It's fun to play games and fun to make games, but it is even more fun to create your own game! In this craft project, you will make a do-it-yourself racetrack game board with space stickers that you can arrange to make your version of the Race Game. Try different arrangements of the space stickers to see how each changes the way the game unfolds as you play.
Included at the end of the project are rules for playing the Race Game, but these can also be customized to fit the ages and skills of the game players. As you can see, the Racetrack Game Board isn't for just one game, but an opportunity for an infinite variety of race games!
Related craft: Use Homemade Modeling Dough to make custom game pieces.
Choose a game board to make—One-sheet or Large, colored or black & white. Download and print the pattern on white computer paper. For the Large board, be sure to print both the Top and Bottom patterns.
You also need to print a space stickers pattern that matches the game board you are making. Select the Primary Color Stickers for playing the Race Game with young children. Print space stickers on full-sheet label stock (sticker paper), or print on plain white paper and glue the stickers in place. Make a Storage Envelope to hold your race cars and extra space stickers.
Patterns are Adobe PDF files. The Adobe Reader is available for free.
All of Aunt Annie's project patterns are designed to be printed on standard letter-size paper (8.5"x11" or A4). When printing from Adobe Reader, you may need to select Auto-Rotate and Center or Choose paper source by PDF page size to ensure the best fit.
Cut out the racetrack on its heavy black outline. Set aside.
Tip: The Large racetrack has two pieces. Glue the top and bottom together by applying glue to the glue tab on the top piece and laying the bottom piece over the glue tab. Be sure to carefully align the racetrack on the two pieces.
Tip: For a more durable game board, glue the board to a piece of lightweight cardboard that is 1" larger than the game board in both dimensions.
Cut out the race car playing pieces. There are eight race cars with different colors and numbers to choose from. For the One-sheet game board, four of the race cars are on the sticker sheet.
Tip: For young children, cutting around the race car wheels can be difficult. Either help the child, or have them make a straight cut and forget about the wheels!
Fold each car on its three dashed lines. First a valley fold, next a mountain fold, last a valley fold. Use the hump that is formed to hold the car during game play.
Tip: Apply a dab of glue in the fold, if you like.
If you printed the black & white game board patterns on white paper, color the racetrack background with any colors and designs you like.
Tip: Instead of using the Space Stickers, you can color and label the racetrack spaces using any ideas you have! Just be sure to use very neat handwriting. In fact, you may want to do the labels in pencil first and give the game a trial run. If the game works as you imagined, trace over the pencil with a pen and finalize the game board.
Cut out the individual stickers for the game board spaces. There are triangle-shaped pieces for the racetrack corners and a variety of rectangle-shaped pieces for the racetrack straights.
Tip: There are six extra stickers that you can use as replacements for lost stickers or to make customized game spaces.
Place the triangle-shaped stickers in the corner spaces of the
racetrack. Use the rectangle-shaped stickers in the other spaces.
Begin applying the stickers at the start, and make the writing and
arrows face the same way the cars will be driving. Alternate the
different types of stickers around the track.
Tip: It's best if the BACK UP 3 and ZOOM 4 SPACES stickers are matched with arrow stickers. That is, place them so that when the player performs either action (going backward by 3 spaces or forward by 4 spaces), they land on a space with an arrow sticker.
Tip: If you use repositionable glue to apply the stickers, you can try different arrangements of the stickers on the racetrack.
Tip: You don't have to use all the stickers. For younger children, the ROLL 6 TO MOVE and TRADE SPACES may be confusing or frustrating.
To play the Race Game, you will need a Racetrack game board, a race car for each player, and a die. You can also use game pieces from other games, or you can even make your own pieces with homemade Modeling Dough.
The object of this 2- to 4-player game is to reach or pass the FINISH first.
The game ends when a player reaches or passes the FINISH square. You can also continue play to determine second, third and fourth places.
Your game board is now complete! Have fun playing with your friends!