Summer Fun Day 6 - Drinking Straw Giggle Flutes and Voice Boxes

We continued working on our problem solving skills with a two-in-one project from the Science Toy Maker.

The first part of the project involves turning a drinking straw into a reed instrument by flattening one end between your front teeth (click here for the Science Toy Maker's video tips and instructions)...

...and then cutting the corners off of the flattened part, to form a reed.

When you blow through the end with the reed, it should produce sound (something like a duck call).  Practice makes perfect.

Taping another straw to the (non-cut) end...

...will produce a lower toned instrument.  The longer the "flute" the lower the sound.

We like to call these giggle flutes, because they make us giggle - except for the Man of the House, who finds the  musical cacophony of multiple giggle flutes strangely unsettling to downright annoying.  There's really no accounting for musical taste.

But, the best part of the project comes when you add a balloon to the reed end of the flute (you can tape it on, or just hold your fingers around it to keep the air from escaping).

Blow up the balloon, through the straw, and let it "play" the flute for you as you release the air back through the straw.

Then, by placing the open end of the straw into your mouth, you can shape the sound into words, and say cool things like, "I am a robot.  My name is Bob."

It's great to be a homeschooler.