Cardboard box craft
- 30 minutes
- Between 3 and 10 cardboard boxes, paper, tissue paper or wrapping paper, foil, safe scissors, tape, glue. Plus, the free printable below.
- 2+
If you have a preschooler at home, chances are you’ve heard of Numberblocks. It’s one of those brilliant programmes that kids and grown-ups love because it shows kids (and grown-ups) that learning numbers is lots of fun!
We’re huge fans of Numberblocks at 5 Minute Fun. Don’t miss the exclusive Numberblocks products in the 5 Minute Fun shop, including fun Numberblocks blocks, play and learn activity cards and the Numberblocks Maths Programme.
For more Numberblocks fun go to Numberblocks.tv and search for Numberblocks on YouTube Kids.
How to make your own Numberblock
- Print out the sheet of facial features and accessories. Touch the image or press this link to open the printable page in a new window.
- Find between 3 and 10 boxes. You can use anything in your recycling bin as long as they are roughly the same size and will stack on top of each other. For example, you could use tea and other food packaging. Or, try a selection of bigger delivery boxes to make a supersized Numberblock.
- Cover each box with coloured paper, tissue paper, wrapping paper or foil. Wrap it like a present and secure with tape.
- Choose and cut out eyes, mouths and accessories and glue them to the boxes to finish the Numberblock. If you don’t have a printer, you can draw and cut out features instead.
- Stack the boxes but don’t glue them together. Now use them to play these games.
5 maths games to play with your Numberblock!
Try these games with your homemade Numberblocks toy. (You can also play these games with the blocks in this Numberblocks gift set).
- Take turns hiding the boxes around the room. Give clues using positional words (behind, under, and so on) or ‘getting warmer/colder’ to help each other find them, counting blocks as you go.
- See who else is hiding inside your Numberblock. For example, in Numberblock Four you can find Three and One or Two and Two. (You might like to say “I’m Three and I’m a part, I’m One and I’m a part, and the whole of me is Four!” like in the episode Whole of Me.)
- Do some silly counting of your blocks – skip a number out, start at 2 instead of 1, go backwards or past the total and see if your little one can tell you what you’re doing wrong and how to get it right.
- Find ‘numbery things’ your new Numberblock might like – Two likes pairs of things, Four likes squares, Five likes gloves or a snack of five pieces of fruit
- Count the boxes into a tower and then knock them down. (Perfect for toddlers!)
Virtual lesson: Learn numbers with Numberblocks
Hands up if you’re trying to teach your children maths at home, but you don’t really know where to start? This e-learning lesson has easy ideas that are perfect for children aged 3-5. Watch and take part or just complete the activities underneath. Either way, there are lots of quick ideas your children can try straight away.
Numberblocks toys: games to play with your blocks
Have fun introducing your child to numbers and helping them to learn. You can play these fun games with your child’s Numberblocks blocks toy, available exclusively in the 5 Minute Fun Shop.
Numberblocks games: 5 active ways to learn maths
You don’t have to sit still to learn numbers. Your child will love counting, learning shapes and recognising numbers with these fun Numberblocks games – and you won’t have to tell them to sit down or keep still once!