Make Rain Stick

Join musician Dave Jadico in the Activity TV music studio. Watch and learn as he teaches you step by step how to make a rockin rain stick. Be careful though, this percussion instrument has been known to cause some down pouring!

Cardboard tube
Beads, popcorn, or seeds
Straight pins
Masking tape
Colorful ribbons
Glitter paint

REMEMBER THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO ALWAYS WORK UNDER ADULT SUPERVISION. SOMETIMES WE USE THINGS THAT CAN BE HARMFUL, LIKE SCISSORS, SO DON'T EVER ATTEMPT TO MAKE THESE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS ALONE.

1. With the help of an adult, start sticking straight pins into the sides of your cardboard tube. Make sure the pins aren’t too long as you don’t want them coming back out through the other side. Try to insert them an inch apart in downward spiraling patterns around the tube.
2. Put some masking tape over the line of pins on the outside of the tube to make sure they don’t fall out of it.
3. Use the tape to close up one end of the tube. Make sure to use enough to completely close it without any holes. Wrap another strip around that end to clean it up a bit if you have to.
4. With one end closed now, fill the tube up about a third of the way with plastic beads. You can also use popcorn, seeds, or uncooked rice. Once you’ve put them in, close up the other open end just as you did the first one.
5. Decorate your tube however you want using paint.
6. Take two rolls of ribbon and cut off a few feet of each. Take the two ribbon strips together and wrap them around the outside of one of the ends of the tube. Tie them into a double knot to secure it. Be careful not to tie it too tight or it could crush the tube. Do the same for the other end of the tube.
7. Now your tube is ready to play as a rain stick! The best way to play is to tip it slowly and rotate it at the same time, letting the beads fall through the pins inside to make the rain sound.