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Monday, August 8, 2011

cardboard and duct tape weaponry

My boys love to battle. As uncomfortable as it used to make me, I get it now (sorta). They work through emotions and struggles through play battling - and they seem to come out closer in the end. With a few boundaries and guidelines we are all happy. They love to make their own weapons from cardboard and duct tape. It is so easy and satisfying.

They draw and cut out the shapes from cardboard. We use this cutter and it is much easier than wrestling with scissors. After cutting, they cover their weapons with duct tape (and sometimes tin foil), build up the weak spots and make adjustments. That is it. The swords, battle axes, and shields are not the only inventive aspect of this play, so are the deep, engulfing tales they create.

Do your kids battle? Do they make their own weapons?





3 comments:

  1. Perfect. I saw knight's armor made from old men's ties -- would go well with this.

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  2. that sounds pretty great - i will have to look that up

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  3. My brothers spent one gloriously long summer holiday making plate mail armor. They found neoprene sheets and laminate sample tiles at a recycling shop, and sewed jackets. They spent hours sewing the individual laminate samples on to the neoprene in carefully planned over lapping rows. I think the day they decided it was done, and actually beat on each other with padded sword and staff they also made was actually a little bit of a let down, the building process was where the real fun actually was!

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