Projects are an opportunity for your child to explore and discover activities independently. With your guidance they can create things they find interesting. Your role is to support them but not direct them. This style of learning allows your child to think about what they want to explore, experiment with ways to find things out, and to make mistakes and learn from them.

This project is about creating musical instruments from items found in the recycling.

You can start the project with reading the picture book, Ada’s Violin written by Susan Hood and illustrated by Sally Wern Comport, telling the extraordinary story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay. It is story about children living in a small town built on a landfill. Through the industriousness and dedication of a music teacher, Favio Chavez, an orchestra made up of children playing instruments built from recycled garbage becomes a reality.

You can ask the question, “How can we make less garbage in the world?”

You can explain to your child their instruments won’t be as complicated as the ones seen in the book or played by the orchestra. These instruments will be your own creations.

This is an activity you will supervise, please do not leave your child alone with the materials. Use the time to watch them explore and create. You can offer advice if it’s requested, but try to keep your influence to the minimum. Make sure all the items you select are safe for your child to use.

Provide empty boxes, empty tin cans, empty containers, elastic bands, tape, glue, sticks, etc.

You can help your child to create shakers by filling and sealing empty containers, a drum by stretching something over an empty container or tin and striking it, a guitar by stretching elastic bands or string over a cardboard tube or empty box, a flute by blowing into an empty bottle or straw, cymbals with empty pie tins or the lids of tins, the opportunities to explore and discover are endless.

You have created an orchestra out of garbage! Enjoy