Materials
None Needed
Instructions
1. Using a hole punch, punch a hole into the toilet paper tube, about 3/4 " (2 cm) from the end.2. Cover the end of the tube near the hole with wax paper. Put a rubber band over the wax paper to secure it. (Take care not to cover the hole you punched.)3. Hum into the open end of the tube. If the opening is too large for the child, show her how to cup her hand over the end to make the opening smaller.4. Practice, practice, practice!5. Encourage the children to try and make different sounds. For example, they can make busy bee sounds ("bzzzzz"), foghorns ("Baa-ahhh"), bird sounds("caw, caw, caw"), and engine sounds ("brroommm, brroommm"). Making these sounds help the children, lower and raise their voices, pause, and repeat sounds.More to do:Have real kazoos available, one for each child. (Write the children's names on their kazoos with a permanent marker and store them in individual paper cups to keep them from touching each other.) Have a variety of kazoos available for the children to see and touch. You can make kazoos from paper, plastic, metal, and even using a comb and wax paper. Encourage the children to explore making sounds in water, by covering and uncovering the top hole and end of the kazoo. The kazoo works well with jazz and blues music.Note: To play a kazoo, hum, sing, or make noises don't blow into the wider end. The kazoo reportedly began in the 1840s by an African American named Alabama Vest. Inspired by the African mirliton (a ceremonial instrument used to disguise the voice), he took the idea to a clock master, Thaddeus Von Clegg, who crafted the first kazoo.
