Design you own tree house complete with tire swing, water bucket, and stunning views of the verdant foliage. Best of all, it can be crafted with just about anything!
We read The Tree House that Jack Built, written by Bonnie Verburg and illustrated by Mark Teague (Orchard Books, 2014). Jack lives in a tree house with his animals friends who cavort and cause a bit of mischief throughout the day. But when it’s bedtime, everyone settles in for a peaceful night of moonlight and ocean waves. Raucous and then relaxing, this is an especially awesome bedtime story choice!
You’ll need:
- An assortment of small boxes, toilet paper tubes, and paper towel tubes
- 1 flat corrugated cardboard base (we used a 9.5″ x 13.5″ cake pad)
- Green poster board
- Scissors, glue and tape for construction
- Markers for decorating
- Hot glue
Building off your corrugated cardboard base, simply hot glue boxes, toilet paper, and paper towel tubes in whatever way works for you! We also offered natural craft sticks, wooden letters (leftover from this project), stickers, fabric flowers, and green paper crinkle for added texture. The results were fabulous!
Note: the tire swing is a little snippet of foam pipe insulator you can get in the plumbing section of Lowe’s or Home Depot. It was definitely a big hit! And if you’re looking for a slightly more fantastical spin on this project, please see our fairy houses. Or at the very least, check out Katie’s hilarious real estate listings at the end of the post!