Things You'll Need:
- Construction paper
- Ruler
- Stapler
- Old magazines
- Glue stick
- Clear tape
- Crayons or markers
- Photos and stickers
-
Step 1
Buy long sheets of heavyweight and lightweight construction paper in various colors.
-
Step 2
Stack together five lightweight sheets of construction paper (same or alternating colors), fold them in half lengthwise and crease the fold with your ruler. Set aside and repeat with one large piece of heavyweight construction paper.
-
Step 3
Wrap the heavyweight piece around the lightweight pieces to make a magazine cover. While holding the "magazine" in one hand, pick up your stapler in your dominant hand and staple along the folded edge 1/3 inch from the fold. Set the blank-paged toy "magazine" aside.
-
Step 4
Recycle old magazines by cutting out images and articles in subject areas that will appeal to your child or children (for example, science and nature or foreign places). Try to match your child's interest and hobbies, the interest and hobbies typical for your child's age group or introduce new interest areas to your child. Keep in mind that if you don't have any old magazines you can typically acquire, free of charge, old magazines and other older reference items from libraries and schools.
-
Step 5
Print images from free image use Internet websites such as morgueFile if you do not have enough images or could not find any images that will interest your child. You can also make this a family project by asking your child or children to draw images or write articles for the "magazine."
-
Step 6
Glue or tape, haphazardly or in an organized fashion, the images and articles to the inside blank pages. To increase the realism of the magazine and help to improve upon or increase your child's logic, reasoning, mathematics or other skill and learning areas, cut out or print games and puzzles from the newspaper or Internet, and glue or tape these inside of the magazine, as well.
-
Step 7
Create a title for the toy magazine (for example, you may want to name it after your child). Complete the outside front and back covers based on the magazine's inside content or by adding personal touches such as your child's photos, more interest-related images or favorite stickers.
