Activity: Friendly Pick'n and Grin'n

The concept of playing fair and taking turns can be practiced in a fun way when friends make their own guitar and play music.

Materials:

• rectangular tissue box
• rubber bands (strong enough to wrap around the box)
• paper towel tube
• pencil
• optional: acrylic paint and paintbrush for the box and tube
• music to play and sing along with

Directions:
Begin by painting guitar body (tissue box). Allow paint to dry. Wrap 3-6 rubber bands (strings) length-wise around the box; rubber bands will cross over to box's opening. Slide pencil under one end of the strings to raise strings. To make the guitar's "neck," (which will not have actual strings attached) tape or glue the paper towel tube on one the opposite end as the pencil and you have it...a homemade guitar!

Talk about It: Ask your child to share thoughts about spending time with a friend. Then talk about other objects around the house that could be used for making homemade instruments like coffee cans, baggies, sacks, tin pans, paper plates, etc., and the objects that could be put inside these things like beans, noodles, popcorn, as well as outside objects such as sand, rocks, twigs, and dry crispy leaves.

Take it Further: Use these ideas to help your child think about other instruments that could be created at home, become inspired to play music again with a friend, and become more familiar with various instrument sounds:

• attend local music festivals or school events to hear live music
• using cut out magazine pictures, make a collage of many different types of instruments
• visit a local music store to see, hear, and play real instruments

With a Group: Drum up a fun way to practice playing fair with friends by making homemade drums. Gather coffee cans of different sizes, small and large buckets, and different sizes of cardboard boxes to use as drums. Place cans, buckets, and boxes into groups. Play age-appropriate songs from CD's for the drummers to play along with or drum without other music. The goal is for the children to play in a fair and considerate manner, taking turns and respecting others when it's someone else's time to play.