Recipes for some messy playing

CHOCOLATE CLAY
1/2 cup chocolate chips
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
Waxed paper
Sprinkles or small candies for decorating (optional)
Melt chocolate chips in a microwave-safe dish. When chocolate is smooth, add corn syrup and stir. The mixture will become stiffer.
Scrape mixture onto waxed paper, a cookie sheet or a large plate. Place another piece of waxed paper over the chocolate -- very lightly, so it hardly touches. Let it set overnight, or several hours, until it has the consistency of clay. Once set, the clay can be molded into simple sculptures, but if you handle it for too long it starts to get sticky. Use decorating candies or sprinkles to make faces and buttons.
OOBLECK
1 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup water
Flat plastic container, large enough for you to easily slip your hands inside and handle the Oobleck
Put cornstarch in the container. Add water and stir it carefully with a fork. Continue to stir carefully even though it seems stiff.
When the mixture is thoroughly mixed, you have Oobleck. It should drip from your fork or fingers but should be solid if you try to poke a finger into it. If it seems too dry, add a drop or more of water; if it is too runny, let it sit for a few hours and stir again.
Let it drip through the tines of the fork. Drag your fingers through it to make a path. See what other things you can do with it. Have you ever seen such a strange mixture?
GLOB
2 bowls
4 ounces white school glue
1 teaspoon Borax
1 cup water
Food coloring (optional)
Pour the glue and 1/2 cup water into a bowl. Mix together and add a few drops of food coloring, if desired.
Put 1/2 cup water into another bowl. Add Borax and mix well. Pour the glue mixture into the Borax mixture and stir.
You should have a thick mass in a liquid. When the glob seems to have formed into one chunk, pour off the rest of the liquid. You can make it thicker and drier by kneading, stretching and playing with it.
Let the mixture slowly pour from your hands. Try to pull it apart quickly and see how it breaks. When it gets drier, it will bounce. What else can you make it do?
HOMEMADE SILLY PUTTY
1/2 cup Elmer's glue
1 cup liquid starch
Food coloring
Mix glue and starch until well combined. Add several drops of food coloring. Store in plastic bag or container.
KOOL-AID PLAY DOUGH
21/2 cups flour
1/2 cup salt
2 packages unsweetened Kool-Aid
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 cups boiling water
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
In a bowl, mix together flour, salt, Kool-Aid and cream of tartar. Add boiling water. Add oil. Mix thoroughly. Store in a plastic bag or container.
XSources: Kid's Squish Book (Marlor Press, $8.95); Shannon Scholler