Melissa & Doug Shape, Model, and Mold Clay Activity Set - 4 Tubs of Modeling Dough and Tools

This set has been so much fun for my daughter. The dough is soft and easy for little hands to use, and all of the tools and molds keep her entertained for a long time. I also really like the quality compared to some other modeling dough sets we’ve tried. The pieces feel durable, the colors are bright, and it’s great for creative play and fine motor skills. Definitely a fun activity to keep around for rainy days or quiet play time.

I bought this kit to work on wrist stability and functional play with our son, who has a laundry list of diagnoses at this point that as come with global developmental delays. Right now, we're using this as part of a non-verbal imitation (NVI) target, but the wrist stability is the big thing I'm hoping to get out of it, as it's an important area for developing a tripod grasp with writing utensils. I purchased this as opposed to other roller sets for 3 reasons: 1) two of the rolling pin style rollers have designs they will imprint into the clay and I suspected/hoped this would be more motivating for our little man, 2) one of the rollers is a one-hander, and I thought that he might be able to manage that easier first and therefore be more willing to try it as an NVI thing, ad 3) the wooden blocks with imprint shapes I felt would be easier for him to grasp then typical cookie cutters and would give him something he could do to modify the clay quicker from the skills standpoint, which again, I thought would be more motivating. I love that I proved to be right on all 3 of those, because yesterday was one of those days with our little guy that was serving me my butt in a wheelbarrow, and this morning when we tried to walk in a different direction other then his sister's school wasn't any better, and I totally needed to see something succeed like crazy. So, as you can see from the manufacturer's picture, these canisters of play clay are tiny. Just barely enough to be functional with this kit. It did initially seem goopier to me then play do, but it honestly didn't stick to the table any more then play do did, and I didn't have any problems whatsoever cleaning things out when we were done. Very miniscule amounts of the clay product actually stuck to the wood block we were using, none of it stuck to the rollers, which seemed to have a higher gloss varnish/sealer on them, so they're a bit less sticky. And I'm going to respectfully disagree with another reviewer that plastic play do toys are better, because we've got a full set of those and have since our daughter was a toddler...and let me tell you, it doesn't matter what they're made of, if play do dries in them, they can be murder to clean out regardless, but sometimes plastic is easier to break then wood if you're trying to chip out dried play clay. I did notice that a small bit of paint came off from the red block we were using into the clay, but I looked at it closely, and it appeared to be some loose painted wood dust that was left over from manufacturing, because I didn't see any chipped paint on our block. But I imagine paint could chip over time with use and it would go into the clay. But then, anything including pet hair will do that, so I'm not really going to be fussy about that. For our son, he's 5, and his hands are a bit on the big side for his age. He can grasp the one handed roller fine, it's more fine motor for him to do the other rollers because he can't wrap his hands all the way around the grippers and has to use his finger tips. Which I think can be useful as well. So, if you are getting this for an older or a bigger pre schooler or kindergartener, that is something to consider...they may be more comfortable with something with a larger hand grip space. But since he has fine motor needs also, I'm pretty groovy with that. And I think that the shapes in the lid are super cool too and I'm going to progress up to those once he's feeling comfortable with the blocks. So overall, I think this is a very cool product.

This Melissa & Doug Shape Model and Mold set is Awesome! It comes with the different rolling pins, the pie crust thingie and the five block shape imprinters, as well as the four tubs of playdough. Admittedly the playdough is a bit dried out by the time it gets to the consumer so it is not as maleable as it should be so you may not get as much play out of it as you would hope for. However each of the small tubs the dough comes in has an animal shape imprint in the lid. Making the dough container a toy in and of itself. So even after the dough dries out you will want to keep the tubs around to press into new dough and see the animal shape left behind. Also, I would like to point out that the square blocks are the perfect size and shape for small toddler hands to use. Any child can use them to play with playdough, they are easy for them to grasp and then push into the dough. If it is too hard for them to push into traditional playdough, try making homemade playdough. The recipes I have tried seem to be softer than the store bought stuff. The only word of caution I have is that as an adult trying to roll out the playdough for my son, my larger hands rub against the main part of the rolling pin and I almost got a splinter. I don't think this is a problem for smaller toddler hands, but I will be taking a cautionary piece of sandpaper to the rolling pin just in case. As the set is wood, I forsee it lasting me quite some time. My son loves playing with playdough and this set has allready been well worth it's price.

This is a fun little activity set with plenty of tools to keep kids engaged and creative. My child enjoyed using the molds and shaping different creations, and the variety of accessories makes it more interesting than plain modeling dough alone. The main downside for me was the quality of the dough itself. It tends to crumble and break apart in your hands instead of staying smooth and easy to shape, which can be frustrating for younger kids. The tools and overall concept are great, but I expected the dough texture to be softer and hold together better. Still a nice creative activity set, especially if you already have better modeling dough at home.

All my 4 yr.old granddaughter needs it to be🙂 she's very creative and loves it!!

Excellent product …fun

Not much to say. Melissa & Doug made a great product. I bought two of their clay/play-dough kits. The wooden rollers and stamps in this one are significantly better than other plastic options I’ve seen and tried. Thanks to this kit my child is probably better at rolling out dough than I am. Rolling dough has always been my least favorite part of baking, and now I have a skilled helper to do it for me!

I purchased this Melissa & Doug set for my son for his 2nd birthday. I thought that he'd have a lot of fun with the dough and the toys. I really wanted a rolling pin and some 'cookie cutter' type toys. I had read other Amazon reviews and knew that the clay/dough was unimpressive, so I purchased this set solely for the tools. In hindsight, I should have just purchased some plastic toys instead. We're trying to shy away from most plastic toys, but I think that plastic would have been a better option for these types of toys. The dough sticks to the rollers, especially the one with the square checker-board pattern. I just called M&D customer service and they offered to replace that single rolling pin. They suggested that I coat the toys with cooking oil, which I will do, when the new one arrives. The toys wood be okay if the wooden pieces were sanded smooth enough. They are quite rough, so the dough sticks very easily. Also, a rolling pin without a handle would be much easier for small hands. All in all, my money could have been spent better elsewhere. I'm disappointed by this Melissa & Doug item, which is unusual, as I love all the other M&D toys that we own.

My toddler loves playing with these. Amazing quality as expected from Melissa and Doug. I’m happy I bought this over cheap plastic ones.

Hoped for a better kit especially from M&D while its sturdily built - wooden, the impressions need quit a firm press to get them in the play dough. Otherwise hours of daily fun

We order Melissa & Doug toys in expectation they are non toxic, made of wood, educational & fun! (toys should list all chemical ingredients on the label & should exceed government recommendation limits )

nice pattern making toy with clay. good quality

La qualité est bonne, les outils sont très agréables à utiliser avec la pâte à modeler. Les 4 petits pots qui venaient avec sont vraiment petits mais la texture est bonne.