November 2024 Grab & Go Kits

Cup Telephones

It’s always fun to stay connected with family and friends, and now you and your child can chat the old-fashioned way while exploring the scientific principle of sound vibrations:  through a coffee cup telephone!

Sound begins as vibrations. When we’re speaking, those vibrations come from our vocal cords. Vibrations make the air move and eventually reach our eardrums, which also vibrate. Our brains then interpret the vibrations as sound. If we’re too far away from the thing producing sound, the vibrations stop before they reach our ears, and we don’t hear anything. You can examine this scientific phenomenon using coffee cup telephones.

The kits contain:

• Two paper coffee cups
• One long piece of yarn

You will need:

• Tape
• Things to decorate the outside of the coffee cups, such as markers or stickers
• Two people and some distance between you!

Steps:

1. Decorate the outside of the cups as you desire.
2. Thread the string through the cups so that the cups are facing away from each other. (You can use a paper clip or something else to push the yarn through the slit.)
3. Tie a knot at the end of each string so that the string doesn’t come out of the cup. (If you need to, you can tape the end of the string inside the cup.)
4. Each person should take one cup and walk away from each other until the string is taut.
5. One person should put the cup over their ear, while the other person puts the cup over their mouth.
6. One person whispers or speaks softly into the cup; can the other person hear what was said?

Additional ideas:

1. Try to talk to each other at the same level (whispering) without the cups. Can you hear each other? You might be able to, but it might not be as well as with the coffee cups.
2. Now try talking to each other through the cups, but with the string hanging loose between the cups. Can you hear each other? (If you can’t hear each other, it’s because the string is loose and doesn’t vibrate as well as when it’s taut.)
3. If you have yarn or string at home, can you cut a longer piece and experiment with it? How long can the string be before you’re unable to hear each other?
4. If you have something else besides what was in your kit (plastic cup instead of paper cup or string/fishing line instead of yarn), try making a telephone out of those materials. Are the results the same or different? Why do you think that is?

*Always supervise young children with craft projects. Ideas and explanations adapted from SciShow Kids and Virginia Cooperative Extension; 

Learn how to finger knit

Happy November! Learn a new skill and learn how to finger knit. You can then make yourself a bracelet, a snake, a keychain, or even a bookmark!

Each kit includes:

• A mini ball of yarn

Supplies you’ll need:

• Scissors
• Other art supplies, depending on what you want to make.

Here are some helpful finger knitting instructions:

• Written instructions with pictures
• A video tutorial
• A video tutorial on how to make a snake. You can use paper at home to create a tongue and eyes and glue them on!

This is a great time to discuss practicing, learning persistence, and how to try again. As a knitter myself, it can be hard to learn a new skill. But practice truly helps make perfect. And a wonderful thing about yarn is that you can go back and start again! If you don’t like how your craft turned out, you can pull it apart and try again, or try something else. 

Paracord Snake

Standard kit instructions are included in the package, but I’ve restated them here for clarity, as well as mixing in some customization options beyond the kit. If you’re interested in this, follow along below!

Winter is coming, and that means snakes, as well as many outside creatures, are looking for warm places to burrow. Here, we have one snake that no one would be worried to have slithering around their warm house– one made out of paracord!

Photo Example

Each kit includes:

• Two long pieces of Paracord, each a different color.
• One short piece of Paracord
• Two Pony Beads
• Two Googly Eyes
• An instruction manual
• Two small pieces of Heat Shrink Tubing

You will need:

• A Hair Dryer or other source of heat,
• OR An adult who can use either a Hot Glue Gun
• OR an adult who can do the same with a Lighter, if preferred
• A Pencil
• A small piece of Tape
• Something sturdy to hook your project on while weaving!

You might want:

Decals and Markers to decorate your completed snake with!

Instructions:

Step 1: Getting Ready!

• Step 1a: If using the heat shrink tubing, take an end from each long piece of paracord, and place equal lengths of each into one of the two provided pieces of black tubing. For a better seal, I would recommend you overlap the two pieces of paracord in the tube. Shrink it by evenly applying a hair dryer or other source of heat, sweeping the heat source along all sides of the tubing, without letting the heat source touch it. Continue for a while, until the tubing is tightly wrapped around the paracord. Gently place your cord off to the side to allow it to dry and cool. Do not touch the tubing until it cools!
• Step 1b: If you would prefer, and you have an adult willing to help you, you can also use a hot glue gun to attach the long pieces of paracord to each other. Your adult can also fuse the ends of the paracord using a lighter. If they do the latter, it’s advised that they cut off the end of each paracord piece, pull back the outer colored sheath slightly to expose the white strands, and melt the white strands together as well.
• Step 1c: Fold the new fused cord in half to make a loop and put that loop under your pencil. Thread the ends of the paracord through the loop and tighten the loop around the pencil to hold it tight.
• Step 1d: About 12 inches down from the loop, tie an overhand knot using both strands of the paracord (form a loop with both strands of paracord, pass the ends of the two strands of paracord through, and tighten). Attach this knot to a stable hook or pin so that it stays put while you begin your weaving. Arrange your paracord so that the “loose” strands (the ones not attached to the pencil) are next to, on either side, of the same color “taut” strands (the ones attached to the pencil). (See this in Diagram 1, in the physical instruction manual in your craft kit.)

Step 2: Weaving the Snake’s Body!

• Step 2a: To start your snake, we’re going to weave the basic paracord knot, called the cobra knot. Start with your rightmost “loose” strand and make a reverse L shape, over the taut strands and under the other loose strand. Then weave the leftmost loose strand under the taut strands and through the other side, over the first loose strand. Pull both strands to tighten. (Look at physical Diagram 2)
• Step 2b: Then, take the leftmost loose strand (the color you started this step with) and repeat the process. Make an L shape with it, over the taut strands and under the other loose strand. Then take the rightmost loose strand and make that same L shape, under the taut strands and over the other loose strand. Pull the strands tightly together to complete the cobra knot! (Diagram 3)
• Step 2c: Now take the leftmost loose strand, place it over the taut strands, go back under the taut strands, then go over the upper part of your same loose strand to form a loop. Pull the strands together to tighten them (Diagram 4). Now do the same thing with the rightmost strand. Place it over the taut strands, go back under the taut strands, then go over the upper part of your same loose strand to form a loop. Pull the strands together to tighten them. Then do the same with the leftmost strand, again.
• Step 2d: Continue this weaving pattern, alternating between the left and right strands, until you are about two inches away from the pencil at the bottom. Once you’ve done this, you’ve completed the snake’s body!

Step 3: The Snake’s Head!

• Step 3a: Remove the pencil and unfold the bottom loop. Take your small piece of Paracord, fold it in half, then fold it in half again. Wrap a piece of tape around it to secure it, then place it inside the little loop at the end of the snake’s body. The loop with the paracord in it will become the snake’s head!
• Step 3b: Take what remains of your loose strands and repeat steps 2a and 2b over the loop– you are repeating the cobra knot method..
• Step 3c: If you’re using googly eyes for eyes, ignore this step. If you’re using beads for eyes, though, slide two beads onto the leftmost loose strand of paracord, and place them roughly in the middle of what remains. When you have made about two-thirds of the head with the next step, step 3d, make sure the beads are on the part of the paracord that is about to be woven into the head of the snake. This places your eyes on the same strand of paracord, a little more than halfway down the head.
• Step 3d: Continue the cobra knot method until the loop and bunched paracord are covered. You do it over the bunched paracord so the head is a bit bulkier than the body. If there’s any extra length, clip the ends of the paracord so that the ends can touch each other, then attach them using the same method you used at the beginning.
• Step 3d: If you’re using beads for eyes, ignore this step. If you’re using Googly Eyes for eyes, though, this is when you can glue your eyes on the otherwise finished snake! If you have a hot glue gun as well as an adult willing to operate it for you, you can hot glue the eyes on. If not, whatever glue you have on hand should work fine, as long as you give it plenty of time to dry!
• Step 3e: Either way, your Snake at this stage is complete! Be sure to feed it and give it plenty of water, and best of luck with your new snake friend!