Cardboard
Cardboard consequence wheel
Short answer
A cardboard consequence wheel is two circles cut from a corrugated box, glued so the flutes cross, labeled with your agreed options, and hung where a fixed pointer can meet a slice. A cardboard spinner wheel is the same circle with the arrow moving instead, if you would rather tape it to a table.
Cardboard earns its keep when a paper plate starts to warp or when you want the landing readable from the doorway. It is still a cheap build. The craft is mostly measuring and a little glue.
The shared steps, including how to divide slices fairly, are in how to make a consequence wheel. This page is the sturdy version.
Spin only what you already agreed to.
Use the free wheelCut and laminate the board with itself
Open a clean shipping box. Trace a plate or a pot lid twice. An adult cuts both circles. Spread a thin layer of white glue or a glue stick, and press the circles together so the corrugated lines run in different directions. A book on top while it dries keeps the wheel flat.
One circle will work for a week. Two circles survive the humidity over a kettle. Skip warped produce boxes and anything with a greasy stain.
A fixed pointer reads better on a wall
Cut a square of cardboard a little larger than the wheel to be the frame. Push a brass fastener through the wheel’s center into the frame, loose enough that the wheel turns and tight enough that it stops. Clip a clothespin at the top of the frame, or glue a cardboard arrow there. The wheel moves. The pointer stays. That is the carnival shape, used here for a list you wrote.
If you want a cardboard spinner wheel on a table instead, tape the circle down and put the arrow on the fastener. Say which build you are making before you poke the hole, because the hole is the hinge.
| Choice | Do this |
|---|---|
| Wall or door | Circle turns, clothespin or arrow stays fixed |
| Table | Circle taped down, arrow turns |
| Extra flat | Two layers, flutes crossed, weight while drying |
| Labels | Pencil, then marker, or paper labels glued on |
| Hang | Tape the frame, or a hook through the frame, not through the spinning circle |
Write, then stop decorating
Pencil the slices. Check that each line is one you will do. Ink them. Two alternating colors are enough to see the landing from a few feet away. A name in the center is optional.
Paint is optional and slow. If you paint, write the words after the paint is dry, or write them on paper labels so a rewrite does not mean a new art project. The materials list tells you what you can skip.
Steps
- 1Trace two circles. Use a plate or a lid on a clean corrugated box. An adult cuts both.
- 2Glue them crossed. Glue the circles with the flutes running in different directions. Weight the stack until it is dry.
- 3Divide and label. Mark equal slices from the center. Pencil the agreed options, then marker them.
- 4Hinge it. Fasten the wheel to a slightly larger cardboard frame so the circle turns. Clip a clothespin at the top as the pointer.
- 5Hang and practice. Mount the frame. Spin once with no stakes. Put the review date on the back of the frame.
Questions people ask
How big should a cardboard consequence wheel be?
A dinner-plate circle is enough on a door at eye level for the adults. Larger is easier to read and harder to store. If the words do not fit, shorten the words before you enlarge the wheel.
Can we use a pizza box?
Only if it is clean and flat. Grease stains show through marker. A plain shipping box is the better raw material.
How do we change a slice later?
Glue a new paper label over the old wording on the review date. Do not relabel it in the middle of a landing. A dry-erase surface is easier if you expect to edit often.