Rosa Ledley 
I love toys that help kids develop and encourage them to learn new things. That’s one of the reasons I love pretend play. Pretend play toys promote imagination and creativity as well as get kids engaged in a bit of dramatic play.
One of my favorite role play toys is a doctor kit. Kids can have a bit of me-time with their dolls and teddy bears as patients. They also learn to show compassion and knowledge when they care for friends and parents roleplaying as patients. It’s also a good way to get kids to say what they like about doctors and hospitals.
There are many doctor kits you can buy in stores however most of these kits are made of plastic and don’t actually do anything really. If you are like me and you prefer getting your kid a doctor kit that actually works, it’s a great idea to make one yourself!
You can put together a decent doctor kit that would actually be useful and can even be passed down. Here’s how to start.
How to make a homemade doctor kit
Everyone can make a good doctor kit from some home supplies and buy some things from a store or pharmacy. You can get a cotton bag then you also need supplies. Most of what you need is quite easy to get.
- Empty pill bottle
- Medicine spoon or cup
- Cotton buds
- Band-Aids
- Glue
- Mini torch
- Elastic bandages
- Box of plasters
- Adhesive paper
- Marker pen (red)
- Band-Aids
- Tongue depressor or popsicle sticks
- Pen or pencil
Things to make
- Doctor’s bag
- Notepad (cut a small book to fit the doctor’s bag)
- Surgical mask
Things to buy
- Mini thermometer
- Otoscope (if you don’t want to use a mini torch)
- Syringe (without a needle)
- Plastic stethoscope
- Mini scrubs and lab coat
How to make a doctor’s bag
First things first, you need a small bag to use as the doctor’s bag. This can be a small purse, cotton bag, or even a lunch box.
If you are using a purse or cotton bag, cut a cross out of adhesive paper, color it with the red marker pen and glue it to the side of the bag. If it’s a lunch box, you might need to cover it with contact paper before you place the cross on the front of the box.
How to make a surgical mask
You can make a surgical mask from white cotton fabric and an elastic cord. You might need a sewing machine and sewing supplies or go old-fashioned with a needle and thread.
- Cut the cotton fabric (measurement should be adjusted for your kid)
- Fold the fabric in half and sew along the edges
- Fold the open sides too and stitch together
- Piece the elastic cord through the sides and stitch the ends. You can choose to tie or glue it.
If you aren’t inclined to spend much money, you can make a pretty good doctor’s kit from paper and most likely what you have on hand already.
How to make doctor kit with paper
To make a paper doctor’s bag, you need a shoebox or a cereal box, duct tape (red, white, black), scissors, parchment paper, glue, a plastic lid, two pipe cleaners.
For your paper doctor bag,
- Make a narrow cut down the short sides and one long side if it’s a cereal box (if it’s a shoebox you don’t need to make a slit on the sides.)
- Cover the outside and edges of the box with tape. You can cover the insides too.
- Cover parchment paper with white duct tape and cut out a small circle. Do the same with red duct tape and cut out a cross shape. Glue red cross to white circle then glue it to the front of the paper box.
To make the bag handle
- Cut long pieces of black tape and fold together till it’s thick enough.
- Use tape to attach the handles to the inside of the paper bag.
You can make a homemade stethoscope from pipe cleaners and a plastic lid.
- Joint the pipe cleaners and twist them together.
- Shape the longer ends into a curve so they can hang over your kid’s ears. Don’t forget to cover the pipe cleaners’ ends with tape as they are a bit sharp.
- Wrap the plastic lid in black tape completely. Make sure it goes up to the top of the lid. Join excess tape together.
- Fold open ends of the lid to the pipe cleaner and attach it to the lid with more tape.
With this and some cheap supplies from a store, you have a paper doctor’s bag and a stethoscope ready to go.
Place all the supplies inside the bag and your kid now has a real doctor’s kit with real tools to make play a lot more fun.
This doctor kit is much better than any plastic doctor toy. It’s totally worth putting it together for your kid.
