Saturday, July 28, 2012

Make a “Control Panel” with your kids

control panel

It’s Saturday!  I’ve got a fun project for the kids that should keep them busy for at least a little while.  We like to call this our “control panel” or our “command center” depending on what it’s being used for at the time.  It’s perfect for encouraging imagination (something I think a lot of kids are lacking these days) both during the building process and during play.
control panel
Depending on your child’s experience and motor skills, this will require some adult supervision.  How much you involve yourself is up to you but I’m warning you, you may want to join in on the fun!
This project is perfect for cleaning out junk drawers and miscellaneous tools and hardware.  All you need is a piece of wood (we used a wooden stool), random hardware and tools and imagination.  Encourage your child to use their imagination when rummaging through things to use.  Think outside the box when looking for items to use.  You can get ideas from what we used or come up with your own.  Let your child use the screwdriver, hammer some nails, and paint.  He or she will get early experience with tools and how they work and will feel a major accomplishment when you guys finish the “control panel”.
                        control panelcontrol panel
We used plastic bottle caps as dials.  Hammer a nail through the center of the cap and into the wood and with a little paint, you've got controls for voltage, volume or frequency!  They really turn, too!                 
                        control panelcontrol panel
I’m not really sure what that black hook doo-dad is but it had a nail already stuck in it so we hammered it in and now it’s job is to point to numbers (hey, it’s an important job, trust me).  The numbered buttons are made from those plastic glider pads that are nailed into the bottom of chair legs.  I had a bunch left over from redoing some dining chairs and they worked great, not to mention easy for my son to hammer.                       
                        control panelcontrol panel
Hinges are a fun component to add to the control panel.  We made an emergency hatch that reveals the emergency shut off switch button.  It’s vital to any control panel or command center.  You never know what may happen that could lead you to abort your top secret mission.
This really is a fun project for any kid or grown-up.  Search through your tool box or junk drawer.  Poke around in Home Depot.  I assure you that you’ll find some really cool gadgets and hardware.  We also used acrylic craft paint and puff paint to make it look official.  I would make sure that you replace anything that becomes rusty if left out in the rain and use caution when using sharp objects.  Saftey first!
Have you already got ideas?  I would love to hear them!

9 comments:

  1. I love this idea! I think we wIll ttempt this over the weekend. Mike always has an over abundence of extra tools and gadgets laying around and Gabriel and Sophie are always complaining there is nothing to do lol. Thanks! Will let u know how it goes
    ---christen---

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Awesome! I'm glad you want to try it. It really is a lot of fun!

      Delete
  2. Wire it up with http://www.makeymakey.com/ and you'll have a custom controller for games/apps...

    ReplyDelete
  3. When I was younger, my grandmother took me with her to an electronics recycling center, and let me pick out a bunch of old circuit boards and other components to take home and play with. I glued them onto a large cardboard box and pretended it was my laboratory, with displays and switches and lots of buttons to press. This article brings back a lot of happy memories.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh that sounds fun! That gives me more ideas! We could take apart old electronics that don't work and find some really cool parts I'm sure. I know you're supposed to use caution when doing that though. Anyone have any advice before I go hurting myself or my kids?

      Delete
    2. Power everything with a 9 volt battery. Also, pay a visit to Radio Shack or similar store and look at the lamps (aka light bulbs, sockets, leds for DC current, etc. If you're handy and have an old computer, salvage the small fans, the cables with sockets, etc for plug in, plug out play. The small fans will run off 9 volts and are generally safe for small fingers. If not, out a grill made of scrap window screen over it.

      Delete
  4. This will be a great idea for my daughter. She has such a creative imagination, that we'll be launching space ships before lunch.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love to hear that! There's nothing better than some good old fashioned imagination! I hope your daughter really enjoys making a space ship. Tap light are cool to use too for light-up buttons.

      Delete

I really really love and appreciate comments, but i hate spam.

Due to the heavy amount of spam comments I've been receiving lately I had to put the word verification up. I know how annoying it can be when you want to leave a comment but I hope you will understand.

Would you be so kind to take the extra step to post your thoughts?

ShareThis

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...