How to Build a Paper Roller-coaster

Materials:

• Card stock
• Yarn
• Cardboard
• Marbles

• Scissors
• Hot glue gun
• Tape
• X-acto Knife
• Paperclips

To make the track you will need scissors and card stock.

Next you fold the card stock in half hotdog style and then unfold it so that there is a crease in the middle of the paper.

Then you cut the paper on the crease so that it is in 2 half sheets.

You need to fold one side to the middle then fold the other side to the middle then unfold it so that it makes a C channel shape.

To make a bendable track you will take the normal track and cut the sides of it so that it looks like the picture above. It can be used to make loops, turns, and ramps.

You can make supports by rolling a half sheet of paper into a tube and then taping it so that it keeps its shape.

To make a funnel you will need a full sheet of card stock and you fold the cardstock so that it makes a funnel shape like in the picture above. Then you tape the funnel together and cut off the end so that the marble can fit through. You can also make it from a bigger sheet of paper.

To make the roller coaster you will need to make a solid base first. You can use cardboard and hot glue it together so that it can support itself. Then you can make a structure with supports so you can connect the track to it. After that you can make the track however you want to. Make sure that the track is always sloped down at least a little. You can connect the tracks with tape or hot glue and make sure there are no places that could slow down or stop a marble.

You can expand the roller coaster by connecting it to a roof to make more space. If you have a drop ceiling it is easy to connect the base of the roller coaster to the ceiling. You can bend a paper clip so that it looks like the picture above. Then you put the paper clip under the drop ceiling like in the picture. Using yarn you tie the yarn to the paper clips and then hot glue it to the corners. Then you can continue the roller coaster.

To make an elevator you will need a pulley mounted to the roof, yarn, and two paper boxes. Connect one of the paper boxes to the yarn, then put the yarn on the pulley and connect the other box. Put some extra marbles in one box and leave the other empty. Make it so that when the marble goes into the empty box, the box is released and can go up. Then when it gets to the top make it let the marble out of the box into a track to keep going. Some ways to let the marble out of the box is to put an incline on the inside of the box and cut the side one of the sides off so that when the box is tipped the marble rolls out. Then make something that tips the box when it gets to the top. Then catch the marble with the track.

Time wasters are any parts of the track that waste time. They can be funnels, spirals, or anything else that wastes time. You should add these to your roller coaster to make it last longer and make it more interesting.

Paper roller coaster are a fun way to work on creativity and problem solving. They are easy to make and use mostly recyclable materials. They can be a great project for classroom or just for yourself at home. I loved making my paper roller coaster and I hope you do too!