It was around 1963 that I built my first airplane while in 3rd grade, a plastic static display Douglas DC-3. Before then, I must have had at least a half dozen balsa RTF gliders, they must have been around $0.10 US each. In 4th grade, I put together an all sheet balsa rubber powered Stinson Sentinel printed in colour, probably Top Flite, followed by stick and tissue Scientific Cessna 180. My first CL kit was a Scientific 18" wingspan built up Grumman F6F Hellcat with clear plastic upper turtle deck, by Walt Musciano. I think I received it for my 11th birthday. Came with a Cox .020 Pee Wee. It was my first experience with silkspan covering for the wing. I never flew it.
Christmas I think 1965, I received a Cox RTF Spitfire with .049 Silver Bee engine. It resembled a Golden Bee but with plain aluminum extended tank but with Babe Bee double fuel nipple back. I was scared to fly it. Typical child-father failure, scared as the dickens (funny, people don't read his books any more), did only a half loop with it stalling and flopping to the ground. (The plane was very heavy). Fortunately it didn't break being over grass. Father had zero CL experience. Never flew it again.
Had better luck with rubber power. By the time I was 13, had already built Comet 15" Ryan SC, Bellanca Jr., Curtiss Robin, Porterfield 65, 12" Spad and Fokker DVII biplanes, 18" P-51 A or B Mustang, 32" Ed Lidgard Sparky, plus a dozen plastic display models, WW1 & 2. Best flying was the P-51.