As the weather warms up and the days get longer, we feel the need to spend more time outside burning energy and creating memories! One of my favorite things to do in the spring is to fly a kite. There is just something about the pure simplicity of it!
Now that Henry is almost three, I thought it was time to bring him in on the fun! So along with a few of his friends we headed to a local park for some wide open green space to build and fly kites. Simple is key when you are dealing with toddlers!
What you’ll need:
- One piece of paper per kite
- Bamboo BBQ skewers, coffee stirrers, straws or similar
- Tape — We used masking tape. I think any lightweight tape would be fine.
- Something for a tail — We used cut strips of tissue paper, surveyors tape and streamers work well too. Use your imagination and supplies you have on hand!
- String — lightweight twine or string would be fine, but we used curly ribbon.
- Stuff to decorate if you want
The How To:
Place your sheet of paper in front of you horizontally. Fold in half, then turn horizontally again, fold facing you. Pull the bottom right corner up diagonally and crease. Flip the paper and fold back the left side (Fig. 3). Place your stick (stirrer or straw) across the back and tape down. Tape down the center line as well (Fig. 6) and attach your tail to the bottom (Fig. 5).
Once you are done, flip your kite over and move the flap back and forth until it stands straight. Then, punch a hole in the flap and attach your string! Your child’s kite will only need about 6 -10 feet of string, based on their height. We found that too much string tripped them up while running and toddlers weren’t into winding it up.
We had a few hours of fun outside with this activity! Our kites didn’t fly very high, but our spirits did and we all got plenty of much needed fresh air and exercise! What’s your favorite outside activity with your children?
— Nannette Melamed, Marketing and Social Media for Fresh Baby