Crafts and Games-
Jacob's Ladder

The Jacob’s ladder gets its name from a Bible story in which a man named Jacob dreamt about a ladder stretching from heaven to earth.  The Jacob’s ladder is fun to play with – you can make watch the blocks tumble over one another or form them into all sorts of shapes.  See if you can make a star, a house, and a table.

You’ll need:

• six squares of plywood ¼ inch thick and 2 inches square
  (get an adult to help you cut them, if necessary)
  
• about 10 feet of ¼-inch wide ribbon
  (you can use one or two colors)
  
• sandpaper
  
• wood glue
  
• scissors

1.  Use the sandpaper to sand the wood smooth so you don’t get any splinters while playing with the Jacob’s ladder.

2.  Cut the ribbon into 15 strips that are 5 ½ inches long.

3.  Glue the ribbons to five of the blocks as shown in picture A.  One block should be left plain.  Let the glue dry.  Turn the ribbons underneath and arrange the blocks as shown in picture B.  Turn the last square upside down, as shown in picture C.

4.  Stack a square on top of the upside down square, as shown in picture D.  Trim the ribbon of the bottom square and glue it to the top square.  Let the glue dry.

5.  Wrap the ribbon over the top square as shown in picture E.  Place another square on the stack and repeat step 4.  Repeat steps 4 and 5 till all the squares have been attached, as shown in picture F. 

back to Crafts and Games