How to Make Story Dice at Home

The short answer

To make story dice at home, draw three identical cube nets on sturdy card: one for characters, one for places, and one for problems. Put a different clear picture on each face, then have an adult cut, fold, and glue the cubes. Test that every face is readable and every seam stays closed. Roll all three on a clear table and use the pictures as a story prompt. For shared play, take short turns, allow passes, and finish after an announced final round.

Make three large cubes, not a handful of tiny dice

The closed Fun Apparently set has three dice:

• CHARACTER answers “Who is the story about?”
• PLACE answers “Where does it begin?”
• PROBLEM answers “What needs attention?”

Gather simple materials

For three dice, gather:

• three sheets of light card that fold without cracking;
• a ruler and pencil;
• broad-tip washable markers or crayons;
• child-appropriate paper glue used according to its label;
• scissors for the adult assembly stage; and
• one shallow tray or clear section of table for rolling.

Do not use staples, pins, loose magnets, beads, coins, button batteries, metal corners, or separate decorative pieces. Stickers can peel and become loose, so draw each picture directly on the card. Keep food and drinks away from the work area.

An adult inspects the card for staples, foil, torn coatings, and sharp or rigid edges before use. Recycled food packaging must be clean, dry, and free of residue. Do not reuse packaging that held medicines, cleaning products, chemicals, or allergens relevant to the household.

Young children may choose colours and draw pictures before assembly. The adult handles measuring, cutting, scoring, folding, and gluing, then stores the scissors and ruler before the dice become play pieces. Follow the glue label for ventilation, skin contact, drying time, and age restrictions.

Draw a cube net that will close properly

Draw six equal squares with shared edges, as shown. The diagram shows faces only; add the seven tabs from the table before cutting.

    +---+
    | A |
+---+---+---+---+
| B | C | D | E |
+---+---+---+---+
    | F |
    +---+

The row is B-C-D-E, with A directly above C and F directly below C. Keep the five shared edges intact as folds. Draw one narrow, tapered glue tab on each listed outside edge; do not add tabs to shared folds or to both sides of the same seam.

Read top, bottom, left and right on the FLAT diagram, before folding:

This accounts for seven glued seams plus five existing folds: all twelve cube edges. Dry-fold with C as the front, B left, D right, E back, A top and F bottom. Check each listed pair meets without overlap of the square faces. The tab map is an original geometric plan, not a claim of a physically tested craft. NRICH's cube-net activity explains the underlying six-square-net idea.

Make each square about 6 centimetres wide so the finished cube is easy to see and handle at the table. This is a Fun Apparently craft dimension, not a safety certification. If any player may mouth paper objects, do not use homemade dice with that player; use the flat-card alternative described below and maintain direct adult supervision.

Before cutting, check that all six squares are the same size, A and F align with C, the four-square row is unbroken, and every intended tab remains attached to a square. A missing tab is easier to redraw now than to repair on a finished cube.

Choose picture faces with enough variety

Plan all 18 faces on scrap paper before drawing on the nets. Use one idea per picture and avoid two images that will be interpreted as the same thing.

Your face ideas are prompts, not a required list. Screen them for the people who will play. Replace anything connected to a current fear, bereavement, medical issue, family conflict, stereotype, or private event. A fictional problem should create a story choice without putting a real person on the spot.

Test prompt variety by showing each face separately to a person who did not draw it. Ask, “What would you call this?” rather than naming it first. If two pictures receive the same answer, or one picture receives several unrelated answers, redraw it. An image can allow imagination while still having a recognisable starting point.

Draw before the adult cuts

Do not decorate the tabs. Extra wax, paint, thick stickers, or glitter can weaken the glue surface or shed into small pieces. Washable marker or crayon is enough.

Cut, fold, and glue in a fixed order

Children move away from the work area for the assembly stage.

1. The adult cuts around the outside outline of the net, keeping all glue tabs attached.
2. Put the scissors away immediately after all three nets are cut.
3. Fold each shared square edge inward. Use fingers or a blunt paper-folding tool intended for crafts; do not use a knife or exposed blade.
4. Dry-fold the cube without glue and confirm A and F close the two open ends.
5. Open it again and apply a thin amount of glue to one tab at a time, following the product label.
6. Press each tab against the inside of its neighbouring face until it holds.
7. Close the last face without forcing the card. If edges do not meet, reopen the wet joint rather than crushing the cube.
8. Leave all three dice out of play for the full drying time on the glue label.

Do not hand a partly assembled die to a child. Wet glue, open seams, and protruding tabs mean the piece is still a craft project rather than game equipment.

Run a construction check before rolling

An adult checks each dry cube face by face:

• all six faces are present and readable;
• every seam is fully joined;
• no tab or hardened glue edge protrudes;
• the card is dry, clean, and free of flakes;
• gentle finger pressure does not open a face; and
• a short roll in the tray does not split or crush the cube.

Remove a die from play if it bends sharply, becomes wet, opens at a seam, sheds material, or develops a hard edge. Do not patch it during a game while children wait at the table. Use the two remaining categories as flat cards or end the session and rebuild later.

Count three dice before and after play. Keep them away from pets and children who may chew or mouth them. Store them in a vented box only after the glue is completely dry.

Use the solo five-sentence game

1. Roll the CHARACTER, PLACE, and PROBLEM dice together in the tray.
2. Sentence 1 names the character and place.
3. Sentence 2 introduces the problem.
4. Sentence 3 shows the character's first attempt.
5. Sentence 4 shows what changes because of that attempt.
6. Sentence 5 gives the problem a result or clear next step.

There is no time limit or score. The player may reroll one chosen die once before beginning. After the first sentence, the pictures are fixed. If a picture is unclear, use the word printed below it; do not require the player to guess what the artist meant.

The story may be spoken, written, drawn in five panels, dictated, signed, or entered with a communication device. A player may stop after naming the three elements and ask someone else to finish; that becomes a shared story rather than a failed solo turn.

Use the shared two-round game

Seat everyone around a clear table and choose one direction of play. Roll all three dice once in the centre tray. The pictures remain fixed for the entire story.

Round 1: establish. Each willing player adds one or two sentences. The first speaker introduces the character and place. Later speakers introduce the problem and add details without contradicting what is already established.

Round 2: respond. Each willing player adds one or two sentences showing an attempt, consequence, discovery, or choice. New characters may appear, but the original problem remains the main thread.

After Round 2, the host announces one final circuit. Each willing speaker moves toward resolving the problem. The last willing speaker gives the result. If everyone passes, the host closes with one neutral sentence based on the latest contribution.

A player says “pass” without explaining and remains eligible in later rounds. If two people speak at once, the host returns to the fixed order. If a contribution contradicts an established fact, the host names the fact and asks the player to change only the conflicting part. Nobody loses a turn or point.

The game ends after the final circuit, when everyone passes in one circuit, or when someone asks to stop. It has no winner. Players may roll a fresh prompt set only after the current story has ended.

Handle rolls without inventing disputes

Roll the cubes gently into a shallow tray in the centre of the table. Do not throw them across the room, at a person, or onto the floor.

• Flat face up: Use that picture.
• Die leaning against another die or tray edge: Reroll that die only.
• Die leaves the tray: A seated adult or designated retriever returns it; reroll it without a penalty.
• Die opens or is damaged: Stop using it. Choose a face from its flat backup sheet or pause the game.
• Picture disputed: Use the printed label as the base meaning. Players may interpret details creatively after agreeing on that noun or event.
• Uncomfortable prompt: Replace that face by turning the die to a mutually acceptable picture before the story begins.

Keep the tray within comfortable reach. A player may ask another person to roll, point to a face instead of rolling, or choose from six flat pictures. The random roll is a prompt tool, not a test of hand control.

Test the prompt set after several stories

Revise one face at a time. If every problem sounds dangerous, add gentler choices such as a mixed-up invitation, an object in the wrong place, or a message with one word missing.

Keep a flat master drawing of every face. When a cube wears out, rebuild it from the master rather than peeling pictures from the old card. Dispose of damaged pieces where children and pets cannot retrieve them.

For more games made from ordinary paper, see paper games for family night.

Sources

• PBS KIDS for Parents: Play a Storytelling Game
• University of Oklahoma K20 Center: Rory's Story Cubes
• Brigham Young University McKay School of Education: Statue Stories with Story Cubes
• NRICH: Christmas Boxes — six-square cube nets; the seam table above is this publication's original geometric plan.