How to amuse a 12 year old for 4 weeks

[ian]

Looking for proven ways to amuse a 12 year old who will be in a knee brace for the next 5 to 6 weeks.
My kid fell over on Christmas eve and today we were told he has a fractured knee cap.
So he'll be in a brace and on crutches for up to 6 weeks. Which means no skate boarding, scooter or bike riding, trips to the beach -- but it's the summer holidays!

So looking for ideas from patents and granparents who have been there

[groeneaj]

Teach him hand cut dovetails, basic hand tools skills etc (if his interested ofcourse).

[_fly_]

I need to keep a 12 yr old girl amused. First she will make the standard pencil case for herself as she will be going to High school next year. She also got a new bedroom suite for xmas so she will be making a Cheval Mirror for herself. She will be turning a bedside lamp for herself. I'll make the leadlight shade for it, Maybe she will... The wooden bookends for the desk will also be on the list of things to do. The rest will be ,mini golf, blackberry picking, go-carts, rock climbing, stunt kite flying. I'm going to make sure she's pooped at the end of every day.

[wheelinround]

He could always learn what access is like in Sydney for those permanently in need of crutches. Ian if he's agile he'll still beat you to the phone, the door and up and down stairs.:p

iPad, PC, Movies/DVD's of course this greatly depends on their activities prior injury Ian. Powerhouse Museum, Museum of Natural History.

What can he teach you in that time, creating web pages, drawing using PC.

Cleaning his room:U

[Avery]

Cleaning his room:U[/QUOTE]


Ha ha!

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Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!
Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!
Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!
Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!
Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!
Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!

[FRB Design]

Get him an iPad :2tsup:


Cheers,


Frank.

[Master Splinter]

Valve's Steam game service ( Welcome to Steam (http://store.steampowered.com/) ) has an excellent range of pc/playstation/xbox games at prices that make Harvey Norman's gst-free pricing laughable. And Steam has some excellent holiday sale packs available right now.....

[wheelinround]

Ian how about one of these kits (http://www.hemingwaykits.com/index.html)

[tea lady]

Why should being on crutches slow him down? :D

Break Dancing on Crutches! - YouTube

Might need some of those trick crutches though! :cool:

[Scribbly Gum]

Reading, reading, reading, reading.
Introduce him to libraries and some decent literature.
Did I mention Reading?

Museums -the Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour is simply awesome!
There is an excellent museum near Hyde Park, and then you have the NSW Art Gallery close by as well.

SG

[dai sensei]

When I was 15 I had one leg crushed the day before my family were going to the beach on holidays. I ended up on crutches for 6 months. I still went to the beach, the heat and itch drove me nuts, but I got plenty of simpathy from the girls :2tsup:

Ok your son is younger, but the other thing I did a lot of was fishing from the local warf, sitting from a chair. Is he into fishing?

Cheers

[Durdge39]

A couple laxatives into his morning drink each day will keep him pretty busy. :D

[jimbur]

Now this is only suggested as a last resort.
1) To improve hand eye co-ordination and to help him learn a useful skill, chain the youth to a solid post fastening the chains with a padlock. Hand him a short length of wire and suggest that he picks the lock.
2) To improve numeracy replace the padlock with a combination type.

It should give both you and him hours of harmless amusement :D
Cheers,
Jim

[tea lady]

:think: Could you get heim some sort of project to complete in the time? How about a wooden gear clock? Or a scale model of something! :think:

free plans
Scroll Saw Goodies: Wooden Gear Clock Plans (http://scrollsawgoodies.blogspot.com/2008/02/wooden-gear-clock-plans.html)

Pretty amazing looking kits here! I can't look closely cos I might accidentally get one for myself. :doh:
Clock Kits | Wooden Clocks | Clock Plans | Wooden Gear Clock Kits (http://www.wooden-gear-clocks.com/)

[Harry72]

Tea lady has the idea but clocks he may find a bit boring being youthful maybe grab a complex model kit like a remote control car/boat/plane... helicopter that way when he's finished building he can use it, its a great way to learn a little effort can be very rewarding! Gift making is another rewarding exersize...

[Bushmiller]

What are his interests? Can he make something in wood to compliment the interest? For example, a desk top module for computer or musical equipment if he is into such things.

Take any hobby and develop it:).

Regards
Paul

[tea lady]

Tea lady has the idea but clocks he may find a bit boring being youthful ..Steem punk is IN man! :cool:

[Bushmiller]

TL

I had to look that one up. I must have blinked for about 20 years:-.

Apparantly the photo below is an example of steam punk. If I'd known what it might be like, I would have stayed awake.

We did once have a steam driven clock at work or that is what the shift fitter told everybody. In reality he had soldered on a piece of copper pipe with a brass tap. The pipe disappeared into the wall and was rumoured to be connected to the boiler, but it stopped dead and was a simple battery powered brass clock that you could buy for $20 or less:).

Regards
Paul

[ian]

What are his interests? Can he make something in wood to compliment the interest? For example, a desk top module for computer or musical equipment if he is into such things.

Take any hobby and develop it:).his current main interests are riding his scooter, skate board, BMX bike, skiing (both alpine and freestyling in a terrain park)

perhaps I should have mentioned that we're currently in San Diego on our way to Whistler for a skiing holiday.

Some great ideas there and some that made us all laugh.

By the way, we spent yesterday at the Zoo. Will had a ball driving himself around in an electric gopher. You have to give it to the yanks when it comes to being organised for thjose that are disabled.

[wheelinround]

his current main interests are riding his scooter, skate board, BMX bike, skiing (both alpine and freestyling in a terrain park)

perhaps I should have mentioned that we're currently in San Diego on our way to Whistler for a skiing holiday.

Some great ideas there and some that made us all laugh.

By the way, we spent yesterday at the Zoo. Will had a ball driving himself around in an electric gopher. You have to give it to the yanks when it comes to being organised for thjose that are disabled.

Now hows he going to get bored over there????

Ian tool shopping, wood shopping, organising shipping of them home LOL

[acmegridley]

My daughters ex husband drove from Huntingdale in W.A. to Hervey Bay with 2 ten year old girls,a twelve year old boy took them four days ,some people like this sort of torture!!
I asked him what he had to amuse them he had put cd player in the back,Spotto etc ,failing all that, drugs:roll:

[tea lady]

his current main interests are riding his scooter, skate board, BMX bike, skiing (both alpine and freestyling in a terrain park)

perhaps I should have mentioned that we're currently in San Diego on our way to Whistler for a skiing holiday.
:CWon't that be torture for a kid that can't do what everyone else around him is having great fun doing!

[ian]

Won't that be torture for a kid that can't do what everyone else around him is having great fun doing!too right
There'll be a few lego models, lots of books and hopefully other kids in a similar prediciment.
I suppose I could always enrol him in the local (Whistler) school for a few days!

[tea lady]

too right
There'll be a few lego models, lots of books and hopefully other kids in a similar prediciment.
I suppose I could always enrol him in the local (Whistler) school for a few days!He could teach them all " 'stra'ian ". :U

[Terry B]

He could teach them all " 'stra'ian ". :U
No need. The place has more Ozzies than Canadians already.

[tea lady]

No need. The place has more Ozzies than Canadians already.:doh: I guess all escaping the summer! Sounds wrong really.