Here is a great project you can do at home or at school on a rainy day. I have done this activity many times with students from 4-13 years of age.
You'll need: 9 popsicle sticks, at least two colors of yarn, scissors and glue (either liquid or a hot glue gun).
When you are first doing weaving, you may need to hold the frame for your child. I find it helpful to repeat "over, under, over, under..." until they get it. When doing this with a large group of children, it's really helpful to either practice tying knots ahead of time, or asking some older children or adults to help.
Step One: Make the frame. You need 9 popsicle sticks and hot glue (or liquid glue). Place one stick horizontally and run the glue over the surface.
Place 5 sticks vertically, the top of each stick on the horizontal stick. Then run glue over the horizontal stick (and the tops of the new sticks) and place another stick over to cover the tops. Some times popsicle sticks can be a bit warped, so you can always add some glue to the spaces created to ensure they are securely attached.
Let dry.
Step Two: Cut a piece of yarn about an arm's length. Tie one end to the vertical popsicle stick on the right (or left...it doesn't really matter).
Step Three: Start Weaving. You can hold the top of the frame for your child, if they need help. Start alternating the yarn, over and under, as you move across the frame. Once you get to the end of the row, wrap around and head back the other way, making sure that if the yarn was over the stick on the last row, it will be under on this new row.
Step Four: Tie on new yarn. When your yarn is running out, tie on a new piece of yarn to the old yarn and continue weaving. Repeat until you are almost at the bottom.
Step Five: Attach yarn to the stick at the end of the frame. Make sure to leave enough room for a popsicle stick to lie horizontally at the bottom. Glue a popsicle stick horizontally at the front and the back of the frame, so it looks the same as the top.
Step Six: Decide which side will be the front of the weaving. Tuck all of the knots through to the back. You can use a plastic needle or even just a gentle finger to tuck them through. The phot below shows the back of our weaving. Cut off any long pieces of yarn, if neeeded,
Step Seven: Attach a piece of yarn to the top stick so it can be hung. You may choose to hang beads or pom poms at the bottom.
I hope you and your child or students enjoy this easy weaving project! Let me know if you have any questions.
Take care,
Sarah
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