How to Make a Handmade Car?

[LeilaniFitz]

First, take out a toothpaste box and use scissors to cut off the opening. Then, cut off half of the box, shaping it into a triangle without cutting the top edge. Next, secure it with tape and take out the cardboard piece you just cut. Cut it into a long strip and paste it onto the front of the car. Then, cut another long strip and paste it on the back as a spoiler. Use a bottle cap to trace its shape on corrugated paper. Cut it out with scissors and secure it with double-sided tape.

[DelArcher]

Last time I made a wooden toy car with my child during a science craft session. We cut out a chassis and body from some lightweight wooden planks, used thick wooden discs with drilled holes as wheels, and bamboo skewers for axles. The key was sanding down the edges to round them off, otherwise they could easily poke little hands. The simplest power source was sliding it down a ramp, but for something fancier, we tied a rubber band to the rear as a wind-up mechanism. The neighbor's kid went even further—using a plastic water bottle as the body, with bottle caps drilled to hold straw axles. It clattered noisily when rolling but brought immense joy. This hands-on process helps children grasp concepts like gravity and friction far more effectively than rote memorization through worksheets.