How To Make Homemade Musical Instruments For Your Daycare
Teaching kids to be musical at an early age has been proven to have a very positive affect on brain development. The motor skills learned by keeping a steady rhythm and the development of pitch memorization can be great instruments (pardon the pun) to help regional brain growth.
This article will get both daycare kids and providers involved in music by making homemade musical instruments and learning the basics of playing them. So round up the kids, sit them all down, and get ready for a fun and creative musical session!
1. A Simple Drum
For the first homemade musical instrument, we’ll be making a simple drum out of an oatmeal box, here are the supplies needed:
- An empty oatmeal box with cover
- Yarn
- A Pen
- 2 Un-Sharpened Pencils
- 2 Spools
- Construction paper (for decorating)
- Crayons (for decorating)
- Non-Toxic Glue (to stick the construction paper around the drum)
You’re going to use the oatmeal box as the main part of the drum. If you feel like drawing on the construction paper with the crayons before gluing it around the drum, feel free. Be creative, let the kids use their imagination so they can make their own unique design, it’s all part of the fun!
Once the construction paper has been glued around the drum, the next step is to punch a hole (with a pen) in the top and bottom of the drum. Next, feed a piece of string through the drum, starting with the top hole and having it come out the bottom hole.
Once you’ve done this you can tie the string into a loose knot. This will act as the strap, letting the child wear it around their shoulder, down to their waist.
The last step is to glue your spoons to the pencils, making drum sticks. Once you’re done, you have your rhythm section!
2. The Horn Section
Our next homemade musical instrument for your daycare orchestra will be the horn! Gather these materials:
- Paper towel roll
- Waxed paper
- Rubber band
- Pen
First, cover one end of the paper towel roll with the waxed paper, make sure you secure it with the rubber band.
Next, punch some holes (about 3-5) along one side of of the paper towel roll (these are there for the children to place their fingers to make different sounds). Once you’re finished have your kids hum a tune into the open end of the homemade horn!
3. Shoe Box Guitar
Now the fun really starts, add some more melody with a homemade stringed instrument. Use these items:
- Empty shoe box (with lid)
- Rubber bands
- Ruler or stick
First, take the lid off the shoe box and cut a hole right in the middle of it. Once the lid is back on, get about 4-5 rubber bands of different sizes and wrap them around the box long ways, they should be fairly taut.
Just make sure the rubber bands are too tight that they snap. Now have some fun with your homemade guitar, just don’t get too loud!
Some Tips For Teaching Kids Basic Music Theory
The concept of teaching children music is a very broad topic that can fill books, but we will show you some basics as well as provide a few helpful links.
1. All About Rhythm – The fundamentals of rhythm are fairly straight forward. Start off with a basic rhythm by repeating 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 at a reasonable rate. Try and keep it consistent, if tapping your foot helps, do it. This gives the kids a fundamental rhythm to play along too.
2. Use singing to show them the basics of melody – Hum simple songs like “Mary Had A Little Lamb” or “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”. This is a great way to introduce the kids to simple melodies that will help their ear develop.
3. Make sirens with your voice – Do a siren sound with the kids making their voice go as high and low as possible. This teaches them the basics of octaves (the high and low versions of notes).
4. Use an inexpensive recorder – Record the kids playing music, then play it back to them. This will amaze, as well as teach them the fundamentals of recorded sound. Plus, it gives them a good idea what they sound like while listening.
Have Fun With Your Homemade Musical Instruments
The sky is really the limit with this, and the fun is really endless. We hope this helps get the creative juices flowing in your daycare, not only with the creating of these homemade musical instruments, but also the journey of learning to play them.
Have fun, and keep it simple!