Nov 21 - Monster Castanets

I made castanets today! Again, as when I made the guitar, I decided not to proceed with my initial cultural theme and decided instead to make a little castanet that looks like a monster! I used the instruction sheet I had made previously on making Latin American Castanets:

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Monster Castanets

Materials: plastic or metal bottle caps, sturdy cardboard cut into small rectangles, superglue, string

Instructions:
• Fold cardboard rectangles in half
• Attach 2 bottle caps to each end of rectangular cardboard with superglue so they line up when folded onto each other
• Attach loose string loops to act as finger loop holders

Difficulty: Easy
Timeframe: Short
To play: Insert index finger and thumb through top and bottom string loops. Clap bottle caps together to make a tapping or clicking noise.

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I altered my original instructions slightly by using cardboard for the finger loop holders. I initially used tape to hold the bottle caps in place, but it wasn't secure enough so I used a hot glue gun instead. I also painted one of them to look like a little friendly monster with pipe cleaners for antennaes.

My castinets make a nice metal snappy sound that would be great to keep a rhythm or beat.

I like the idea of making them monster castinets to appeal to younger grades. With kindergartens or grade ones I would use monster castinets during a theme week on monsters. I could include the book Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak as it uses "cute" rather than "scary" monsters, which I feel would interest both girls and boys.

Nov 19 - Rock Star Guitar

I made a rock star guitar today!! When I started this whole project I wanted every instrument be correlated with a specific culture, but I found that this was a bit harder than I had anticipated. Originally I had planned to make my guitar a Spanish themed guitar, but instead decided that a rock star guitar would be just as interesting and exciting (for both myself, and for youngsters).

I made my Rock Star Guitar using the Spanish Guitar instruction sheet I had made previously:

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Rock Star Guitar

Materials: shoebox, 3-5 elastic bands, pencil, long cardboard tube, ribbon, paints

Instructions:
• Paint shoebox and cardboard tube as desired
• Cut oval shaped hole in lid of shoebox
• Wrap elastic bands around shoebox length ways
• Stick unsharpened pencil under elastic bands between oval and edge of shoebox
• Attach cardboard tube to top end of shoebox to act as neck of guitar
• Attach ribbon loosely from top of neck to bottom of guitar to act as strap

Difficulty: Medium
Timeframe: Medium
To play: Strum or pick elastic bands (strings of guitar) to create twanging sound. If desired, adjust elastic bands’ tautness to create different pitches.

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I altered the instructions slightly, using a smaller rectangular box which I cut an oval shape out of, since the kleenex box I was going to use was too big for the elastics I had. Instead of painting the box, I instead painted a piece of construction paper which I glued to the box. The acrylic paint I was using didn't cover well on the glossier material that the box was coated with. I used the coardboard box that toothpaste came in for the neck of the guitar. I also had some solid styrofoam which I cut to fit in the toothpaste box so that it would be more sturdy, and again I painted construction paper to wrap around the toothpaste box because of the glossier finish. Finally, instead of a pencil, I used the end of a wooden spoon which I cut off and painted to place under the strings (elastic bands). I had bought a pack of wooden spoons when making my Chinese Gong so I already had one on hand. I secured the boxes with glue and coloured electrician's tape. If I have time later on, I might add a ribbon to act as a guitar strap.

This project was very fun, and I am very surprised at how nice of a sound the cardboard guitar makes. It was very inexpensive, as most of the items used I found around my house. I would definitely use this project in the classroom with grades 2 and up and incorporate a music class which allowed them to come up with their own songs on their guitars (I've already been playing around with a few of my own, it's quite fun!). It would be easy to alter the guitar making for younger grades as well by simply wrapping larger elastics around a kleenex box and playing with the different sounds.

Nov 7 - Hang Drum

When researching instruments, my friend told me to check out a relatively new instrument: It's called a hang drum and it was first made in Switzerland in 2000. It has a very unique shape like a UFO. Although I wouldn't be able to make something like this myself, I thought it was very unique and the sound that comes from it is amazing, so I thought it would be fun to share. Because they are so unique and still quite new they are apparently very hard to track down to purchase.

:)