Modern children spend most of their free time at a computer, tablet or smartphone. They no longer play on the street, as before, do not turn on their imagination, do not invent something unusual. Naturally, times are changing, generations too, so do not be very upset, because this is a natural process.
But you have a chance to give your child the opportunity to learn how to do something with his own hands, while supplying him with new toys. For example, you can show him how to make a crossbow out of paper.
The benefits of classes for the child
Many parents may be outraged, because making things with their own hands is already irrelevant, it will only take the child’s time, and also take precious minutes from the parents, because such an activity still needs to be taught, helped, evaluated. But you can not worry - of course, there are crafts that can take hours or even days to make, but no one forces you to choose them. In order to teach your son or daughter how to make a crossbow out of paper, you will need a maximum of half an hour, but then the child will have a full-fledged toy and a sea of joy from the realization that he made it himself. You can use this when you want to take a little break from the baby who constantly requires your attention - provide him with material, and he will selflessly plunge into the manufacturing process, so that later he will come to you with a radiant face, demonstrating the result. So do not underestimate the benefits of such an activity - in any case, no one bothers you to try.
And for the test, the creation of a crossbow is ideal.
What do you need?
If you are interested in how to make a crossbow out of paper, then first of all you need to decide what you need to make it. Naturally, the main component is paper, you will need at least 10 sheets of it, preferably A4, as it will be much easier to make a crossbow from them. They are also the most affordable, so you should not have any problems finding this material. But how to make a crossbow out of paper without holding it together? For fasteners, you will need ordinary tape, which is also very easy to get. Another mandatory element is a pencil, which will play the role of an arrow loaded into a crossbow. You will need to use a thread as a bowstring, but you must make sure that it is thick and strong enough. You will need scissors to give the details the desired shape, and to make the process more fun, you should get ice cream. But when you eat it, do not rush to throw out the remaining wooden sticks - they will come in handy to create a full-fledged crossbow from paper and a pencil.
That's all the components that you will need - as you can see, there is nothing supernatural, all the components can be found either at home or bought in the nearest store.
Create Crossbow Shoulders
In order to make a crossbow with your own hands out of paper, you will need to go through three stages, and the first of them is the manufacture of shoulders. To get started, you will need four sheets of paper that you need to fold in half lengthwise and cut along the fold line. After that, take the resulting small sheets and wind them into a tube, using a pencil if necessary. Once the tube is ready, fasten its edges with tape to avoid the possibility of unwinding, then repeat the procedure with the remaining half of the small sheets. But this is only the beginning - to give the shoulders of the crossbow strength, you will need to put ice cream sticks in paper tubes. On one side, measure four centimeters on the tube and on the stick, insert the stick to the mark and break it so that it remains inside the tube. After that, bend the tube and insert another stick from the other end, and then repeat the procedure with the other shoulder. To make the crossbow made of paper and pencil more reliable, secure all the result with adhesive tape.
The second stage: we create the basis
After the shoulders are ready, you can proceed to create the base of the crossbow, which is also called the bed, as arrows are placed there.
To do this, you will need five sheets of paper, which you again fold using a pencil for the best effect and fasten with adhesive tape. From the edge where the shoulders will be attached, this tube must be flattened - they will be adjacent to these flatnesses. And again, attach everything very securely, using adhesive tape so that your crossbow does not fall apart, but serves for a long time and is reliable at the same time. Here you can also make a small tube-sight from part of the remaining sheet, which will be slightly larger in diameter than a pencil - an arrow will pass through it when it is released. Use the remaining paper to make two small tubes at the base of the crossbow - an arrow will lie there.
Trigger trigger
But the crossbow differs from the bow in that it has a trigger that automatically releases the bowstring and sends the arrow into free flight. To make it, you first need to attach a thread to the edges of the shoulders of the crossbow. Then pull it all the way and in a place that is in contact with the base of the crossbow, make a small hole, and from below it should be slightly wider than from above. The trigger will be placed here, which you can make from the unused balance of the ice cream stick.
The result is a fully working trigger that can be used to launch arrows. Before completing the work, check all the elements of the crossbow for reliable attachment, and if something seems shaky somewhere, do not spare the adhesive tape to fix this part properly.
Safety comes first
So, you learned how to make a paper crossbow that can produce pencil shots. Of course, this is not a real weapon, but if handled carelessly, it can also harm both your child’s health and damage to your property. Therefore, the baby should be taught not only how to make a crossbow, but also how to handle it. Demonstrate everything to him clearly, mark the area where he can play with a crossbow, and then he will be absolutely safe.