How to Make a Rain Stick

The Chileans of South America first used the traditional rain stick, which was made out of cacti. It was believed that the sound of the rain stick would help entice the rain clouds and water the crops. With spring on the way, you and your child can make a rain stick to celebrate the rainy season.

If you look at a real rain stick, you will notice that it is a long haul it to. That makes a sound, and it is tilted back-and-forth. When the rain stick was first made a dry piece of cactus was used and the needles were pushed inside. The tube was then filled small pebbles, dried seeds, rice or beans and capped at each end. The sound is made of a small objects getting against the cactus needles inside the tube. You can make a rain stick using common materials that you have around your house. Here is what you need for your musical rain stick:

Long hollow tube, such as a wrapping paper tube, sturdy mailing tube or an empty paper towel roll

Nails and a hammer, or aluminum foil

Objects to put inside such as dried beans, corn kernels, pebbles, beads or seeds. You can experiment with different materials to see what kind of sounds each one will produce.

Construction paper, rubber bands, or something to cap the end of the tube

clear packing tape or Mod Podge for sealing

paint or permanent marker in various colors

If you are using a sturdy tube, such as a mailing tube, you will want to use the nails and hammer instead of the aluminum foil. Determine a pattern, usually a spiral from one end of the tube to the other and draw it lightly with a pencil. This is where you will hammer and nails in place. When you get the nails hammered into the tube, inside of your tube will look like a maze of nails. If you are using a paper towel roll for your rain stick, you will use aluminum foil instead of a hammer and nails. For the paper towel roll, take weeks of aluminum foil and twist it to fit down inside of the tube.

The next thing you will want to do is cap one end of the tube. If you had are using a mailing tube, then you can simply glue the cap in place. If you are using another type of tube, such as the empty paper towel roll then cut out a small square that will fit on the end of your tube and rubber band it in place. Now you are ready to fill your rain stick with small objects. Use your imagination and find items that will produce interesting sounds. Larger objects will produce a lower sound while smaller objects will produce a higher sound as they strike against the nails inside.

After you have filled the tube with objects and capped each end, it is time to seal the tube. You want to put something on the outside of the tube to help protect the nails and keep them in place. One way to do this is to wrap clear packing tape around the tube from top to bottom. You can also use a glue such as Mod Podge to paint on the outside. This will dry fast and protect the nails.

After you have raptor to them today or sealed it with glue, allow it to dry and decorate their many ways you can decorate your rain stick. For more traditional low, you can paint it brown to resemble the dry wood or paint geometric shapes on each end. However, you can decorate it however you want using bright colors words or anything you want to decorate it.