Car Doors and Spoons – your own funhouse mirrors

We all know little kids adore mirrors. A safe mirror is a fabulous toy for little babies, they will talk and coo for ages and it’s a great way for them to do tummy time. Curved surfaces are even better, because they give distorted reflections that can even be upside down. This is a quick activity perfect for when you are waiting for your food or lift and need to keep the kids quiet for a few minutes.

Because of the curve, car doors will make everyone look short and round. Toddlers will love having a full size mirror easily accessible, older kids find it hilarious to see what they look like. Encourage them to move back and forth, they can change different body parts.

Spoons are even better because they curve both ways. A fairly new, shiny spoon will give the best reflections. On the back it curves out like the car door (convex mirror) so faces are stretched and distorted. It can not only be moved in and out but tilted in different directions to give different views. The inside of the spoon curves in, which means it acts as a concave mirror and flips reflected faces upside down.

There is so much (maths) discussion you can do here – up, down, short, tall, long – and your kids will be disappointed when dinner arrives.