The results are in for Repair Cafe East Linton's Toy-Making Competition!
Over the recent half-term break we asked children in classes P1-P6 across East Lothian to make a toy from things they had around the house. Any tools could be used to build the toy but the main components had to be up-cycled from things with a former use.
Our panel of judges - Sewing Teacher Sheena Carss (Seams Sew); Brian McLelland of 'Brian's Repair and Reuse Diary'; and our regular blogger, 'The Eco-Worrier' are delighted to announce that the winner is.........
Theo Wishart
(Class 2A, Haddington Primary School) for his toy:
"The Wild Jumper!"
Theo will receive this fantastic 14-piece wooden tool kit and a ‘Young Up-Cycler 2020, Repair Cafe East Linton’ Certificate.
Read on below the image to see pictures of Theo's toy, discover his making process, read comments from our panel of judges and view our other fantastic entries.
"The Wild Jumper!"
Materials Used
- 3 pieces of wood (from our old dismantled playhouse)
- Wheels (from my older brother’s old skateboard)
- Screws, sandpaper and wood glue (from Daddy’s toolbox)
- Bolts for the wheels (from an old IKEA bookcase)
- Mummy’s left over brown shed paint
- Paint (from my craft box)
- Number stickers (from a previous birthday card)
- Glow in the dark stickers from my brother’s craft box
The Making Process
- Used Daddy’s saw to cut the wood to size
- Sanded any rough edges
- Screwed together the 2 big blocks to make a base and cab
- Screwed the cargo bed together; wood glued it onto the base behind the cab
- Drilled holes for the wheels
- Painted and decorated it
- Screwed on the wheels
- Played!
The Finished Toy
The Wild Jumper is an indoor/outdoor heavy duty pick up truck that can roll down hills and ramps and do jumps and flips (even if not intended!). It can carry small toys or toy people in the back. The stickers on the front headlights glow in the dark.
Judges' comments:
Sheena Carss: “Theo, what an excellent truck! It is so well made and decorated it could have been bought from a shop! Your solid design and attention to detail making sure there are no splinters in there together with the nice rounded edges makes the finish exceptional. I love that it's a toy for playing with other toys and that you've created a ramp in the garden for more truck fun! Well done, Theo. You have worked really hard on this and I hope you have learned some new skills too!”
The Eco-Worrier: “This is impressive. Your Wild Jumper is exceptionally well made and durable and looks as if it will provide many years of entertainment. This is quite a simple design but it has been skilfully put together using such a range of well chosen recycled materials and demonstrating some clever techniques and use of tools. What makes this particularly good is that it can be used indoors and outdoors. The glowing stickers and numbers finish it off nicely. Your presentation sets out exactly how you made the toy and what it can do and you obviously enjoyed this project. Well done!”
Brian McClelland: “I like this rugged truck and the fact that it has been tested out in the garden. The photos make clear that you were engaged and enthusiastic about the project. An inventive selection of bits and pieces has been chosen and it is great to have the detailed description of the job.”
Special Commendation goes to 2 other entries:
Florencia Roper (P4, East Linton Primary School) for her toy:
"Space POP"
Materials Used
To make Space POP I used:
- A cling film tube
- A cardboard box
- Tissue paper
- Stickers
- Paper
- A paper cup
- Sellotape
- Glue and feathers
The Making Process
- First I cut off the top of my cardboard box, and cut a circle just bigger than the clingfilm tube on the bottom of the box for my tube to go through
- I then cut the paper cup in half and sticked circular bits of paper on either side to make a short cylinder
- Then I sellotaped my cardboard box shut and decorated it with stickers and feathers and tissue paper
- I wrote Space POP on it and drew a rocket and stuck it on the short cylinder.
- I made some fire with stickers and stuck red paper with blastoff written on it on the bottom of the clingfilm tube.
- I put the “rocket” (short cylinder) in the box and the tube in the hole, pushed the tube and BLASTOFF!!! (see video)
The Finished Toy
Space POP is a fun device where you shoot a rocket (not a real one) out of the Space POP box and play different games with it. You can catch it in your hands or in a fun bowl that also comes with Space POP. You can play dodgeball, or whatever game you come up with. It's also fun to just watch it "POP!"
When I started making Space POP it was actually not supposed to be this. It was going to be a box with a head, arms and legs. You were supposed to push the tube and the head would come up, not pop out, and then pull the arms out. While I was making this, I pushed the tube and the head just shot out. I thought this might be fun on its own, I called it Space POP and made the “head” into a rocket. I am sure kids of all ages would LOVE IT.
Judges' comments:
Sheena Carss: “Wow, what a creative genius! I love that you allowed your project to lead you away from your initial thoughts. You have used skill and precision to make it work perfectly. Decorating and making it bright makes your toy stand out. You have thought about lots of games to play with your toy and I can see you have worked very hard on this project. Well done!”
The Eco-Worrier: “This really does pop! Designing something that makes a noise is an excellent idea. I very much like your audio clip which shows how the Space Pop works. You have made great use of different recycled materials and you have decorated it beautifully. You have a brilliant sense of colour and design. There's a lot of detail in this toy and you've put it together with real care and skill. The presentation of how you made your toy is particularly good with a clear explanation and super photos.”
Brian McClelland: "There's a nice bit of imagination and improvisation here. Discovering that you could use your construction as a rocket launcher you re-purposed it. From the photos it looks as if you did most of the construction yourself. Great work!"
Felix and Gabriel Maynard (Ages 4 & 5, Prestonpans) for their:
"Toy Sculpture"
My children have taken toys they no longer played with and made a sculpture.
Dad helped with the glue gun!
Judges' Comments:
Sheena Carss: "I just love your sculpture and what an excellent idea to use lots of old small toys to create something beautiful. Well done. I may have to get my daughter gluing some lol dolls!"
The Eco-Worrier: "What a colourful and fun sculpture you've made. You show very well how old toys that you have grown out of can have a new life and be used in a completely different way. And when you have tired of this sculpture I can see how you might add more or change it again so that it could last longer and be played with for years. This is a good example of recycling and re-using and stopping plastic being thrown away."