Ask Ollie
Carton Mirror Periscope
Here's one to try together!
Build a spy tube from two cartons and peek over couches, around corners and over walls!
Reviewed by our team.
Safety first
- scissors used for cutting cartons
- glass mirrors can break and should only be handled by a grown-up; use plastic mirrors if possible
- sharp edges on cut cartons or metal mirrors
- care needed when peeking over fences or around doors
What you need
- Kid scissors, 1 pair
- Painter's tape, 1 roll
- Milk or juice cartons, 2 empty
- Small mirrors, 2, plastic or metal
- Pencil, 1
- Towel, 1
How to do it
Grown-up prep: Rinse two cartons and check that the mirrors are plastic or metal. Put any glass mirror aside, since a grown-up should handle that and cover the sharp edges.
- Wash both cartons and let them dry.
- Cut the tops off both cartons. Ask for help if you need it
- Tape the open ends together to make one long tube.
- Draw and cut a square window near the top on the front.
- Turn the tube around and cut a window near the bottom of the back.
- Tape a mirror inside at each window, slanted like a triangle's side. Ask: Which way do you think each mirror should face so the light can travel?
- Look through the bottom window. Can you see out of the top one? Ask: What can you see? Is it the ceiling, or the room in front of you?
- Test your periscope over a couch back or around a door frame.
- Now show your friends! What will you spy on next? Ask: What is the sneakiest place you could peek from with your periscope?
Play it again
- Spy mission: hide small toys around the room and find them using only your periscope.
- Longer view: add another carton and see how high you can spy.
- Mirror lab: change the mirror slant a little at a time and notice how the view moves.
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