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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Rock Out! 10 Great Recycled Instruments to Make With Your Child!

Turn a broomstick into Australian bilma for some really versatile rhythm sticks. Or a cardboard box into a Peruvian cajón – perfect to learn hand-drumming! You’d be surprised how many wonderfully unique world music instruments can be made from recycled or repurposed materials. And sound good. And inspire musical play in your home or classroom.

Best of all, many of these instruments mean thinking about things in a new way. Working with these simple crafts, kids can see how many important items originally came from nature – such as Native American turtle shell rattles, rainsticks from chola cactus branches and bamboo reeds were fashioned into panpipes. Or how things take on a special significance when they are made by hand or made with love and personal attention. And how some of the most amazing instruments are the quietest – like a simple sistrum that dates back to ancient Egypt. Or a drum that can do an amazing impression of the sounds of surf.

While crafting with your kids, you can explore a variety of beautiful world cultures and use it as a way of connecting with your class, your family or your community.

Here’s a list of the recycled instruments found in the E-book.

ACTIVITY ONE

Australian blima clapsticks from broomsticks or tree branches

ACTIVITY TWO

Peruvian style cajón drum from a cardboard box of any size

ACTIVITY THREE

Chinese-style gong from a recycled roasting pan or cookie sheet

ACTIVITY FOUR:

A South American “quijada” jawbone instrument made from egg cartons

ACTIVITY FIVE

An ocean drum made from a pizza box and recycled plastic folders

ACTIVITY SIX

A rainstick made from a used mailing tube

ACTIVITY SEVEN

An Egyptian sistrum from a forked tree branch or a coat hanger

ACTIVITY EIGHT

Tinghsa handbells made from repurposed “Snapple” tops

ACTIVITY NINE

Native American turtle shell rattle from take-out containers

ACTIVITY TEN

Panpipes from clean, recycled drinking straws

So download the book, dig into the recycling bin and make a joyful noise today!

Free Download!

If you’re reading this post during April 2014, you can get a free download of this awesomely green musical craft book here: http://www.dariamusic.com/monthly_song.php

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Rock Out! is also available from TeachersPayTeachers here:

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Reduce-Reuse-Recycle-Rock-Out-E-Book-With-10-Musical-Activities-653502

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Posted in Australian Music, Chinese (Mandarin), Classroom Music, Early Learning With Music, Ecology/Nature, Family Fun, Holiday Songs, Musical Crafts, Simple Instruments

Tagged childrens music., Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou, Earth Day, Earth Day activities, Earth day crafts, Earth Day kids activities, Earth Day projects, Easiest Instruments For Children, Free download, Free E-book, homeschool music, instruments, multicultural crafts, multicultural music, music for toddlers, Panpipes, quijada, rainstick, unusual percussion, world cultures for kids, world music with daria

Make Your Own Simple Panpipes!

Have you ever blown over the top of a bottle to create a wonderful whooshing musical note?

If you have, you’ve just learned the technique for playing the panpipes or the pan flute.

Although you can find this type of instrument in many countries around the world, it is most often associated with the music from the Andes mountains of South America. The wonderful, breathy notes of the panpipes – known as zampoñas – play some of the most beautiful melodies of songs from that region.

Real panpipes are made from hollow reeds that are similar to bamboo. These long, straight reeds grow near the lakes in the mountains and are harvested and cut into individual lengths. Single reeds turn into simple flutes called quenas. Multiple reeds are bound together in different lengths to create the type of panpipes seen at the top of this page.

Can you create your own version of panpipes at home? Definitely. Here are the supplies you need:

Supplies

Straws – find the largest ones you can!

Small piece of sturdy cardboard

Transparent tape

Scissors

A small length of ribbon for decoration (optional)

This is a wonderfully easy craft!

Cut a length of sturdy cardboard. A six to eight inch piece works well for a basic set of panpipes. Next, cut different lengths of straws and attach them to the cardboard with transparent tape from longest to shortest. Make sure you leave about one inch between the straws as it allows a child’s mouth to blow on each straw individually to get a good-sounding note.

Test out your panpipes by blowing over them to see if you like the series of notes you’ve created. It can be helpful to have enough materials to try this craft several times in order to create a set of panpipes that sound great and are the perfect size for your child.

Last, you can add a bit of decoration, if you want. Cover the outer cardboard area with a bit of cloth or ribbon to give it a more festive look and tape it into place.

Here’s a quick suggestion about playing the panpipes. It can be tricky for most kids and adults to get the hang of blowing over the tops of the straws. Almost everyone wants to blow down into the straws. Remember that you can create the best notes by blowing over the tops of the straws at a ninety degree angle. You can also think of it as imitating the way the wind might rush across the tops of these reeds as they are found in nature.

Experiment with your panpipes and enjoy!

Links And Resources

Free Zampoñas Coloring Page - https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Color-the-Zamponas-Panpipes-From-The-Andes-650601

You can hear several different types of panpipes on DARIA’s new cd – Cancioncitas De Los Andes/Little Songs of the Andes.

On Itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/cancioncitas-los-andes-little/id602798167