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Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Boppin’ on DIY Bongo Drums


Our musical instrument projects have been a HUGE hit. Just the other day, my sons put on a music concert for me. The toddler played the rainstick, while my oldest treated me to the musical stylings of his pan flute and palm pipes. It was one of those moments as a mother you hope you never forget.

At the library I found a fun book about children who form a band of drummers, using all sorts of unconventional materials to drum on. Drum City was a real treat!



When my son had finished reading, I gave him:
Two sturdy empty canisters of the same width but different height
Two medium-sized balloons (not inflated)
Fun duct tape
Scissors
A long rubberband

He cut the “necks” off of the two balloons and with a little bit of effort, we stretched them over the open end of our canisters. Then we used some fun duct tape to wrap around the cans and the excess balloon, sealing it in place.


I barely stretched a long rubberband around the two drums, before my son had begun tapping on them. He immediately noticed that because of their height differences, one had a lower sound; no doubt a hypothesis he formed from experiences with his other homemade instruments.

Bum. Bum. Bum. Bum. Now that’s the sound of fun!

8 comments:

  1. This is so cool!
    I have to tell you, my kids (and I) LOVE your blog!!! We have fun doing some of the projects. I am sure we will be doing this one, too!
    Thank you for sharing at my Super Link Party!!!

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  2. These are great, and so simple to make! Homemade instruments are the best :)

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  3. I remember doing this with forumula containers when my daughter was younger...She'd love it now that she's older...will have to try it out! Thanks for the reminder of such a simple and fun activity!

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  4. This is great. I would have never thought to make a drum this way. Great work.

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  5. Those are somre really cool looking djembes. I wonder if these kids will grow up to play acoustic drum sets. I know there are drum sets available for kids too.

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  6. Balloons! What a genius idea! I am definitely pinning this to make with my little one. Thanks for sharing at my Pinteresting Party this week.

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  7. This is such a great idea! Thank you so much for posting on Saturday Show and Tell. I hope you’ll be back this week. Also, this would go great with the Summer Activities for Toddlers. I would love it, if you shared it there as well. (http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com/summer-activities-for-toddlers) Thanks.
    -Mackenzie
    http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com

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  8. these came out GREAT! Featuring them on this week's Sunday Showcase! :)

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