Play Catapult

Place the hanger flat on a table with the hook facing away from you.

Bend both corners of the hanger up so they form two identical, vertical triangle-shaped arms.

Stretch one rubber band around both triangle arms.

Place the spoon's handle between the rubber bands with the back of the spoon facing the hanger's hook.

Twist the rubber band several times by rotating the spoon. Twist the back of the spoon toward the hanger's hook.

Place another rubber band over both triangles, above the first rubber band.

Twist the second rubber band several times by hand.

Make a space in between the twists of the second rubber band and slip the bowl of the spoon through the top rubber band to keep the spoon upright. The rubber band should not cover the bowl.

Hold the base of the hanger steady by the hook. Then load a small, light projectile into the spoon, pull the spoon back and release it.

Cut off 10 pieces of masking tape about an inch long and place them on the edge of a desk or table so that they are easy to get to when needed. Make sure there is at least one end sticking up to make them easy to grab.

Cut the popsicle sticks with the scissors so that you have each of these: three 2-inch pieces, six 4-inch pieces, one 3-inch piece, with one rounded edge and one 4-inch piece, with one rounded edge.

Tape two of the 4-inch pieces and two of the 2-inch pieces together with the masking tape so they are sticking together end-to-end. You should start with a 4-inch piece and then a 2 inch, then repeat the pattern. It should look like one long stick when you are done.

Fold the long stick so that it forms a rectangle. Reinforce each of the four corners with more masking tape.

Place the final 2-inch piece inside the rectangle so that it is flush against one of the 2 inch sides of the rectangle. Tape it firmly to the rectangle but making sure none of that tape is in the center of the piece. Only wrap around the edges.

Place a piece of the masking tape sticky side up on the table. Place two of the remaining 4-inch pieces on the tape so they are laying flat, side-by-side. Wrap the tape around, making sure you wrap around at least three times. Use more pieces of tape is necessary. Repeat this step again using the last two 4-inch pieces of popsicle sticks.

Tape these two sets of popsicle sticks to the rectangular base, one on each side so there is a space between them. Make sure you wrap at least three times around on each corner so all of the sticks are nice and secure.

Snip the rubber band so it is one long piece of elastic.

Lay another piece of tape on the table, sticky side up. Lay the last 3-inch popsicle stick piece at the very top of the tape so it is laying horizontally with the rounded edge on the sticky tape. Lay out the snipped rubber band so part of it is overlapping the rounded edge of the stick that is stuck to the tape. Wrap around several times with the tape.

Take this stick and insert it between the two four-inch pieces of stick that you put together in Step 5. The stick should go in the middle, which you were careful not to tape. You may need a flathead screwdriver or nail file to gently pry the sticks apart just enough to allow the rubber banded stick to fit in.

Stick a piece of tape on the edge of table, sticky side down. Leave just enough tape hanging over the edge to make it easy to grab. Now put a second layer right on top, then a third and fourth. You should now have a small stack of tape.

Peel the tape off the table and measure it against a ruler. Snip it so that it is about 2 inches long.

Cut the 2-inch stack of tape down the middle vertically, so you have two stacks of tape the exact same size.

Mark two lines horizontally in the middle of each of the two stacks of tape. These will be your hinges.

Tape one of the hinges to the straight end of the final 4-inch piece of popsicle stick. The other side should be the rounded side, which will be the arm of the catapult that you will launch items from.

Tape the remaining hinge on the flip side of the catapult arm. Both hinges should now be taped on either side of the straight edge of the catapult arm. Secure them together by wrapping more tape around them. The two lines you made on each stack should still be visible. Only tape below these lines.

Lay the catapult arm into the space in the middle of the rectangular base. The rounded part should be on the edge and the hinge should be flush against the popsicle stick with the rubber band in it.

Wrap the hinge to the upright popsicle stick, making sure you do not tape the rubber band. Leave the snipped rubber band hanging freely.

Raise the catapult arm so that it is forming a 45-degree angle with the base. Lay the snipped rubber band across it and tape the band to the catapult arm, so that it is also forming a 45-degree angle.

Cut a piece of paper so that it is two inches square. Use the ruler and pencil to mark a horizontal line at the top of each side that is a 1/2 inch from the top. When done, there should be four areas where the lines intersect. Snip every other one of these intersecting lines. Fold up these snipped edges so that it forms a small box and tape all the corners well.

Attach the box to the catapult arm with tape. Your catapult is now complete.

Lay three chopsticks on the table in the shape of a triangle. Overlap each corner. Rubber band the corners together.

Make a freestanding pyramid with three more chopsticks. Keep the thinner part of the chopsticks toward the top. Secure the top of the pyramid with a rubber band. Secure the bottom of each leg of the pyramid to a corner of your triangle that you made with the other three chopsticks.

Create three holes in your plastic cup with your pen. The holes should be right under the rim and evenly distributed.

Tie a rubber band into each hole. Make sure your knot is secure.

Move your pyramid so the triangle that was laying on the table is now facing you. The cup should have its opening face you. Tie an end of each of the bands on the cup to a corner of the triangle. The cup should be in the air with the top of your pyramid farthest away from you.

Turn your catapult around so your cup's opening is facing away. You can load it with whatever you like. Pull back on it and let go. You will catapult the cup's contents. Make sure that you hold onto the back of your catapult for extra support as needed.

Drill holes in the rulers large enough for the carriage bolts to fit through. Use the measurements given on the ruler as a guide for where to drill the holes. Make the holes as centrally as possible. Drill holes in four of the rulers 1/2 an inch from the end and, measuring from the same end, 10 inches from the end. In the last ruler, drill at 1/2 an inch and 3 1/2 inches from the end.

Lay the brick with one of its long, narrow edges on the table. Take one of the four rulers with the shared sets of holes. The brick has a set of three holes in a row which act as an air gap. Start with one of the holes on either side, but not the middle one. Take the ruler and position the hole that you drilled 1/2 an inch from its end and place it over the air gap hole. Push a carriage bolt through the hole in the ruler, through the air gap hole and out the other side of the brick. Slide the 1/2-inch hole of another ruler over the protruding end of the carriage bolt. Tighten a nut over the end.

Do the same with the second pair of rulers using the air gap hole at the other end of the brick. Bring the ends of the rulers on each side of the brick together to make triangles. Overlap the 10-inch holes of the rulers on each side of the brick. Slide a carriage bolt in through the first pair, then attach a nut and screw it tight against the rulers.

Add another nut and position in the center of the carriage bolt. Take the remaining ruler and slide it on to the bolt, slipping the bolt through its central hole. Fix another nut on the other side of it. Slide the tip of the bolt through the hole in the remaining pair of rulers with a nut on each side of them to keep it tightly in place.

Drill another set of holes just where the rulers which form the triangles come up over the edge of the brick. Slide carriage bolts through these holes and fasten in place with nuts.

Tie the dumbbell weight to the short end of the central ruler, putting the string through the 1/2-inch hole. Place the plastic cup against the other end of the ruler and tape into place. Pull down the cup end of the catapult, place the ping-pong ball inside and fire.