The Art of Creating and Making

 

1001

Alternatives to the TV

 

Learn the ancient ways of building, creating and making instead of watching TV.

by Chris James on June 26 2016

Learn 1001 Alternatives to the TV

With expert advice

Contents:

1: Introduction

2: The journey from receiving to creating. Resting.

3: Powerful use of TV with kids

4: The learning dynamics of the screen

5: Video Games

6: In the Garden

7: Movement

8: Board Games

9: Craft

10: Music

11: Family Games

12: Parents rest and kids play

13:

THIS WEEK’S

TOP STORIES

I learnt how to crush a brick with my 5 year old daughter. She loved using a hammer smashing a brick. I said “What are you doing”, she said ‘I’m making fairy dust”. I said “Of course, let’s do it together”.

 

The other day, a funny thing happened

on my way from the lounge chair

to switch on the tele …

All of a sudden, I wanted to do something else!

What I wanted to do was …

 

 

01-50

Chapter 1: Play a Game

Board / Paper Games:

• Chess
• Draughts
• Naughts and crosses,
• Sing the Battleship,
• Monopoly,
• mastermind,
• Scrapple,
• Nightmare,
• Wheel of Fortune…

Card Games:

• Crazy Whist
• 500
• Uno
• Magic
• 21
• Memory
• Make your own board Game

Computer games:

• Zorro Lemmings
• Crozzle
• King (I, II, III, IV, V … )
• Doom
• Civilization
• Nibbles

Other Games:

• Carpet Bowels
• Handball
• Hookey
• Fiddle Sticks
• Marbles

 

50-100

Chapter 2: Play a Sport:

• Cricket
• French cricket
• Soccer
• Aussie Rules
• Rugby League
• Rugby Union
• Netball
• Table Tennis
• Shuttlecock
• Triathlon
• Bike Riding: / Road / Mountain / Bush-bashing
• Marathon
• Basketball
• Gladiators
• Tunnelball
• Lawn Bowles
• Carpet Bowls
• Ten pin bowling
• Swimming in a dam, or in a river, or in a pool, or in the ocean
• Ice skating
• Ice hockey
• Roller blading
• Skiing: downhill or cross-country
• Hiking
• Camping
• Mountain climbing
• Abseiling
• Boating – Sailing , Motor boat or canoeing

 

100-150

Chapter 3: Play Outside:

• Throw a frisbee
• Throw a boomerang
• Fly a kite
• Roll a hoop
• Climb trees
• Play on the Wamboin Shop playground
• Swings out the back
• Swings near the dam
• Play in the railway carriage
• Float on the dam
• Basketball at Devesons’ place.

150-200

Chapter 4: Do some Jobs Around the House:

• In my bedroom:
• Make the bed, change the sheets
• Clean and put away my shoes, ready for school
• Brush away any cobwebs
• Vacuum the floor
• Sort and put away clothes
• Put away all books, toys and trinkets
• Clean up rubbish
• Clean windows, doors, walls and cupboards
• … All ready for the Tidy Rooms Inspection … !
• In the Living Room:
• Clean out the fireplace and remove ashes
• Wipe and polish the fireplace
• Reset the fire
• Brush away any cobwebs
• Vacuum and wash the floor
• Clean windows, walls, doors and cupboards
• Wipe clean the piano, organ, TV, tables
• Fix up all the ornaments on the sideboard and cupboards, dust and polish them
• Dust and polish the aquarium cover
• Scrub the aquarium walls, inside and out, and replenish the water
• Remove anything from the loungeroom that should not be there!

Hallway:

• Brush away any cobwebs
• Vacuum and wash the floor
• Shake clean the mats
• Organise the bookshelf and glassware

In the bathroom:

• Brush away any cobwebs
• Clean and scrub the floors, bath and shower recess, basins and toilet
• Clean and dry the bathmats
• Check that towels are in order; wash and dry them if necessary
• Purge cupboards and drawers of all filth and rubbish
• Clean the windows, doors and walls.

In the Family Room:

• Clean out the fireplace and remove the ashes
• Wipe and polish the fireplace
• Reset the fire
• Brush away any cobwebs
• Vacuum and wash the floor
• Tidy the white desk, wipe and polish it
• Complete all ironing, put away all the clothes
• Tidy-up and dust and clean the telephone table
• Tidy up the notice board, destroy old notices
• Tidy up the cupboard beneath the notice board.

In the laundry:

• Remove any rubbish
• Brush away any cobwebs
• Vacuum-clean and wash the floor
• Scrub the tubs, washing-machine and dryer
• Clean away all cobwebs
• Tidy up the waiting clothes

In the Linen Cupboard:

• Remove everything, chuck out rubbish and obsolete stuff
• Clean the cupboard
• Fold up all the contents, and replace carefully in the cupboard.

 

200-300

Chapter 5: Do some Jobs Outside:

With the Dog:

• Play with the Dog
• Take the Dog for a walk to the shop
• Take the Dog for a walk around the driveway
• Take the Dog for a walk around the dam
• Take the Dog for a walk to the river
• Give the Dog a brushing
• Give the Dog a bath
• Give the Dog his brekky or dinner
• Give the Dog his heartworm tablets
• Teach the Dog some new tricks
• Fix up and clean the Dog’s bedding.

With the Guinea Pigs:

• Play with them
• Brush them
• Give them a bath
• Feed them
• Teach them some new tricks
• Fix up their home and bedding
• Warn them about the danger of foxes
• Warn them about the danger of snakes
• Warn them about the danger of eagles

In the garden:

• Weeding
• Watering
• Gathering compost and manure to spread
• Spreading fertilizer
• Digging the soil
• Planting new seeds and seedlings
• Pruning old plants
• Gather up old foliage for the bonfire
• Pluck flowers to put inside

Around the driveway:

• Gather gravel and soil to fill in the holes
• Rake the surface to make it smooth
• Gather rocks to line the edges
• Concrete rocks along the edges

Near the old shed:

• Tidy up the shed
• Burn the rubbish
• Get rubbish ready for the tip

For the Lawn:

• Dig out the weeds
• Water it all
• Mow the lawns

For Firewood:

• Pump up tyres on the trailer
• Paint the trailer
• Fix up wiring and lights on the trailer
• Sharpen the axe
• Oil the bushman’s saw
• Cut down some dead trees
• Gather up old logs
• Gather up wood in the trailer and convey to woodheap
• Gather sticks for kindling
• Chop the wood
• Rake up around the woodheap
• Take cut logs and kindling to the house

Around the house:

• Remove all rubbish
• Sweep cobwebs from eaves and windows
• Clean and scrub all outside windows
• Sweep all the pavements and front veranda
• Clean out leaves and dirt from roof gutters
• Clean out stormwater channels and sumps
• Fix all broken windows
• Fix any broken tiles and grouting on roof
• Clean and scrub the grease trap, take away the sludge
• Take rubbish to the Mack’s Reef Road tip

For the dam:

• Fix up jetty tank, posts and platform
• Clear leaves and rubbish from the dam
• Replace oil in the Ajax dam pump
• Adjust valves and seals in the pump
• Pump water from dam to the hill-top tank

With the Railway Carriage/ Shed:

• Remove all rubbish
• Clean and scrub the floor, walls and windows
• Tidy up all furniture, boxes etc
• Play!

With Tunnels:

• Build underground forts

With Tree Houses:

• Build the treehouse and play in it

Bike Maintenance:

• Pump up tyres
• Clean and scrub them
• Repair punctures
• Adjust seat height
• Lubricate chain, bearings and cables
• Adjust the brakes
• Test that it all works OK
• Then, when it’s all grubby and horrid, do it all again!

Car Maintenance:

• Wash outside
• Polish the outside
• Remove any filth and junkensteins in cabin and boot
• Vacuum clean inside, and wipe it all down, including windows
• Check oil
• Check water
• Check tyres (including spare)
• Check accessories in glovebox: pen & paper, scissors, torch etc.
• Check boot: Spare tyre and tools, tow rope, battery jumper cables

 

300-400

Chapter 6: Do some Craft-works:

In Wood:

• Show rack
• Trinkets box
• Make a Harry Potter wand
• Make a picture frame
• Make a

In Paper and Cardboard:

• Origami
• Painting
• Drawing
• Montage
• Diorama
• “Stained glass” (with cellophane)
• Make a cardboard house out of shoeboxes.
• Paper mâché masks.

In Metal:

• Soldering
• Robot

In Plastic:

• Clear cover for games etc.
• New tray for veg in fridge

In Wire:

• Stick figures

In Clay:

• Pots
• Cup

Puppets:

• Puppet Story
• Puppet Theatre
• Puppets

In Cloth:

• Teddy Bears
• Knitting

In the Garden

• Mosaics
• A fountain
• Sculptures
• A sundial
• A floating vege garden (for the dam)

400-420

Chapter 7: Write a card or a Letter:

Family …

• Nanna …
• Auntie Chris
• Uncle Frank
• Cousin Wendy
• Cousin David
• Auntie Kathy
• Uncle Bob
• Cousin Joanne
• Cousin Rebecca
• Cousin Chris
• Auntie Stephane
• Uncle Tony
• Cousin Claire
• Cousin Ingrid
• Cousin Francis
• Cousin David
• Cousin Genevieve

From School:

• Heather
• Briony
• Sara
• Christina
• Marissa
• Olivia S.
• Rebecca G.

From Brownies, Scouts and Ventures. Interest Groups:

• Lisa, Jenny
• Michelle

From Church:

• Christina
• Suzy
• Malissa

From my town:

• Tamara

 

420-450

Chapter 8: Write about Everyone I Know:

For each of the people above (family and friends etc), write just one sentence about:

• One thing that they have said which I remember,
• What I most like about them,
• What I most admire about that person,
• What they can do, or they have that I would like to do or have (not necessarily the same as admiring!)
• How can I tell them about this?

 

450-500

Chapter 9: Listen to and then make Some Music

Listen to Music

• On the tape-recorder
• On the CD player
• On the Laptop
• On the Ipod
• On the Ipad

Play a musical instrument

• On the keyboard
• On the organ
• On the piano
• On the ‘cello
• Make a xylophone or a glockenspiel

 Learn 10 songs on your instrument and voice

 Go Busking

• Go busking on the street and make some money:

 

 

500-550

Chapter 10: Go to the Library and Read Some Books

Some Fiction:

• Paul Jennings

Some Non-Fiction:

• Encyclopaedia Brittanica
• Atlas
• Dictionary
• Instruction manuals
• Bible
• Travel books
• Nature books
• Engineering books
• History books
• Mathematics books
• Science books

 

550-600

Chapter 11: Do Some Experiments:

In Chemistry:

• Dr Dreadful
• Make hydrogen
• Try out some acids
• Make a volcano
• Try out some colourful stuffs
• Make some gunpowder (No, don’t do that!)

With Electricity:

• Electric motor
• Alarms
• Magnets
• Electronics
• Electric arc lamp
• Electrolysis of liquids
• Electro-plating of metals
• Radio
• Telephone
• Lights
• Morse code
• In Biology:
• Plants in different soils, water, light
• Insects
• Worms, Silk Worms (To make Silk)

In Astronomy:

• Make a telescope (two lenses)
• Use a telescope- by day and my night
• Identify starts (We’re lucky at Wamboin, with very little light contamination!)
• Read about the stars and moon  etc, and compare with observation
• In Geology:
• Collect as many types of rocks as possible and try to identify them
• Try to find fossils and identify them
• Observe the local landscape, and eg exposed layers near Parliament House.

In Psychology:

• Studies of myself, family and friends
• Studies of media people to identify personality
• In Pseudo-Science(?):
• Psych experiments … ?
• Match the astrologers’ readings against observations!

 

600- 650

Chapter 12: Plan out and then do Some Travelling:

Around the House:

• How is this house good for us?
• How would I do it differently from start?
• How is it thermally efficient for Summer and Winter?
• Is it easy to keep clean?
• Is it nice to invite friends here?
• How do the various residents treat their “private areas”?

Around the Property:

• Do I like this place to live?
• Do I like doing activities here, or do I prefer to be away from it?
• Are bushfires a big problem here?
• Is it difficult to make gardens here?
• Is it easy to go to shops and visit friends from here?

Around your town:

• Try going to the Purdies, to the Mangions, to the Devesons and to Peppers
• Have a picnic by the River
• Have a picnic on top of the mountain beyond the river

Around Canberra/Queanbeyan:

• Picnics in parks
• Visit the lake for picnics and swimming
• Canoes or sailing on the lake
• Cruise outing on the lake
• Visit Casuarina Sands and Kambah Pool
• Check out the pebbles at Molonglo Gorge
• Visit dad’s Tower on Black Mountain
• Visit the War Memorial, Parliament House, Mint, Art Gallery and Museum
• Go to a movie, a play, a concert or a ballet!
• Go to shopping centres and cafes

Around Australia:

• To Bungendore
• To Yass
• To Bateman’s Bay
• To Yenda
• To Griffith
• To Bullamakanka, Stockinbingal, and Woolloomooloo
• To Sydney
• To Melbourne
• To Cairns
• To Ayers Rock (Uluru)
• To Tassie

Around the World:

• To London
• To Paris
• To Rome
• To New York
• To Kathmandu
• To Timbuktu

Around the Solar System:

• To Mercury
• To Venus
• To Earth (Oops, we’re already there!)
• To Mars
• To Jupiter
• To Saturn
• To Uranus
• To Neptune
• To Pluto

Around the Galaxy:

• All around the Milky Way
• Does it have a black hole at the centre?
• How long does it take to rotate?

Around the Universe:

• Can we see our own galaxy from its nearest neighbour?
• Where is the centre; where is the end of it all?
• When did it start?
• How did it start?
• What was here before it started?
• Around the Plethora of Multi-verses:
• Are they indeed infinite in number and extent?

 

650-700

Chapter 13: Do Some Writing:

Creations:

• Homework ( Yeah! )
• Stories
• Poems
• Music
• Speeches

Records:

• Index of our films
• Family Tree
• Diary
• Shopping List
• Address-book for Christmas Cards etc
• “1001 Tele Alternatives”
• Family Newsletter

Aspirations:

• Bucket List
• “Where I would like to Travel”
• What sort of friends would I like to have?
• What I would like to do,  to have, and to be, in one time, and in five years time?

 

700- 750

Chapter 14: Some Entertainments

At Home:

• Crossword puzzles
• Organise a Sunday Evening concert; Invite the next door neighbors
• Devise a poetry reading, song, music, story, puppets, magic etc!

Out:

• Bingo
• Lotto
• Video Parlor
• Poker machines
• Cinema, concert etc.

Social Activities:

• Hang out at a café
• Picnic with family and friends
• Other outings (as above)
• Visit friends
• Sleep-overs
• Window shopping

Scouts / Guides / Ventures:

• Hall games
• Outdoor games
• Constructions, eg tents
• Hikes
• Camping

 

750-800

Chapter 15: Church/ Spiritual Activities

• Sunday morning church
• Youth Club
• Mowing the church lawns
• Camps away
• Go to a Christian Festival
• Bible readings and plays etc.
• Meet some Buddhists

 

800-850

Chapter 16: Computer Activities:

• Pro-Maths
• Fix up the hardware
• Learn about DOS
• Become expert at Windows
• Corel Draw
• Q&A
• Works
• Internet
• BASIC programming

 

850-900

Chapter 17: Photography:

• Studio portraits of family and friends
• Action activity shots of family and friends
• Portraits of the Dog
• Local wild animals, insects and birds
• Our home and local area
• Your city and surroundings.

 

900-950

Chapter 18: For My Body

• Have a sleep!
• Do some exercise – Running, swimming, bike riding!
• Bath or shower
• Eat something (maybe another piece of cake!)
• Drinking (nothing wicked)
• Clean teeth
• Brush hair
• Clean finger nails
• Cut finger nails
• Clip toenails
• Makeup
• Get a haircut
• Go for a dental checkup
• Go to the doctor
• Apply bandaids to my injuries

Clothes:

• Get them all washed and irone
• Fold them up nicely and put away in the cupboards
• Clean shoes
• Get all the socks matched-up
• Throw away all holey or un-matchable socks
• Fix-up all my jeweler

950-980

Chapter 19: Cook Up a Storm!

• Hot porridge with brown sugar and Weatharts
• Toast and sweet corn and cheese grilled
• Bacon and eggs
• Leg of lamb
• Roast Beef and peas
• Pork pie
• Roast potatoes
• Fried chips
• Ravioli
• Pumpkin soup
• Pumpkin scones
• Purple pumpkin people eaters
• Fruit cake
• Apple-cinemon cake
• Pineapple upside-down cake
• Lamingtons
• Ginger-bread persons
• Muesli slice
• Apple pie
• Rice custard
• Lemon pudding
• Bloody Mary
• Hair of the Dog
• Cappuccino

 

980- 1001

Chapter 20: Communicate with humans

• By Email
• By Facebook
• By phone
• By Instagram
• By twitter

And then I realised …

I forgot about watching the Tele … !

~0~