Activity:
Door Harp
Music is all around us. Bring some melody into your home with a hand-crafted door harp! Door harps are a combination between a piano and a wind chime, with “hammers” striking strings to create a soft chime every time the harp moves. This creative instrument will add a little zen to your everyday routine, and it's a great way to keep your budding musician entertained.
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What You Need:
- A box with a lid
- A variety of rubber bands
- String or yarn
- Beads
- Scissors
- Masking tape
- Material to decorate the box (construction paper, glue, paint and stickers)
What You Do:
- Working with the bottom of the box (the corrugated cardboard portion), help your child stretch the rubber bands across the box. Use the smallest rubber bands that will work—you need them to be stretched as tightly as possible. Blue produce rubber bands work well.
- Position the rubber bands approximately ¾ to 1 inch apart near one end of the box.
- Cut one piece of yarn for each rubber band that you used..
- Tie a bead to each piece of yarn.
- Stand the box on end with the rubber bands at the top. Hang the yarn from the front of the box so that each bead hangs in front of a rubber band. Tape the yarn into place.
- Instead of putting the lid on the box, slip the box into the lid so that the rubber bands, yarn, and beads are still visible.
- Use construction paper, paint or stickers to decorate the box.
This door harp will not be very loud. Your child can hang it on his door or keep it beside his bed so that he can play with it and make music in quiet moments.
