How To Build A Model Of A Mini-Basketball Court

Building a mini-basketball court model is a great project for basketball enthusiasts and can be used as a decoration piece, as a mini game board or for a school project. If you plan to make a mini-basketball court for a school project, be sure to take lots of pictures during the construction to show your teacher—teachers love a well-documented project. Making the model is not hard, but children under age 10 may need a parent's help with cutting wire and other steps.

Step 1

Cut your foam board to measure 28 inches by 15 inches–a scaled-down size of a regular mini-basketball court. Use the utility knife and ruler to cut the foam board in straight lines.

Step 2

Paint the top of the foam board court black or dark gray; let dry. With the pencil and ruler, mark a line down the center of the court at 14 inches in from either end. Find the center of the length of the court (at 7 1/2 inches down) and make a small mark on each end of the court as well as on the line down the center of the court.

Step 3

Set your compass to a radius of 1 3/4 inches and scribe a full circle around the center point of the court—this should be at the point marked on the center court line. Measure 5 inches in from the center mark on one end of the court and scribe another circle the same size. Measure 3 inches to each side of the center mark on the end, then rule a line between each point to the edge of the circle. Draw a line that joins these two lines and cuts the circle in half. Erase the inside part of the circle. Repeat on the other end of the court.

Step 4

Paint all the pencil marks with white or yellow paint for the lines of the mini-basketball court. Let dry.

Step 5

Cut two 7-inch pieces of wire and twist one end into a 1-inch diameter circle. Bend the circle so that it is at a right angle to the rest of the wire, which should be straight. Cut out two 2-inch-by-2-inch rectangles of cardboard and paint it in whatever colors you want for the backboards.

Step 6

Glue the backboards above the hoop of the wire with hot glue; let dry. Stick the two hoops into either end of the court, 1 inch in from the center point at the end. Secure with hot glue to finish your mini-basketball court model.