Kids Crafts: Easy Shaker Drums

Materials:

• Construction Paper
• Paint
• Empty Oatmeal Canisters
• Dried Beans
• Yarn (optional)
• Hot Glue Gun
• Laminating Machine (optional)
• Laminating Envelopes (optional)
  
  
  
  
  

This is a fun and easy craft for toddlers and preschoolers. I came up with the idea for these little gems just by rounding up all the craftable household items I had on hand.

Maybe its just me but crafting with my boys can get a bit chaotic at times, especially when they're excited. So in order to minimize my personal stress level I made this a two-day project.

Day One:

  Let your child or children finger paint a few pieces of construction paper. I put my boys out on the screen porch with their painting aprons on, and they had a blast. After they were done I laid their masterpieces out to dry.

Day Two:

During nap time, I laminated one of their paintings. This step is totally optional but I wanted to add a bit of durability to the drum. When my boys woke up I let them throw a few handfuls of dried beans into their drums. They had a great time playing with the beans. I just made sure that none of them made it into their mouths.

Next, I cut two long pieces of yarn so the drums could be worn around the neck. Insert the two ends of the yarn into the top of the canister and hot glue the whole thing shut. Using the yarn is also totally optional. The neck straps didn't last long at my house, so I think they may be more trouble than they're worth.

Finally, I cut the paper to size and hot glued it to the outside of the oatmeal canisters. The paper didn't cover the entire circumference of the canister so I used the sliver I cut off the bottom to close in the gap. In retrospect I should have just used the gap as a place to write their names, or let them decorate the space with stickers.

Let the shaker drum dry. Then sit back and enjoy watching your kiddos run around shaking and pounding on their homemade treasures!