Login | Sign Up | Print Page
Enchanted Learning Logo Enchanted Learning Logo
Home Site Index What's New Free Sample Pages Login Subscribe
Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook
Advertisement.

EnchantedLearning.com is a user-supported site.

Site members have full access to an ad-free, print-friendly version of the site.

Click here to learn more.

Rainstick Craft

CraftsMusic
More Kinder Crafts►
Share this page:

This Rainstick Craft is simple to make! Rainsticks are ceremonial musical instruments used to invoke the rain spirits. They are made by people who live in the deserts of northern Chile. Rainsticks are traditionally made from dead cactus tubes with hundreds of cactus spines hammered into the tube. Tiny lava pebbles cascade gently through the tube, sounding much like rain.

This rainstick is definitely not traditional. It’s made from a cardboard tube (instead of the dried cactus) and aluminum foil (in place of cactus spines).

Supplies Needed:
  • A paper towel tube or other long cardboard tube
  • Aluminum foil
  • Small dried beans (like lentils), unpopped popcorn, dry rice, or tiny pasta.
  • Brown paper (from a grocery bag) or construction paper
  • Glue
  • Scissors
  • Crayons or markers

Instructions

1.

Trace around the end of your tube onto a piece of brown paper (or construction paper). Draw a bigger circle around that circle and then draw a lot of spokes between the two circles.

Drawn circles
2.

Cut along the spokes.

Cutting the spokes
3.

Put glue on the spokes and glue the cap onto one end of your tube.

Gluing the cap onto the tube.
4.

Cut a piece of aluminum foil: about one and half times the length of your tube and about 6 inches wide.

Cutting the aluminum foil.
5.

Crunch the aluminum foil into two long, thin, snake-like shapes. Then twist each one into a spring shape.

Twisting the aluminum foil.
6.

Put the aluminum foil springs into your tube.

Pour some dry beans, dry rice, or unpopped popcorn into your tube. The tube should only be about 1/10 full. You can experiment to see how different amounts and different types of seeds and beans change the sound.

Pour the items into the tube.
7.

Make another cap from brown paper (the same as the first three steps) and cap your tube.

Putting the other cap on the tube.
8.

Optional: Decorate the tube by covering it with brown paper or construction paper, and then making designs with crayons or markers (or cut-out paper or stickers).

Rainforest designs are nice, especially brightly-colored butterflies, frogs, and flowers. Tiny construction paper butterflies (like the one on the right) are nice glued onto the rainstick.

A finished, decorated rainstick.A finished, decorated rainstick.Cutting out a paper butterfly.A paper butterfly
Other Links:
Estimated Grade Level
Our subscribers' grade-level estimate for this page:
1st - 3rd
You Might Also Like:
Kachina Doll Craft
Native American Rattle Craft
Kachina Doll Craft
Tepee Craft
Musical Instrument Crafts
Crafts By Season
Fall (Autumn) Crafts
Winter Crafts
Spring Crafts
Summer Crafts
Crafts By Material
Balloons
Boxes
Brown Grocery Bags
Drinking Straws
Edible Crafts
Egg Cartons
Macaroni
Oatmeal Box
Paper
Paper Plates
Papier Mache
Pebbles and Rocks
Pine Cones
Plaster
Plastic Bottles
Toilet Paper Tube
Twigs
Holiday Crafts
April Fool's Day
Arbor Day
Birthdays
Chinese New Year
Christmas
Columbus Day
Day of the Dead
Earth Day
Easter
Father's Day
Flag Day
Grandparents Day
Groundhog Day
Halloween
Hanukkah
Independence Day (July 4th)
Kwanzaa
Labor Day
Mardi Gras
Memorial Day
Mother's Day
New Year's Eve
Presidents' Day
St. Patrick's Day
Thanksgiving Day
World Environment Day
Valentine's Day
Veteran's Day
Advertisement.
▾ See more
Site Overview
What's New
Enchanted Learning Home
Monthly Activity Calendar
Books to Print
Site Index
Enchanted Blog
K-3
Crafts
K-3 Themes
Little Explorers
Picture Dictionary
PreK/K Activities
Rebus Rhymes
Stories
Writing
Cloze Activities
Essay Topics
Newspaper
Writing Activities
Parts of Speech
Fiction
The Test of Time
Biology
Animal Printouts
Biology Label Printouts
Biomes
Birds
Butterflies
Dinosaurs
Biology Continued
Food Chain
Human Anatomy
Mammals
Plants
Rainforests
Sharks
Whales
Physical Sciences: K-12
Astronomy
The Earth
Geology
Hurricanes
Landforms
Oceans
Tsunami
Volcano
Languages
Dutch
French
German
Italian
Japanese (Romaji)
Portuguese
Spanish
Swedish
Geography/History
Explorers
Flags
Geography
Inventors
US History
Other Topics
Arts and Artists
Calendars
College Finder
Crafts
Graphic Organizers
Label Me! Printouts
Math
Music
Word Wheels
Copyright © 2000-2023 EnchantedLearning.com
How to cite a web page
-
Our Privacy Policy
-
Site Index
-
Contact Us
-
About Us
-
Subscribe
Advertisement.
Advertisement.