Recycling old water bottles is good, but reusing them to make creative eco-friendly crafts is even better! Give those ubiquitous plastic containers a second life by transforming them into a colorful water bottle mobile. As you do this craft together, get your child thinking about the environment and how she can do her part to make Earth a better place to live.
What You Need:
- 3 or more plastic water bottles, washed, dried, and labels removed
- Tissue paper in various colors (keep it green by reusing tissue paper from gifts or retail store packaging)
- Clear drying, non-toxic glue
- Paint brush
- Yarn or ribbon scraps
- 2 twigs (go outside with your child and look for good-sized, solid sticks on the ground)
- Scissors
- Watercolor paint and paint brush (optional - use if you can only find white tissue paper)
What You Do:
- Start by discussing the impact humans have on the environment with your child. What happens to plastic water bottles and other trash when we throw them away? Can she think of ways your family can lessen your environmental footprint?
- Now make your mobile. Have your child cut the tissue paper into different sizes and shapes. If you only have white tissue paper, try painting it with watercolors first to add some color.
- Brush a thin layer of glue onto the bottles, working with one bottle at a time. Thin the glue with water first if it's too thick to apply.
- As soon as you've finished brushing glue on the first bottle, hand it to your child and have her decorate it with tissue paper shapes while you finish brushing glue on the other bottles. Continue until all the bottles are decorated with tissue paper.
- Set the bottles aside to dry, then add a second coat of glue over the tissue paper.
- Lash the two twigs together with yarn or ribbon in the shape of an "X". This will be the frame that supports your mobile.
- Have your child tie bits of ribbon or yarn around the necks of the bottles, then tie them to the twig frame. Make sure you arrange the bottles evenly around the frame so the mobile is balanced.
- Tie a final piece of yarn or ribbon to the center of the twig frame and hang your mobile from a sturdy place. Now step back and admire your handiwork!
Once your mobile is finished and hung, try playing around with weight and motion. What happens when you add pebbles to one of the bottles? What happens when you hang it up outside on a windy day?
By Erica Loop
Erica Loop has a MS in Applied Developmental Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh's School of Education. She has many years of teaching experience working in early childhood education, and as an arts educator at the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh.
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