recipes 🙂
1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of elmers glue and 1/4 cup of tide laundry detergent, or any detergent that has borax. Smells good to
I use glue, food coloring, water, and laundry detergent. I use a whole bottle of clue, a couple drops of food coloring, a tablespoon of water, and I poor some laundry detergent in the lid and then dump it. Hope this helps!
My slime melts perfectly and is satisfying to poke,but there is a problem. My slime just doesn’t stretch!It breaks,even if you let it fall. And I actually have used lotion,which didn’t work at all.I need help!
Maybe someone on here can help me. We live in the U.K. and don’t have access to borax so we ordered some from eBay. We have tried almost 10 times with different recipes and the result is awful. It looks like scrambled eggs, it looks like it’s curdled. Does anyone know what we are doing wrong? We are using contractors pva but I’ve read that it shouldn’t make a difference. The kids get so excited to try it but it’s awful when it goes wrong. We are close to giving up x
I live in the uk too, and have-as is yesterday made successful slime. You need to use pva glue- you can get good stuff from Poundland and either lavender air freshener (has to be air wick) -oh this can also be bought in Poundland, or contact lense solution- you can get this from boots or any chemist (it should be in the eye section). Mix them together as show but using the airwick/contact solution as borax. You can also just mix it up in a bowl- if it’s not looking to good add some baking soda x
Hope this helps
My slime stained my hands. What went wrong?
I would look at what you used to color it. Food coloring may be safe, but in concentrated quantities will stain. Washable liquid watercolors are usually the safest way to color without staining.
I was trying to make gingerbread slime as one of the craft stations at my son’s school holiday party. After trying several failed recipes, I found this one, and it worked perfectly! Thank you for saving the day. I didn’t use food coloring, but I added cinnamon and ginger spices before putting in the borax. Smelled amazing! And, super fun to play with.
What a creative idea! Thanks for sharing your adaptation!
Just grinding trying to make some with my daughter. Majorrrrr fail. It came out hard and it ripped easily. Doesn’t resemble slime what so ever.
Can you please answer the question about why some slime turns out like scrambled eggs. What are we doing wrong to it? Is there any way of fixing it? I hate to waste all the ingredients. Thank you.
Hmm. Slime is tricky because it can actually be influenced by the humidity in your air. But my guess is that if it’s clumping too much, it either has too much of the borax solution (so add and mix gradually) or the borax solution is being dumped in one spot rather than gradually mixed in. You could also try adding more water to your borax solution to see if that helps.