Hobbies And Interests
Racing
Create a toy car version of a drag race to play outside. You need a hard surface for the race; a patio, driveway or sidewalk work perfectly. Mark a starting point with chalk or a long piece of masking tape that reaches across the starting point for all the competitors. Add a finish line at a designated distance from the start. Choose one child to start the race with the wave of a flag. (The kids can create their own starting flags out of paper and crayons or paint.) Racers pick their favorite Matchbox cars and line up behind the starting line. With the wave of the starting flag, the competitors push their cars as hard as they can to get them across the finish line. They only get one push to propel the cars as far as they will go. A second person should stand at the finish line to declare which car gets across the line first. If someone has a movie camera, film the photo finish. To extend the races, make the game best two out of three. Record the results on paper. Try different distances to see how far the cars can go. Have a weekly race and accrue points for wins.
Stacking
Put all the Matchbox cars in a box, bag or basket and have a blind draw of an equal number of cars for each player. Start the clock and see who can build the highest pile of Matchbox cars that remain in a tower without falling by the time the clock runs down. If there are only enough cars for one competitor at a time, give each person all the cars and start the clock. Keep track of how many cars each person stacked and kept up until the clock ran down. Another way to run the stacking race is to see who can pile all his cars up first with no clock.
Starting Ramps and Obstacle Courses
Use items gathered from the garage, house, yard and playroom to make racing ramps in the yard. Items may include cardboard tubes from toilet paper or paper towels; boxes from shoes, cereal or other food products; packing boxes; wooden or plastic building blocks; pieces of pipe; scrap lumber and piles of dirt from the garden. Get a pair of scissors, glue and tape for each builder. Give instructions to the kids to create and build their own starting ramps using any of the items they choose. This is an interesting way for them to learn about building techniques and cause and effect. The kids can stack, cut, glue or tape their creations together to build straight ramps, tunnels, jumps or whatever they think might work the best as a starting ramp to launch the Matchbox cars in a race. Make it a timed race or a competition to see who creates the highest, most unique or most efficient starting ramp.