Tag Archives: kids music crafts

What Are You Singing For Groundhog’s Day?

I just love groundhog’s day! Maybe it’s because groundhogs are so cute and cuddley. Or I was born somewhat near the permanent residence of Punxatawney Phil, official groundhog predictor of Spring. Or because groundhogs have adorable nicknames such as whistle pigs and woodchucks.

So, for so many reasons I couldn’t just crawl back into my hole for 6 more weeks of winter and I jumped at the chance to write and record a silly Groundhog’s Day song.

The simple song is based around the tongue-twister “How much wood could a woodchuck chuck… if a woodchuck could chuck wood?” I also wondered how much ground a groundhog could grind and how much sap a sapsucker could suck. And, yes, even though the lyrics are in song form, the tongue twisters still are a challenge to sing or say.

You can find the song lyric freebie below, plus a link to a sweet Springtime activity that includes pop-up puppets. It’s a fun way of having your own groundhog’s day anytime and anywhere.

And the best thing? You can laugh yourself silly while you predict an early Spring!

Links and Resources

Groundhog’s Day Song – Free Lyric Sheet – https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Groundhogs-Day-Song-Lyric-Sheet-2357681

Groundhog’s Day Song From Itunes – https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-groundhog-song-how-much/id385842751

Groundhog’s Day MYO Pop-Up Puppet Activity from TPT – https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Groundhogs-Day-Song-and-Pop-Up-Groundhog-Puppet-Activity-484374

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Posted in Classroom Music, Early Learning With Music, Ecology/Nature, Family Fun, Holiday Songs, Homeschool Musical Fun, Musical Crafts, Silly Songs

Tagged childrens music., Daria, Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou, Groundhog, Groundhogs Day, Groundhogs Day song, kids music crafts, kids songs, playing music with young children, Spring songs, woodchucks, world music with daria, young children and music

Make Your Own Castanets And The Hispanic Heritage Blog Hop!

Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 – October 15th) presents a wonderful opportunity for creative play that introduces the music and musical instruments found in Hispanic cultures around the world. And it’s a great way to teach as well.

While discovering world cultures with Hispanic roots, you can learn about rhythms, patterns, counting and language and develop coordination and motor skills. You can also add your own creative or artistic flair to any of the instruments you create.

Here is a really easy craft version of traditional castanets and some great musical play activities to try as well. And don’t forget to check out all the great posts and prizes that are a part of this Hispanic Heritage blog hop. Below!

Click, Click, Castanets!

Have you ever watched a flamenco dancer play amazing rhythms with wooden castanets? You can make your own version with buttons plus a bit of heavy poster board. Then you can click and clack and dance away!

You can find the craft tutorial free, here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Button-Castenets-Tutorial-3436732

Once you’ve made your colorful castanets, here are some music activities you might like to try:

Try making several pairs with different size or shape buttons.

Make a pair for parent (or teacher) and child and play the same rhythm together.

Try making a rhythm by clicking right hand then left hand, right hand and left hand. Try this slowly and then get faster.

Try making a rhythm by different patterns of right hand and left hand clicks. For instance, Right hand, Right hand. Left!

Try playing along to music from Spain. Can you find patterns that fit the music?

Try playing along to any of your favorite music. Can you find patterns that fit with what you are hearing?

Try a call and response game. The parent or teacher makes one rhythm and the child must repeat what they hear.

Try a call and response game with eyes closed. Switch places and let the child lead a call and response game.

Enjoy your music and celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month!

We are so excited for our sixth annual Hispanic Heritage Month series and giveaway! Through the month (September 15 – October 15), you’ll find great resources to share Hispanic Heritage with kids, plus you can enter to win in our great giveaway and link up your own posts on Hispanic Heritage!

September 15
Embracing Diversity on Multicultural Kid Blogs: 10 Fun Facts About Dominican Republic

September 18
Spanish Mama: Nazca Lines – Exploratory Art Project

September 19
Hispanic Mama: Fun Ways to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with Your Children

September 20
Inspired by Family: 16 Great Children’s Books About South America

September 21
Spanish Mama: Folk Songs in Spanish

September 25
Spanish Playground: Food from Latin America Infographic Picture Cards Activities

September 26
All Done Monkey: 60+ Hispanic Heritage Month Recipes to Try with Kids

September 27
Discovering the World Through My Son’s Eyes: Hispanic Inspired Crafts for Kids

September 28
Kid World Citizen: 35+ Best Resources and Activities to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

September 29
Pura Vida Moms on Multicultural Kid Blogs: Costa Rican Food – 9 Favorite Recipes

October 2
Discovering the World Through My Son’s Eyes on Multicultural Kid Blogs: 10 Fun Facts About Puerto Rico

October 3
Mama Tortuga: 10 Most Used Medicinal Plants

October 5
Spanglish House: How Do Hispanics Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month and Why Should You?

October 11
La Clase de Sra DuFault

October 12
Tiny Tapping Toes

Don’t miss all of the great posts from previous years as well: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016

Hispanic Heritage Month Giveaway!

Giveaway begins September 15 and goes through October 15, 2017. Enter below for a chance to win one of these amazing prize packages! Some prizes have shipping restrictions. In the event that a winner lives outside the designated shipping area, that prize will then become part of the following prize package. For more information, read our full giveaway rules.

Grand Prize

From Mariana Iranzi: A digital copy of her new CD Primavera
From Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer: A print copy of Cántale a tu bebé with music download – US Shipping Only
From 123 Andrés: A copy of the CD Arriba Abajo (digital copy if outside the US)
From Spanish Playground: Set of books, crafts, and toys from Latin America - US Shipping Only
From Carole P. Roman: Set of If You Were Me and Lived In… books on Mexico, Brazil, Cuba, Peru, Portugal, and the Mayan Empire – US Shipping Only
From Mister G: A copy of the new CD Mundo Verde/Green World (digital copy if outside the US)
From World Music with Daria: Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Musical Craft and Coloring E-Book
From Gus on the Go: Spanish Alphabet Print (US Shipping Only) & single-use promo code for Spanish for kids language app
From Lectura Para Niños: A set of printable little readers, one for each letter of the Spanish alphabet. Designed to last the entire school year, with one new book each week plus several review weeks included throughout the set

1st Prize

From Mariana Iranzi: A digital copy of her new CD Primavera
From Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer: A print copy of Cántale a tu bebé with music download – US Shipping Only
From 123 Andrés: A copy of the CD Arriba Abajo (digital copy if outside the US)
From Spanish Playground: Set of books, crafts, and toys from Latin America – US Shipping Only
From Carole P. Roman: Set of If You Were Me and Lived In… books on Mexico, Brazil, Cuba, Peru, Portugal, and the Mayan Empire – US Shipping Only
From Mister G: A copy of the new CD Mundo Verde/Green World (digital copy if outside the US)
From World Music with Daria: Set of maracas and a Spanish fan – US Shipping Only
From Gus on the Go: Spanish Alphabet Print (US Shipping Only) & single-use promo code for Spanish for kids language app

2nd Prize

From Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer: A print copy of Cántale a tu bebé with music download – US Shipping Only
From 123 Andrés: A copy of the CD Uno, Dos, Tres, Andrés! (digital copy if outside the US)
From Spanish Playground: Set of books, crafts, and toys from Latin America – US Shipping Only
From Carole P. Roman: Set of If You Were Me and Lived In… books on Mexico, Brazil, Cuba, Peru, Portugal, and the Mayan Empire – US Shipping Only
From Mister G: A copy of the new CD Mundo Verde/Green World (digital copy if outside the US)
From Lee and Low Books: Martí’s Song for Freedom/Martí y sus versos por la libertad; Rainbow Weaver/Tejedora del arcoíris; Mamá the Alien/Mamá la extraterreste; Marisol McDonald and the Monster/Marisol McDonald y el monstruo – US Shipping Only

3rd Prize

From Carole P. Roman: Set of If You Were Me and Lived In… books on Mexico, Brazil, Cuba, Peru, Portugal, and the Mayan Empire – US Shipping Only
From Mister G: A copy of the new CD Mundo Verde/Green World (digital copy if outside the US)
From Sarah Aroeste: A copy of the new Ladino/English bilingual picture book Ora de Despertar/Time to Wake Up – US Shipping Only
From Arte Público Press: Picture books Esteban de Luna, Baby Rescuer! / Esteban de Luna, ¡rescatador de bebés!, The Little Doctor / El doctorcito, Dalia’s Wondrous Hair / El cabello maravilloso de Dalia, Grandma’s Chocolate / El chocolate de Abuelita, I Kick the Ball / Pateo el balón, Level Up / Paso de nivel, A Surprise for Teresita / Una sorpresa para Teresita – US Shipping Only

Bonus Prizes

We are giving away an extra copy of the CD Mundo Verde/Green World from Mister G (US Shipping Only) and up to 10 digital downloads of this brand new album: Watch a video of the title track!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

An InLinkz Link-up

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Posted in Babies and Music, Classroom Music, Early Learning With Music, First Instruments, Hispanic Music, Homeschool Musical Fun

Tagged Castanets, castanets craft, early learning with music, Hispanic Heritage month activities, Hispanic Heritage month crafts, kids music crafts, MYO instruments

Make Your Own Egyptian Sistrum!

We’re proud to be part of the Middle Eastern North Africa blog hop. Naturally our post is about music, but make sure you check out all the other related posts (listed below) to learn more about this beautiful and culturally rich part of the world.

Crafting is a great hands-on way for kids to learn about world cultures, so our post shows you how to make a sistrum, a unique rattle that was used in the courts of the Pharoahs of ancient Egypt.

What is a Sistrum?

You can see images of sistrums in hieroglyphics found in the pyramids. A bit of study of the courts of the Pharoahs reveals that the sistrum was played mainly by women or priestesses and that it was played by moving it back and forth from side to side so that the metal bangles create a unique sound and distinctive rhythms. It was often part of ceremonial or the sacred/religious music of the time.

Make Your Own Sistrum From a Tree Branch

If you take a walk in a wooded area, it’s easy to find a tree branch that is shaped like the letter “Y”. You can use the branch “as is” or cut and sand it down, if you like.

Next, you’ll need a bit of floral wire or craft wire. Wrap it around one side of the Y, then add whatever bangles you may have. Below we have a post showing how to safely make bangles from bottlecaps, which is a fun recycling project. Instead – or in addition to bangles – you can also use things like beads, jingle bells or bits of jewelry to add to the bling of your sistrum. Be as creative as you like!

Playing A Sistrum

Although the traditional way to play a sistrum is to move it back and forth only, it’s a rattle so feel free to use it as a percussion instrument any way you like.

Links and Resources

Free Egyptian Sistrum Coloring Page- https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Color-An-Ancient-Egyptian-Rattle-The-Sistrum-2166721

Make Your Own Bangles From Bottlecaps Post – http://www.tinytappingtoes.com/ecologynature/how-to-make-bottle-cap-bangles-for-recycled-musical-instruments/

Welcome to the third annual Middle Eastern and North African Heritage Month series from Multicultural Kid Blogs! Follow along all month long for great resources on teaching children about the heritage of this region, and link up your own posts below. Don’t miss our series from last year and from 2015!

You can also find even more resources on our North Africa and the Middle East Pinterest board:

August 4 Sand In My Toes on Multicultural Kid Blogs: 10 Fun Facts About the United Arab EmiratesAugust 8 A Crafty Arab: Jordan Craft Stick Flag TutorialAugust 15 Sand In My Toes: Wind Tower Craft (UAE)August 17 All Done Monkey: MENA Countries WorksheetsAugust 18 Tiny Tapping ToesAugust 21 Biracial Bookworms on Multicultural Kid BlogsAugust 23 Jeddah MomAugust 28 Crafty Moms ShareAugust 30 Creative World of Varya

Link Up Your Posts!

An InLinkz Link-up

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Posted in Classroom Music, Early Learning With Music, Ecology/Nature, First Instruments, Multicultural Music, Musical Crafts, Simple Instruments

Tagged Daria, Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou, Easiest Instruments For Children, Egypt instruments, Egypt kids crafts, green crafts for kids, homeschool music, kids crafts, kids music crafts, kids musical instruments, multicultural music, music crafts, nature crafts, Sistrum, sistrum rattle, unusual percussion, world music with daria

Make Your Own New Year’s Eve Noise-Makers!

Many new parents – or tired parents – opt to stay home on New Year’s Eve and ring in the New Year with the kids! Even if you won’t stay up until midnight – you definitely need some fun noise-makers to mark the coming of a new year!

Here is a new New Year’s Eve project – big bottle shakers – as well as a list of favorite noise-making crafts from the past few years. Monkey drums and vuvuzelas, anyone?

Oh yes, and a very happy new year to all!

Big Bottle Shakers For New Year’s Eve!

Kids like to make lots of noise and these big rattles are perfect for safe and easy noise-makers. Start with a large recycled bottle (with a lid or cap) that’s clean and dry. Gallon milk jug containers and liter soft drink bottles work well for this craft.

Step One is to fill with whatever you have on hand. For louder rattles, add items like extra jingle bells, buttons, pebbles, dried macaroni or paper clips. For quieter rattles, add things like birdseed, sand, salt or sugar. Before you close the cap and seal the rattle, consider adding a bit of bling. Maybe some glitter that you have on-hand or some MYO confetti? (BTW, Our next post is MYO confetti – it’s messy but super simple!).

Step Two. Once you’ve filled your bottle with things that jingle and jangle, close the lid and seal with a sturdy tape, such as colorful electrical tape. This keeps the contents inside and makes the project more child safe.

Lastly; if you like, you can decorate the outside. You can add stickers, colorful tape or draw with permanent markers. You can also adorn the handle with streams of ribbon or yarn. This is a great way to recycle extra holiday wrapping and put it to a good use!

What else can you make? Check out these favorite posts from New Year’s Eves past.

New Year’s Eve Noise-Makers With Wrapping Paper Rolls http://www.tinytappingtoes.com/babies-and-music/noisemakers-new-years-eve-craft/

Bolang Gu – A Chinese Monkey Drum Craft https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Monkey-Drum-Chinese-New-Year-Drum-Craft-1748044

Make Your Own Vuvuzela Stadium Horn https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Vuvuzela-Make-Play-Your-Own-South-African-Stadium-Horn-1242716

Everything But The Kitchen Sink Rattles http://www.tinytappingtoes.com/early-learning-with-music/new-years-eve-noisemakers-recycled-rattles/

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Posted in Family Fun, First Instruments, Holiday Songs, Simple Instruments

Tagged children and music, DIY instruments, DIY rattles, Easiest Instruments For Children, green kids crafts, kids and music, kids music crafts, multicultural music, musical crafts, MYO instruments, New Years crafts, New Years kids activities, New Years kids crafts, world music with daria, young children and music

Kaleidoscope Rattles

Have you ever looked through a kaleidoscope to see an ever-changing array of beautiful colors?

Here’s a fun little rattle that creates a lovely flow of colors when it’s played. And it’s nice and quiet so it’s perfect for music-making with a large group of children or for kids who have noise sensitivity. It’s also one of our favorite projects for creating with kids on the autistic spectrum as it’s fun to make, easy to control and the sound is soothing and not harsh or abrupt.

Here’s what you need to make your own kaleidoscope rattles.

Supplies

Clear Recycled Plastic Bottles (like from water or juice) with a lid
Q-tips
Washable markers
Electric tape (for sealing the rattles)

What To Do

Clean and dry the plastic bottles thoroughly. You can do this easily by rinsing them out and placing them upside down in a regular glass or a jar.

Next take the washable markers and color the tips of the Q-tips any color that you like. Color as many as you like and drop them into the bottle.

Every so often, shake the bottle to see if you like the sound. The tone of the rattle will change each time you add another Q-tip to the container!

When you’re satisfied with the array of color and the sound of the rattle, put the lid on and seal it up with electrical tape to keep the contents inside.

Time To Play!

Shaking the rattle around in a circular motion displays a wonderful changing series of colors. But since this is a rattle, you can play it any way you like. Shake it up and down, side to side or get up and dance with it!

Shake it along with a favorite song that you love to sing. Or play along to recorded music. Make several and compare the sounds as well as the colors as you enjoy your handiwork.

Have fun and keep making music!

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Posted in Babies and Music, Classroom Music, Early Learning With Music, First Instruments, Homeschool Musical Fun, Music and Hearing, Simple Instruments, Special Needs/Kids of All Abilities

Tagged childrens music., children’s music crafts, children’s musical instruments, Daria, DIY rattles, Green music, green music crafts, homeschool music, kids green music projects, kids music crafts, music projects autistic children, music projects autistic kids, Musical rattles, MYO rattles, preschooler, quiet rattles, recycled crafts, recycled instruments, recycled music, toddlers and music, unusual percussion, young children and music

Playing Music… And Learning Shapes!

Have you ever noticed that many simple musical instruments are also perfect for teaching shapes?

This week, while doing a preschool program, one of the quieter young boys became very excited about naming the shapes of the instruments we were making and playing. He noticed the washboard he loved to play was in the shape of a rectangle. And his sister had a tambourine that was shaped like the moon! The other kids enjoyed the idea and pretty soon, we had gone through an entire basket of instruments finding all types of shapes in all kinds of different ways.

For instance, how many circles can you find in the instruments to the right? We counted 12!

And what shapes are here in the tambourines and triangle below?

What a fun way to combine music and some of the basic skills that will help a child excel in school or in their homeschool learning.

Don’t have a basket of instruments around your home?

No worries, here are some simple musical crafts that will have you not only putting a circle in the square – but playing one, too!

SQUARES AND RECTANGLES

Make a Cajón Box Drum
Free from DARIA’s website
http://www.dariamusic.com/docs/MYO%20Cajon.pdf
Free from TPT
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Cajon-Make-And-Play-Your-Own-Box-Drum-1236616

Square Ocean Drum http://www.dariamusic.com/docs/Ocean%20Drum%20Instructions.pdf

CIRCLE

Bongo Drums
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Make-And-Play-Your-Own-Bongo-Drums-1430615

Button Castanets
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Make-Your-Own-Button-Castanets-1439711

Chinese Gong
http://www.dariamusic.com/docs/chinesegong.pdf
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Make-Your-Own-Chinese-Gong-From-Recycled-Materials-486935

Triangle

Egyptian Rattle http://www.dariamusic.com/docs/naturalsistrum.pdf

Explore More

Can you think of more simple shapes that are found in instruments? Let us know and we’ll feature them here!

Find lots more DIY/MYO Crafts on Daria’s website craft and activity page:
http://www.dariamusic.com/crafts.php

Or her TeachersPayTeachers Store:
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Daria-Marmaluk-Hajioannou

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Posted in Early Learning With Music, Family Fun, First Instruments, Homeschool Musical Fun, Musical Crafts

Tagged bongo drums, Bongo Drums for kids, cajón box drum, childrens music., children’s music crafts, Daria, Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou, dariamusic, DIY gong, early learning, Easiest Instruments For Children, gong, kids music, kids music crafts, learning shapes, Music and young children, music crafts for children, music crafts for kids, music for toddlers, MYO gong, sensory play, shapes and music, simple instruments for kids, tambourines, triangles, unusual percussion, young children and music

Turn a Milk Jug Into a Recycled Shekere

Do you know the three R’s? Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

How about the four “R’s”? Reduce, Reuse, Recycle… and Rock Out! While you’re going greener and thinking about reducing or reusing plastic, here’s a fun way to turn large containers into child-size versions of African shekeres.

What’s a Shekere?

I wonder if shekeres were “original recycling projects”. Perhaps someone looked at dried gourds and decided they could be made into musical instruments. To do this, a netting of beads (called a skirt) was crafted around the gourd and small beads, seeds or shells were strung in the fiber to create the sound of the instrument. Most music historians believe the shekere began in West Africa but can now be found with variations in size, beadwork, shape and manner of playing throughout the African continent and around the world.

A Milk Jug Shekere

Since you probably have more plastic containers than cleaned and dried gourds, start by finding an empty milk jug, large water bottle or similar item from your recycling bin. Before you begin, make sure it fits nicely into your child’s hands.

Beading With Stickers or Markers

Doing intricate crafts like beading is great fun but takes practice and patience, plus motor skills that can be a difficult for small children. Here’s an easy alternative.

If your container is clear and clean, you can place stickers directly onto the plastic bottle or draw “beads” with markers, making colorful patterns or shapes. If there’s a label on the container, you can cut out a piece of poster board or construction paper to fit the container and lay the paper flat. This makes for easy “sticker beading” and a fun way to explore patterns, shapes and colors with your young child.

If you’re working with a classroom of kids or have a limited time to do this project, you can skip the aspect of trying to “bead” the shekere and allow the kids to simply decorate the outside of the container.

Sounding Good!

In traditional shekeres, the sound comes from the beads or seeds rattling on the outside of the gourd. In our recycled version, we’ll need to add something inside the container to create the sound. Here are some suggestions for a quieter recycled shekere: sand, salt, sugar, tiny pasta (like acini de pepi), seed beads, Q-tips and paper clips. Here are some fillings you can use to create a louder instrument: pebbles, dried pasta, dried beans, popcorn kernels, marbles or pennies.

Once you’ve filled your shekere and you like the sound it makes. Put the cap on and seal it into place with heavy duty tape to keep this project child-safe.

Time to Play

Although a shekere is a rattle, there’s a lot of different ways you can play it. Here are some playing suggestions:

Hold the handle and shake.

Hold both sides and rattle the contents back and forth.

Hold both sides and toss it gently while twisting it.

Hold it vertically and toss it gently from hand to hand.

Sit a short distance from a friend and toss it back and forth.

With a group of children, sit in a circle and toss it from child to child around the circle.

Try any of the above ideas while singing or while music is playing. Try to shake along to the beat.

Links and Resources

Hear A Shekere

http://www.dariamusic.com/shekere.php

Color a Shekere Online

http://www.dariamusic.com/color_Shekere.php

Bead an African Shekere

https://makingmulticulturalmusic.wordpress.com/2013/12/04/bead-your-own-african-shekere/

Make a Classroom Shekere (From A Gourd)

http://tinytappingtoes.wordpress.com/2013/08/05/easy-gourd-shekere-for-a-child-or-a-classroom/

An Alphabet Shekere Game

http://www.trueaimeducation.com/2012/10/guest-post-learning-letters-with-an-alphabet-shekere.html

Sekere.com – Beaded Sekeres from Master Craftswoman, Sara Fabunmi

http://www.sekere.com

Cultural Value of the Shekere, Article By Sara Fabunmi

https://makingmulticulturalmusic.wordpress.com/2011/10/25/the-cultural-value-of-the-sekere/

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Posted in African Music, Classroom Music, Early Learning With Music, Ecology/Nature, Family Fun, First Instruments, Homeschool Musical Fun, Musical Crafts, Simple Instruments, Special Needs/Kids of All Abilities

Tagged African crafts, African music crafts, children’s music crafts, children’s musical instruments, Daria, Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou, dariamusic, DIY music crafts, Easiest Instruments For Children, family fun, Green crafts, green crafts for kids, homeschool music, kids music activities, kids music crafts, Milk Jug crafts, multicultural music, music activities, music crafts, MYO music crafts, recycled crafts, Recycled music crafts, world music with daria, young children and music

Easy Gourd Shekere For A Child – Or A Classroom

A shekere is a wonderful, versatile instrument from Africa. Made from dried gourds of various sizes, the instrument has a netting over its rounded area that is beaded or woven with shells, seeds, nuts or other objects that rattle. Since making the knots for the netting can be hard for smaller hands, we’re sharing a simplified version perfect for making with a child, a group of siblings or a classroom of kids.

Start With A Gourd

Shekeres are made from dried birdhouse gourds. After they are harvested and stored for about a year in a dry location, they become sturdy and have a hardened outer shell. As the gourds dry, the shell may not look perfect so some craftspeople sand the shell, bleach the shell or even paint and decorate it to make it more appealing before they begin the beading process. You can try any of those approaches as well or use them “au natural”.

Make A Gourd Necklace

The formal beadwork on a shekere is called a skirt. For this project, our gourds will only have a necklace instead of a full “skirt”.

Take a piece of string, twine or embroidery thread and twist it around the top of the gourd, marking where it will overlap. Measure it tight enough to stay on the gourd, but loose enough to rattle. Don’t tie the string but instead lay it flat on a work surface. It can be helpful to tape it into place. Looking at the length of the string, you can get a good idea of how many strands of beads you can create to put onto it.

Jingles, Jangles and Bangles

Collect your bangles! Look for any type of beads, buttons, jingle bells or similar objects you can use to create the sound of your instrument. Here are some ideas for making several different types of creative shekeres.

Parent/Child Shekere

Parent and child create strands of noise-makers and they are strung alternately on the gourd.

Sibling – Friendship Shekere

Sister and brothers or friends create strands of noise-makers and they are strung on the gourd.

Classroom or Group Shekere

Each student or participant makes one string of noise-makers to add to the classroom instrument.

After you’ve finished creating your strands, add them to the necklace and tie it into place on the gourd.

Playing A Simple Shekere

Although these easy shekeres may not seem as versatile as their bigger cousins, you can hold them from the top and create several different types of rhythms. And if dried gourds are not readily available in your area, we’re also sharing a link below for making a recycled version out of plastic milk jugs.

Experiment with what you’ve created and have a blast!

Shekere Resources And Links