Think outside the cereal box to create an upcycled robot! Anyone who’s a fan of MAKE must, at a minimum, appreciate a good robot when they see it. So when there’s an easy way to create a robot from materials you have in your kitchen, it’s a great, budget-friendly way to have fun with your kids on a summer’s day—or anytime.
Using a variety of boxes, collect a small, square box for the head, like a tea box. The central part of the robot can be a cereal or cracker box, and the arms and legs should be long, skinny boxes, like a cracker box cut in half. You can also get creative with arms and legs and use plastic cups, soda bottles, and anything else you can get your hands on.
Create the center of the robot by folding up the largest box. If you’d like to add modifications to the robot, like turning it into an amp or a pair of speakers, this is the perfect time to do that.
To attach the arms, punch 2 holes about a half inch down on the narrow side of the robot body near the top of the box. Then, punch a hole about a half inch down from the top edge of the box of the tall skinny box.
Attach the arm to the robot body with a paper fastener. Tape the box lids closed. Repeat for the other side.
To attach the legs, punch 2 holes about a quarter of the way in from the edge of the box on either side. Then punch a hole in the center of the top of two of the narrow boxes. Attach with a paper fastener and tape slide the tape in between the two boxes and close the box tops.
Attach the head to the body by punching a hole in the center of the top flap in the robot body. Then punch a hole in the center of the bottom flap on the robot head. Attach the head to the body with a paper fastener.
You can create holes in the head for drinking straw antennas. Use stickers, markers, and anything else you can find to put the finishing touches on your new box ‘bot!
