One fun aspect of drum lessons for kids is experimenting with different sounds and different drums. Here are instructions for four drums kids can make themselves. They’ll have a great time while learning about how drums work.
Make Water Drums for Kids
Perhaps the easiest type of drum to make is also one of the oldest. Water drums are fun and also offer a nice rich tone.
To make a set of water drums, kids will need two plastic bowls of different sizes. A set of mixing bowls will do the trick.
To start, kids fill the largest bowl not quite to the top with water. Next, they turn the smaller bowl upside-down and float it in the water. The water amplifies the tone and gives a rich bass drum sound when the floating bowl is struck.
To change the tone, kids can try using more or less water in the larger bowl. Another fun idea is to create water drum sets for kids with several bowls of different tones.
Make Coffee Can Bongo Drums for Kids
To make coffee can bongo drums for kids, parents will need to save two coffee cans; one large and one small. They will also need two bolts and wing nuts to hold the cans together and a nail to punch a hole for the screw.
Parents can use a hammer and nail to punch two holes in the first coffee can. These holes should be in a straight line up and down. Parents will need to measure and make a mark on the second can before punching holes to make sure these will line up with the holes on the first coffee can.
Kids can push a bolt through each hole to connect the two coffee cans. They can twist the wing nuts onto the bolts and turn them tight to keep the cans in place.
Kids can decorate their cans with paint, papier mache, or glitter. Once the coffee can bongo drums are decorated, kids can top them off with the lids and start drumming.
Make Tom Tom Drums for Kids
Tom toms are drums with two heads. They were traditionally played by many Native American Indians. To make homemade tom tom drums for kids, parents will need a piece of PVC pipe at least 6 inches in diameter. For the drum heads, they can either use traditional animal hides, or scraps from a rubber ball or inner tube. Parents will also need some heavy-duty twine.
Kids can trace around the pipe in order to draw two circles on the drum head material. Next, they can cut just outside the traced lines to get two drum heads.
Kids will need to use a hole punch to make holes an inch apart around the edge of both drum heads. Next, kids can lay one drum head flat on a smooth work surface, place the pipe on top, and the second drum head on top of that. They will use the twine to thread through both drum heads pulling them tight as they go.
To make beaters, kids can poke the ends of two pencils into pieces of cork or a rubber ball. They can also use some extra twine to make a strap for carrying the tom tom around their necks.
Make Homemade Steel Drums for Kids
It’s easy to make a simple version of the drum so well known for its island sound. Unlike professional steel drums, this paint can drum only has two different notes, but it’s still a lot of fun.
Kids can clean a large coffee can or metal paint can. They will need to draw a line across the bottom of the can, but not exactly down the middle. One half must be slightly larger so that each side produces a different tone.
Wearing ear plugs to prevent hearing damage, parents can use a hammer to beat along the line. Stretching the metal causes each side to resonate. Kids can test each side of the steel drum with a stick. If the tones aren’t pure enough, parents can stretch the metal further by using the hammer's handle to pound each side from the inside of the can.
Kids can make beaters for the drum by poking a pencil into a piece of cork or rubber ball. To get the best sound, they’ll want to tip the steel drum forward while playing or make a strap to wear it around their neck.
In related articles, parents and teachers can read about combining drums and children’s games, using a drum for kid’s storytelling, and free drum lessons for kids.
Marcy Paulson - From the moment Marcy Paulson picked up a recorder in fourth grade music class, she was hooked. Since then, her passion for music has ...
