Build a Saturday Space Ship

Creativity is the most valuable characteristic of education, and it is not learned in "public school"... We parents must sometimes set our desires for order aside and embrace the creative nature of childhood!!! The following is a project conceived, designed, and produced by my 7 and 2 year old daughters!!! My oldest wanted to put an "invention" on this site because she had heard me talking about it!!  Here is my daughter's Intro to this product,  " I overheard my dad say that there was a contest for making things with cardboard and tape.  I was thinking I would make an office out of cardboard that my sister and I could play in.  Then my sister kept accidentally breaking it, so when my mom came home from a photo shoot we came up with the idea of making a spaceship.  So we collected all the cardboard boxes and old materials my dad had from taking apart the old microwave.  We then started cutting the cardboard with a knife (with my mom's help) and taping them together. We built windows and doors and we made a lock with a screw and a metal piece.  My sister and I colored the outside and some inside with stars, planets, and writing about space.  We also added space rocks.  We built this in the living room of our house.  My mom and my sister helped me make it, it was a lot of fun.  I really loved making this with my family.  We all added ideas to make this great.  I learned that making stuff is really fun, we did this as a family, we were having a fun time and we played in it for hours.  My biggest challenge was in the beginning trying to build the office by myself and it was a big surprise to have it be so much easier with my family to help me build the spaceship. I am proudest that me and my family had fun.  If I could do it all over again I would add more controls and more parts of the old microwave! I would also create more ways to add the parts that would not stick in the foam.  That is my story of how to build a spaceship. ~Thaya"  Thank you all for viewing our daughter's instructable, please enjoy and make with your kids!

Provide your children maximum creative license to create, take the back seat and be amazed!!! Our girls wanted to "build a space ship" and it was the right day to do it!! I had just freed up packaging from our new microwave and had parts of the old one on hand to be repurposed.... Materials are whatever is on hand (keep stuff on hand at all times to stimulate your children's minds) Step 1, do what your kids tell you to, and only interject your ideas when needed to get their ideas to work!!

Remember those old project parts? They should typically be stored safely away from children, but some stuff that is really cool and not sharp, not electrified, and not dangerous should be stored at children's creative disposal!! Here are some pieces I had laying around my hobby table that my daughters used...

Let the kids "own" some space in the home for an evening. Let them play and enjoy their creation. Never criticize or poo poo the project. lavish praise on each creative idea!!! Ignore the copious quantity of wasted tape and loose refuse around this job site, creativity is a messy contact sport!! Last of all, love your kids, help them, spend time with them, and try to developer their creative minds. Reserve judgement and criticism for adulthood!!! Happy building!!