Get Outdoors: Fun in a Cardboard Box

ByChristie Burnett

What fun there is to be found in a cardboard box! Do you remember making box cars like this when you were a child? I have made them with many, many children as a teacher and now one very special little person as a mummy. After a first run around the yard a design flaw was found! Modifications had to be made to include a carrier for the kids in the backseat! That I can say with certainty, was a first for me 🙂

You can drive really, really fast in your car which involves running forwards and backwards when reversing, and navigating around objects in your back yard but be careful to slow down when the policeman is around. I think tomorrow we might add a stop sign and traffic light.

Other ideas for box play outdoors;

  • Cut out a hole in the side or top of a large box to make a target for throwing balls or bean bags into. Draw the face of your favourite animal or character with the hole as a mouth if you are feeling really creative.
  • Add a tall cardboard tube or broomstick and a sheet for a mast and sail and sail the seven seas in your box boat.
  • BIG boxes from appliances are perfect for homemade cubby houses, loved by generations of toddlers and bigger kids (even if they won’t admit it!) Cut out a door and a few windows with a utility knife. Decoration optional!

What fun have you found hiding in a cardboard box recently?

How are you going with the Get Outdoors for the month of April challenge? I will be putting up a linky this Friday for readers to share their favourite outdoor activities from April so if you haven’t already, don’t forget to add an outdoors post to your blog calendar this week.

Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood 101 as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.

9 Comments

  1. Boxes are standard play here, and recently we helped my Mum unpack her new kids wear shop, box heaven! Have you read the delightful book Clancy and Millie, well the girls were trying to recreate the book and managed to do a reasonable job!
    Looking forward to my first link up for outdoor play!

  2. Love the red patty pan tail-lights!

  3. @claireyh – That Clancy and Millie book is wonderful!

    @ Christie – while at the park one weekend we came across a fantastic birthday party. The theme was cars and the parents had sourced enough plain white boxes for each of the children. You can imagine the fun they had with them. I loved watching their car races and only wished I could join in the fun!!

    I love Immy’s car. We too have a box car here but last night some much smaller boxes were made into homes for the toy rabbit (pretending to be a guinea pig) and the puppy.

  5. Fantastic! Love the cardboard box! So simple and so useful. My kids turn the boxes into little houses for their toys..bedrooms, bathrooms and cars of course! Thanks.

  6. It’s amazing the huts/cars/mud skipper houses/ships one can build with a plastic kiddie swimming pool. We use that thing ALL YEAR LONG!

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