The other day, Liam was playing with a paper towel tube and we started talking about the different things you could make with a paper towel tube. You know like a telescope, an antennae, a microphone and then I suggested a rain stick. He agreed and I said we could make one another day. I am thinking I said this sometime after dinner when bedtime was approaching. Well Sunday morning he woke up and that’s exactly what he wanted to make.
Hmmm… I am not super crafty in that sense so I needed to google around for some images and it showed hammering nails into a much sturdier tube. Ok I got the point, this was not going to be quick and I need a sturdier tube. Not liking the dollar store aluminum foil very much, I set to work unraveling the whole thing to get the minutely sturdier tube (haha on me)! So picture a huge mound of aluminum foil on the floor now and a giggly little boy.
I hammered in nails everywhere. He was my helper. I covered the tube with a piece of white paper so we could decorate it later. I plugged one end with aluminum foil and then he used a 1/2 tbl scoop to pour rice in until we made the sound he wanted. Again, filled the open side with foil which we have plenty of 😉 and placed packing tape over it. He proceeded to decorate it with ocean creature stickers and proudly marched around.
He sat exceedingly well while I fumbled around with this idea. An idea that I did not have time to process or think out completely. He did his fair share and I call it a success . Many times crafty projects are not our thing but he really enjoys music. This new rain stick found a home on his music table that I promptly set up for what is now the week of the letter ‘M’. Hoping we can make some more music and musical instruments together this week!
A lovely bonus lesson was talking about how the rice sounds when it falls on different things so we tried out some loud and some soft and some tinkly sounds! He wanted Dad to hear them all tonight. Always happy to make an impression when least expected!
Have you made any instruments lately?
I would love to hear your thoughts in a comment!
Love to share your day.