How to Make a Marble Run Game for Kids
Most children have a collection of marbles in their rooms that they may use to play the traditional game of marbles. They may have never thought of other possible ways to play with those marbles. Making a marble run game for your children is a project that you can use to bring the family together and show them another way to look at marbles. Let your children lend their own touches to the construction of a customized game board.
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Things You'll Need
- Foam Board
- White glue
- Paper towel rolls
- Scissors
- Blocks (optional)
- Markers
Instructions
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1
Cut the paper towel rolls. Cut them in half lengthwise and then cut them in half again. This forms four small paper troughs from each roll. Depending on the size of your children, you may want to do this step for them.
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2
Glue the troughs to the foam board to form tracks. Let the kids decide if they want the pieces to make tracks that are zigzags, diagonals, or straight lines. Make sure to coat the whole bottom of each trough in white glue so that they adhere well to the board and dry stiffly.
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3
Decorate the board. Use markers to create a background and designs for the board. Have the kids draw yellow lines down the middle of each strip to create roads, and then construct buildings and trees around the run. You might just want to give each child a section to decorate on his own.
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4
Place the marble at the top of the run. Once you have the marble in place, tip the board slightly and watch it roll down. For younger children, place a wooden block under the top two corners and help them place the marble at the top and let it go.
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Tips & Warnings
Have marble races by constructing several tracks on the board. You can decide to make the tracks all the same or make them in different designs and see who finishes first.
A possible variation is to use paper tubes for the run. To make these, cut the paper towel roll in half, roll each piece into a tube, and glue the ends together. Then just attach them as you would the troughs.
References
- Photo Credit marble in a group of marbles image by Ellanorah from Fotolia.com
