Homemade toys can help you and your child make that special connection and share special moments together. Also, homemade toys help to increase your child’s imagination and artistic skills. And don't forget that there is no better pleasure then knowing you have created something with your own hands!
Making a Kite
Kites are fantastic toys that children can make themselves or as a project with you. All you need to help your child through this process is to buy some tissue paper and kite string. The other materials you will need can most likely be located around your home!
To make your kite, you will need to find two sticks. One should be about 3 feet long and the other should be about 2 feet long. It is best to find a straight stick devoid of knots. If you cannot find good sticks, you can pay for 1/8” diameter dowels instead. After you have your kite sticks, lay them down on the floor in the shape of a cross. The shorter stick should be about 1/3 of the way down the long stick. Tie the two sticks together with a piece of the kite string. Be sure to tie the sticks together securely and with a crisscrossing pattern in order to hold them in place.
If your child is young, you will want to help him or her with the next step, which is to cut a notch at the ends of both sticks. These notches should be about 1/8” deep and wide enough for your kite string to slip inside of. Now, you will need to tie some kite string right beneath one of the notches, then wrap the string once or twice through each of the four notches. After all the notches are linked with string, tie the other end of the string off and cut it.
Now, cut a 2 foot long piece of kite string. Tie it to one end of the short stick and create a loop with the other end of the string. Use this loop to place in the notch at the other end of the short stick. This will cause the stick to have a small bow, causing about two inches of space to be formed between the string and where the sticks cross.
Lay your tissue paper out on the floor. It should be large enough that it covers the frame of your kite, plus another one inch all the way around. If you have to paste or glue pieces of paper together to make it large enough, that is ok. Cut the paper to a diamond shape while maintaining an extra inch all the way around. When done, cut off the corners of the tissue paper so it leaves about ½ to ¾ inch of bare wood showing on each stick. Now, run glue along the far edges of the tissue paper and fold it up over the string and glue it to the paper on the other side.
You’re almost there! After the glue has dried, cut another 4 foot long piece of string. Stand the kite so the arc is facing away from you and tie this string to each end of the long stick. This is the string on which you will tie your kite string when you are ready to fly it. Then, create a tail for your kite. A strip of bright clothe about 3 to 4 feet long is great for making the tail. Old sheets are perfect for this. Tie the tail to the bottom of the kite with a piece of kite string. Another option is to tie a long string to the bottom of the kite and attach short pieces of clothe to the string.
Kites are especially fun for kids to make because they can create their own fun designs, such as flowers, rockets, dragons, clouds, butterflies – the possibilities are really endless. After your child gets comfortable making this basic kite, she can let her creativity go wild and design all sorts of different kites. This also provides you with an excellent science lesson because your child will probably need to make slight adjustments to different areas of the kite in order to make it fly.
