You’re a Mover, You’re a Shaker, You’re An Instrument Maker!

I’ve always wondered--How can I combine my love of arts and crafts and my love of noise?  I think I may have found the answer...  I can MAKE my own instruments.  Follow these suggestions, and you and your child will certainly shake up a quiet afternoon!

-Carly the Intern

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The Shiniest Xylophone Player in the Neighborhood

What You’ll Need:

• Several empty glass bottles (be careful!)
• Water
• Two spoons or pencils
• Food coloring (optional)

Take the bottles, and place them in a line.  It is ideal if you have eight bottles because you can make scale!  ☺  Then, fill them up with different amounts of water.  Fill the bottle to your left up the most (it will make the lowest sound,) and continue filling the bottles up to the right (each getting less and less water.)  The bottle all the way to the right will have the least amount of water and will be the highest pitched.  You can use many different things as ‘mallets’ for your ‘xylophone’:  pencils and spoons work great. Gently strike the bottles with your spoons, and you’ll hear beautiful sounds!  Try adding food coloring to the water to make it look beautiful as well.

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The Star Snare Drummer of the Oatmeal Band

What you’ll need:

• Empty oatmeal container (cylindrical shaped)
• String/Yarn
• 2 spoons (you can also use 2 pencils and attach spools to the end)
• Construction paper
• Crayons, markers, feathers, beads, or other fun decorative items

This was my favorite thing to do as a little musician!  Wrap the construction paper around the oatmeal container and secure it with tape or glue.  Then, have a ball decorating it all over.
Next, use a pencil or pen to poke a hole in the center of the lid and the center of the bottom of the container.  Pull a long piece of yarn through these holes so that you can hang it around your child’s neck.  The drum should hang down to their waist.  Then, use the spoons or pencils/spools to play some tunes!

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Hey Mister Tambourine Kid, Play a Song for Me!

What you’ll need:

• Two aluminum pie tins or two sturdy paper plates
• Stapler and tape, or glue
• String
• Hole punch
• Jingle bells
• Crayons, markers, feathers, beads, or other fun decorative items

First of all, take the two pie tins and staple them together (please have an adult do this and cover the staples up with tape) or glue them.  Then, use a hole punch to poke holes around the tins.  Take a string, place a jingle bell on it, lace it through one of the holes, and tie it in a knot.  Do this for each hole.  Then, decorate the outside of your tambourine, and shake away!

If you don’t have jingle bells, don’t worry.  Alternatively, you can fill one of the pie tins with anything that makes noise (coins, pebbles, buttons, beads, etc.)  Then, attach the other tin and shake it up!

Thanks to Candy Johnson for suggesting this blog idea!

Comments

[Becky Porter]

Can't wait to try it out!! Thanks for the tips!