Cardboard - OTPlan

The Under-Table Tissue Galaxy

Steps:

Tape a large piece of cardboard to the bottom of a stable surface at home.
Place loops of masking tape across the cardboard with the sticky side facing the floor.
Give your child several colorful squares of tissue paper to hold.
Ask them to lie down on their back under the cardboard.
Show them how to use their fingertips to crumple a paper square into a tight ball.
Challenge them to reach up and press the ball onto the sticky tape.
Keep adding more colors until the whole overhead board is a bright galaxy!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child while they are lying under furniture. Ensure the cardboard is taped securely so it does not fall. Keep all small paper balls away from the mouth to prevent choking.

Bottle Labyrinth Ball Squeeze

Boy squeezing a plastic bottle with a taped straw to blow a ping pong ball through a cardboard straw maze at a kitchen table

Steps:

Cut a large flat rectangle from your cardboard to act as the base for your labyrinth.
Use markers to draw a start and finish line on opposite ends of the cardboard.
Cut your straws into various lengths and tape them down to the cardboard to create winding maze walls.
Make sure the paths are just wide enough for the ping pong ball to roll through.
Take an empty, flexible plastic bottle and tape a single straw into the opening, sealing the rest of the cap with masking tape so air only comes out of the straw tip.
Place the ping pong ball at the start line of your maze.
Ask your child to hold the cardboard steady with their non-dominant helper hand.
With their dominant hand, have them squeeze the bottle to release puffs of air through the straw, pushing the ball through the maze toward the finish line.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise children during play to ensure straws and small pieces of tape are used safely. Ensure the plastic bottle is clean and free of sharp edges before assembly.

The Confetti Cupcake Decorator

Boy using tongs to drop punched paper dots into paper baking cups glued to cardboard

Steps:

Use markers to draw three big circles on your cardboard.
Glue a baking cup onto each circle to make the cupcake base.
Have your child use the hole puncher on colorful paper to make dots.
Squeeze some glue into the bottom of each baking cup.
Ask your child to pick up the paper dots using the tongs.
Challenge them to drop the sprinkles into the cups to decorate the treats.
Use their helper hand to keep the cardboard steady while they work.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play to ensure safety. Small paper dots can be a choking hazard for younger children.

Rainbow Ribbon Wall Weave

Girl weaving a red ribbon through slits in a cardboard panel taped to the wall at shoulder height

Steps:

Draw five long vertical lines on your cardboard.
Use your scissors to cut a slit along each line.
Make sure the slits are wide enough for the ribbon.
Use masking tape to stick the cardboard to a wall.
Put it at your child’s shoulder height.
Give your child a colorful ribbon.
Show them how to poke the ribbon through the first slit.
Help them weave it over and under across the slats.
Repeat this with all the different colors!

Safety Tip:
Adult supervision is needed while using scissors. Ensure the cardboard is taped tightly to the wall so it does not fall.

The Vertical Felt Leaf Clip

Steps:

Use markers to draw a thick, winding vine on a piece of cardboard.
Use your scissors to cut out the vine shape for your child.
Tape the vine shape vertically onto a wall at your child’s eye level.
Cut out several small leaf shapes from the colorful felt sheets.
Ask your child to use a pincer grasp to clip a leaf onto the vine.
Challenge them to reach across their body to place leaves on the opposite side.

Safety Tip:
Adult supervision is required while using scissors. Ensure the cardboard is taped firmly to prevent it from sliding.