{"id":59575,"date":"2016-09-23T11:53:26","date_gmt":"2016-09-23T16:53:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/?p=59575"},"modified":"2021-05-29T21:14:54","modified_gmt":"2021-05-30T02:14:54","slug":"weekend-diy-project-make-a-toddler-activity-board","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/relationships\/fatherhood\/weekend-diy-project-make-a-toddler-activity-board\/","title":{"rendered":"Weekend DIY Project: Make a Toddler Activity Board"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-59589 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy.jpg\" alt=\"Diy Toddler Activity Board.\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy.jpg 600w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When it came time for my wife and I to get our son Graham his first birthday present, we were having a hard time coming up with ideas. What he likes most is anything with buttons, doors, utensils, dad&#8217;s tools, etc. Basically, everything except the expensive toys that many folks tend to get for their kids&#8217; birthdays.<\/p>\n<p>So we decided to go the DIY route, and put all his favorite things onto a wooden activity board for him to play with. While commercially-produced versions of this exist out there, they are very expensive (running $100 or more). You can create your own for a fraction of that, and customize it to what your toddler likes.<\/p>\n<p>The materials, in total, cost me about $20, and after just a few hours of work, I had a nice-looking (and fun!) activity board that our son loves and continues to enjoy playing with every day.<\/p>\n<p>Below I walk you through the materials and steps to create&nbsp;one for your kid, or as a gift for new parents.<\/p>\n<h3>Materials<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>1 piece project board\/plywood.<\/strong> The piece I used is 1.5&#8242; x 3&#8242;; I bought it as is at Lowe&#8217;s because it looked like the perfect size. You could also buy plywood and cut it down to whatever size you need. Anything that&#8217;s roughly 3 or 4 square feet will do the trick.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Hardware.<\/strong> New hardware is spendy, especially when it&#8217;s just for a toddler to play with. So I went to Habitat for Humanity&#8217;s ReStore. Everything there is reclaimed, generally from old construction sites or donations, so it&#8217;s all very affordable. Other options are Goodwill or other thrift stores. You can, of course, also get new hardware. More tips on what to buy below.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Other Toys\/Fun Stuff.<\/strong> What does your toddler like? Currently, mine loves light switches, TV remotes, and random kitchen utensils. So, from around the house and garage, and I found extras of all those things, and attached them to the activity board. Be creative and let your toddler&#8217;s interests guide you here.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Screws\/Attachment Devices.<\/strong> If you buy new, your hardware will most likely come with screws. If you buy things used, you&#8217;ll either need screws you have around the house &#8212; the shorter the better so they don&#8217;t go through the back of the wood &#8212; or you&#8217;ll need to buy some. I also used a hook and a couple velcro strips to attach random things.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Felt Pads.<\/strong> We just lean the board against the wall rather than permanently secure it somewhere, so I attached some felt pads to the back to ensure it wouldn&#8217;t scratch up our walls. (Don&#8217;t worry, it&#8217;s heavy enough that it doesn&#8217;t fall over very easily.) If you choose to secure it, you&#8217;ll also need screws\/anchors for that purpose.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>How to Create an Activity Board for Your Toddler <\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<h3>1. Assemble Your Hardware\/Toys<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-59576 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.08.42.jpg\" alt=\"Hardware Items Aligned on Shelf.\" width=\"600\" height=\"514\" srcset=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.08.42.jpg 600w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.08.42-320x274.jpg 320w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.08.42-400x343.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In my search for hardware that Graham could play with and enjoy, I had a few criteria. I wanted things that would sit flush to a board &#8212; this eliminated a lot of items. I obviously looked for things that didn&#8217;t have sharp edges or random screws that would pop out. I also looked for things that had some sort of movement or hinge that Graham would enjoy fiddling with. Some of the items that I bought:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Hinges<\/li>\n<li>Doorknobs<\/li>\n<li>Locks &#8212; all kinds: hasp, chain, barrel bolts<\/li>\n<li>Door stoppers (the spring kind that wobble)<\/li>\n<li>Handles\/knobs (these didn&#8217;t actually make it onto the board; more on that later)<\/li>\n<li>Wheels (these ended up being too dirty to get clean, and unfortunately didn&#8217;t get used)<\/li>\n<li>Much more! (for instance, I have no idea what that gray thing is with the two poles, but it looked fun)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Use your imagination here. As you walk the aisles of whatever store you&#8217;re in, think about how it would sit on a board and how your toddler would interact with it. As noted above, I also scoured the house for a few extra things that I knew Graham would like.<\/p>\n<h3>2. Deep Clean the Hardware<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-59577 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.13.55.jpg\" alt=\"Deep Clean the Hardware.\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.13.55.jpg 600w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.13.55-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-07-06-23.13.55-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Especially if you buy your hardware used, you&#8217;ll want to give it a deep clean. Your toddler&#8217;s hands will be all over it, and very possibly his mouth as well. Fill your sink with some very hot water and a strong cleaning agent, throw the whole lot of hardware in there, and let it soak for 15-30 minutes. After soaking, give each item a good scrub and rinse, and then lay it out to dry.<\/p>\n<h3>3. Plan the Layout of the Board<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-59579 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-19-02.40.31.jpg\" alt=\"Plan the Layout of the Board.\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-19-02.40.31.jpg 600w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-19-02.40.31-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-19-02.40.31-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When you have your hardware cleaned and ready, lay it out on the board and see how it all looks\/flows. If things look good, start screwing things down!<\/p>\n<h3>4. Be Prepared to Troubleshoot<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-59580 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-20.50.40.jpg\" alt=\"Be Prepared to Troubleshoot.\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-20.50.40.jpg 600w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-20.50.40-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-20.50.40-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When I got to this point of having screwed down quite a few items, I realized I had to make some changes. First, there were a couple screws that went through the back of the board, so I had to replace them with shorter ones. Also, after Graham wandered over and played with it a little bit, I realized he wasn&#8217;t going to do much with any of the hardware that didn&#8217;t have moving pieces. So I nixed the handles\/knobs, and made some extra room for the other goodies: TV remote, light switch, etc. Be willing to adapt the project as you get into it!<\/p>\n<h3>5. Finish Up, and Watch Your Toddler Play!<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-59582 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-21.10.43.jpg\" alt=\"Finish Up, and Watch Your Toddler Play!.\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-21.10.43.jpg 600w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-21.10.43-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-20-21.10.43-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I used velcro strips to attach the TV remote and the light switch, and a hook for the kitchen measuring spoons. I also attached a little purple knob that screws in and out of its base. Attach your felt pads to the back, and that&#8217;s it! Let your kiddo play away!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-59583 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-21-04.57.51.jpg\" alt=\"Child Playing with DIY Toddler Activity Board.\" width=\"367\" height=\"550\" srcset=\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-21-04.57.51.jpg 367w, https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/2016-09-21-04.57.51-320x480.jpg 320w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 367px) 100vw, 367px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When it came time for my wife and I to get our son Graham his first birthday present, we were having a hard time coming up with ideas. What he likes most is anything with buttons, doors, utensils, dad&#8217;s tools, etc. Basically, everything except the expensive toys that many folks tend to get for their [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":59589,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[253,6,42285],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-59575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fatherhood","category-featured","category-relationships"],"featured_image_urls":{"large":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-538x280.jpg","reactor-320":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-320x213.jpg","rpwe-thumbnail":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-45x45.jpg","aesop-tiny-cover":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-400x267.jpg","aesop-character":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-200x200.jpg","aesop-collection":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-300x300.jpg","aesop-grid-image":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/09\/diytoddlerboard-copy-400x267.jpg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59575"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59575\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":136150,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59575\/revisions\/136150"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59589"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59575"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=59575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}