What to do with kids during coronavirus lockdown? Build cardboard toys.
By now most of us have realized that coronavirus will not pass without changing our lives. We have stocked our pantry, transitioned shopping online and started to learn the art of social distancing. These activities have kept us busy over the last few days but soon the reality will sink in. 24 hour days are very long inside the four walls with kids. So, what to do? One activity you’ll have infinite supplies due to increased online shopping is building cardboard toys. It’s fun and will keep you and the littles ones engaged for a few days. Below I have collected seven simple things we have built over the years.
Blue Angel Cardboard Fighter Jet (F18)
This was a really fun project that took us two days. My son made the design, and I helped to bend the cardboard and select the paints. He did most of the work.
2. Cardboard Fishing Boat
Kids mandate was to build something they can both play together. My son designed the boat and helped to build it. With help of really large Ikea boxes the whole process took just couple of hours.
3. Halloween Cardboard Robot
My son has a long list of Halloween costumes for the coming years, I think five next ones are already booked. He saw a dancing robot at Maker Fair and wanted to be a robot. This was a fun build and he did great work picking the foil and special colored tape. The pizza-box-power-pack was his own idea.
4. Cardboard Surfboard
As a surfer this was one of the most fun projects. How to create a cardboard surfboard that withstands water? Well, in the end it didn’t work out that well in water. :)
5. Cardboard Playhouse
Cardboard playhouse was a fun birthday project. Specification was to have enough space for half a dozen kids to play inside. Inside we placed soft carpet and even a small kitchen. Again large Ikea boxes saved the day.
6. Cardboard Rocket
As a space puff I loved this assignment from the kids. Specification was to build a moon rocket quickly. It took just couple of hours to get USS Max ready for take off.
7. Cardboard Train
My son loves trains and we have probably travelled in all of the Bay Area trains to date. Building a wearable train for Halloween was harder than expected, but the end product turned out good and fit well the family team.
There are ton of ideas and resources online, but I highly recommend letting the kids design what they want to build. Have fun!
