How to Make a Board Game Out of a Cereal Box

Make your own board game customized to your child's preferences.

If you have kids who get bored doing the same old thing every day, recycle their old cereal boxes into a new game to play together. Make a board game out of a cereal box and you can customize it to your child's tastes and favorite things. Store all the pieces inside the box so it's ready to play for fun on the go.

Things You'll Need

• Cereal box
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Glue
• Markers
• Index cards
• Small toys
• Dice

Instructions

1. Cut out construction paper to match the size of the back, front, sides and bottom of a cereal box. Glue these pieces onto the box and let them dry. Leave the top of the box uncovered so you can still open and close it.

2. Use small cut-out squares of construction paper to glue a "road" onto the back of the cereal box. This will be the path you follow on the game. Mark one end "Start" and one end "Finish."

3. Cut standard index cards (3-by-5 inches) in half and use them as game cards. Write game moves on one piece, customizing them to match your game's theme. Maybe the players have to answer trivia questions, or perform a silly act, or solve a simple math problem to find out how many spaces to move. If you make this for very young children, simply make a colored square on the card to match a square on the board; they will advance to that color on the board when they draw the card.

4. Decorate the front of the box using markers. Name your board game and draw a picture to match it.

5. Write the name of the board game on the sides of the box; now when you store the box in a cabinet you will be able to easily find the game you want.

6. Put the index cards inside the box along with a pair of dice if you need them in order to play, and a few small toys or other objects like coins to serve as game pieces. Store them inside the box so the game will be ready to go whenever you want to play it. Write out simple game directions and include them inside, as well, so you won't forget how to play it later.

Tips & Warnings

• Make several games like this and store them in your game closet. Your kids can even use one basic box template to play a variety of games just by changing the cards or game pieces.

References

• Artists Helping Children: Cereal Box Crafts for Kids