Grandfather seeking magic for young grandsons

[TR9Casten]

My goal is to design and build a tiered layout of O gauge suitable for 2 to 5 year old grandsons to actually push buttons and enjoy. I have a 10' by 16' space in a finished atic, lots of possibilities. Particularly interested in experience incorporating slot cars not as racers, but as moving vehicles in the layout, that boys could 'drive'. Will use ccd Lionel as a base.

Tom

 

[Iron Horseman]

My goal is to design and build a tiered layout of O gauge suitable for 2 to 5 year old grandsons to actually push buttons and enjoy. I have a 10' by 16' space in a finished atic, lots of possibilities. Particularly interested in experience incorporating slot cars not as racers, but as moving vehicles in the layout, that boys could 'drive'. Will use ccd Lionel as a base.

Are you wanting the trains to move from tier to tier or are they going to be separate?

Is the 10' x 16' space the entire area, or is that the space for the trains/cars?

Having the trains pop in and out of tunnels seems to really capture that age group's attention. We just did a chrismas tree layout that was folded (bent?) double crossing (sort of like two figure 8s) where each Loop when behind a tree and to the smaller children it was not obvious where the train would re-appear. On another layout they also really liked one place where there was a window into a tunnel.

 

[TR9Casten]

The 10' by 16' is all available for trains and cars, thinking about mountains across the 15' dimension with both a train in a cut in a steep mountain, and a slotcar track lower that is on a flatter part of the mountain.

2'of the 10" is behind a knee wall, so the new platform will add another 8', with the mountain ridge about 6' from the outside edge of the new platform, and tunnel behind the mountain -- behind the knee wall.

Love to have suggestions from folks with more experience.

Tom

 

[Iron Horseman]

The 10' by 16' is all available for trains and cars, thinking about mountains across the 15' dimension with both a train in a cut in a steep mountain, and a slotcar track lower that is on a flatter part of the mountain.

Are you wanting the children to push buttons which route the train(s) by switching tracks?

 

[TR9Casten]

I am guided by observing young children learning, trying to find how they can affect something, like turning on the TV. As they grow, we will think about them operating the trains. For now, I want a relatively foolproof layout that does not depend on a the attention span of a 2-5 year old to avoid a crash. So the buttons could turn on a fire station or garage -- very expensive-- or could blow a whistle, pop up a clown, make a windmill turn, or something in the layout that is not capable of creating a crash.

Tom

 

[Iron Horseman]

I am guided by observing young children learning, trying to find how they can affect something, like turning on the TV. As they grow, we will think about them operating the trains. For now, I want a relatively foolproof layout that does not depend on a the attention span of a 2-5 year old to avoid a crash. So the buttons could turn on a fire station or garage -- very expensive-- or could blow a whistle, pop up a clown, make a windmill turn, or something in the layout that is not capable of creating a crash.

Good, I was going to mention some things that would be required to prevent hazards if train routing was going to be used.

Our children's layout at the museum has a carousel, Farris wheel, a flagman who comes out of his shanty, lights (lots of lights), and a crossing gate.