QBetter

*The toy is based on the principles of gravity and projectile motion.

*The child will throw the football through the various hoops. The football will then be funneled down into a JUGS-type machine that will launch the balls back to the child. The angle and speed of the JUGS-type machine can be adjusted.

*JUGS machines are very durable and widely used in sports. These machines are expensive and sell commercially for around $2,000. This machine could be bought from a company. The siding will be netting which is inexpensive and durable. The dummy and funnel will be molded of hard plastic or rubber, which is also fairly inexpensive and durable. This toy will require a fairly large amount of rubber/plastic. Safety concerns include flying balls, fast-moving parts, and electricity.

* As a kid throwing a football I learned how to get the ball to go where I want. By thinking about sports toys I learned how angles and projectile motion are involved. I also thought of new ways to play with footballs to get better at the sport.

Wall Shapes

*This toy is based on the principle of shapes and combining simple shapes to make more complex shapes.

*One child or player will disconnect triangles from the wall in a certain shape. The other child does not look while the first player is punching triangles out of the wall. The second player will then look and have a certain amount of time (house rule for how much time) to make the shape punched out in the wall using the playing pieces. The first player then turns the crank and passes the wall by the playing pieces. If the wall touches the pieces or the pieces do not make the shape cut out of the wall, the player who set up the pieces loses.

* The entire toy would be made of molded hard plastic or rubber and thus be durable and cheap. Safety concerns include small parts (choking hazard) and moving parts. Metal could be used in the crank to make it turn smoother, however this would be more expensive and may present more of a safety issue. The metal could be molded or welded together.

*By thinking about toys with shapes I realized how important shapes and an understanding of how they fit together are. Shapes are important to engineering and design. As a child I learned about basic and complex shapes, but not how they fit together or their properties.

Classics for the Car

*This toy is based on numbers (playing cards), strategy, and following a system of rules.

*The child(ren) will play card games or checkers or chess by velcroing the pieces to the board. This is optimized for road trips or airplanes.

*This toy will be inexpensive to make. The pieces will be basic plastic pieces and vinyl cards with small patches of Velcro attached. The board will be a piece of wood with a cloth wrapped around it. The pieces and board will be both durable and cheap. The safety concerns include small pieces which could be choking hazards.

*By thinking about children's toys, I learned how classical toys/games could be optimized for certain situations or environments. As a child I got annoyed when I tried to play cards in the car and they flew and slid all over.