Guelph children will get the chance to take part in the Global Cardboard Challenge Saturday at Shelldale Community Centre.
Children age 2 to 12 can take part, using cardboard, recycled materials and their imagination to come up with their own creations.
It’s part of a worldwide event started in 2012 intended to foster and promote creative play in children.
A total of 750,000 children in 80 countries are expected to take part in the event Saturday.
“There’s never been one in Guelph,” said Sandy Christie, who is organizing the local event with her daughter Kendra Ross.
The event takes place from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and there is a fee of $5 to cover the cost of renting the facility.
Christie hopes to attract 50 children to Saturday’s event.
Christie is an Early Childhood Education instructor at Conestoga College and also runs a non-profit organization in Guelph with her daughter called Simply Curious, aimed at promoting and creating interesting play environments for children.
The Cardboard Challenge stems from a documentary called Caine’s Arcade, where a young boy created an entire arcade out of cardboard and other odds and ends he found around the house.
“We envision a world in which creativity is a core social value and a critical skill developed in every child; where the innate passion, curiosity and creativity of children is nurtured in schools, homes and communities everywhere; where all children are taught to be creative thinkers and doers, and encouraged to make their very best ideas happen in the world,” says the event’s global web site www.cardboardchallenge.com.
