Every night before bedtime one of my boys asks me what fun thing we will do the next day. Most days we are too busy running around with sports, scouts and music lessons for too many extras but since they’ve been asking daily, I thought it was time to make something fun and easy.
Of course boys are obsessed with anything they can throw or shoot across the room, (Is it just my boys? ) so making a paper rocket was the perfect craft for them, plus it entertained them for quite awhile (bonus #1). And since these are small and lightweight, there is no damage done when they go shooting at one of your windows, or into your ceiling fan (because we all know that when they start shooting/throwing stuff it always hits the ceiling fan, so, bonus #2).
Paper Rocket Tutorial
Supplies you will need:
- Bendy Straws
- Glue (I used Elmer’s glue but you could probably use a glue stick. I just don’t know if it would stick as well.)
- Tape
- Paper
- Pencil
Have your kids decorate the paper they want to use for their rockets, or just use decorative scrapbook paper. Cut the paper into strips. My boys cut their own so they are not all the same but most of them are around 2″ x 5″.
Put a line of glue along one edge of the paper and roll the other end up over a pencil.
Let the glue dry a bit until it holds the paper secure.
Pinch one end of the paper tube shut and cover the end completely with tape so that no air can get through.
Slip the rocket over the long end of a bendy straw.
And then you are ready to launch! Blow through the short end of the straw and watch the rocket shoot across the room. And yes, I’m pretty proud of this action shot. (And we may or may not have had to retake and retake to finally get the rocket in motion.)
And there you have it. They literally took under 5 minutes to make and so far have provided tons of fun.
What is your favorite quick source of entertainment for your kids?
If you like quick and easy entertainment like I do, you might want to try making this easy paddle balloon game. We made ours into Angry Birds but you could always leave them plain.
My nephew is going to love this!
Dallice my 7 year old little girl would even love doing this! Thank you Kara
Yes, I bet she would! So much fun for kids.
I’m going to have to give this a try with my boys. Bonus #1 was enough for me.
lol! Yes, finding something that will entertain them for more than a few minutes is always a plus. 🙂
AWESOME! I made a big air-powered bottle rocket with my class today and wanted something they could each make and take home to go along with it. This was PERFECT! So cheap and simple and FUN! One small addition that made the rocket fly even farther was the addition of fins. Make two identical triangles by cutting a 2″x2″ square in half on the diagonal. Cover one side of each with glue and then make a “sandwich” around the bottom of your rocket. So each triangle is wrapped halfway around the pencil with fins sticking out. Stick the fins together on either side of the rocket so you end up with two fins. This made a huge difference in both flight stability and distance for me. Thanks so much for the amazing idea; this was just what I needed!!!
I’m so glad you could use these with your class! The addition of the fins is a great idea. Thanks so much for sharing!