DIY Kid’s Craft: Upcycled Toilet Paper Roll 4th of July Rocket

Summer has officially begun in our house, which means lots of craft time. K loves any “project” that involves glue, scissors, markers, crayons, paint and any combination there of. Since we do a lot of projects, I try whenever possible to re-purpose old items around the house into our craft. Not only is it economical, but it helps instill the practical side of being green in my daughter.

To celebrate the upcoming 4th of July holiday, we decided to create toilet paper roll rockets. This super easy project can be made in just a couple of minutes with supplies you already have around the house. I plan to hang several of them together from the chandelier over the dinner table, however, K also enjoying running thought the yard with it training behind her.

Materials:

• Toilet Paper Roll (Paper Towel Rolls cut in half also work well)
• Paper (Red, white and blue scrapbook paper or decorate plain copy paper )
• Glue Stick
• Tape
• Scissors
• Hole punch
• String or ribbon

I stared the project planning to use decorative scrapbook paper for the rocket, but I quickly decided it was more fun if K decorated her own paper. So I have some of both, which is kind of fun.

The first step is to cut your paper to the height of your toilet paper roll, then cut the length so that it fits around your roll with about a half-inch overlap. Once you have your paper sized, you can glue it to your roll. (Hint: glue sticks don’t warp the paper as much as rubber cement.) If you want to hang your rockets, punch a hole on either side of the roll toward the top.

Next cut out a three-inch circle. (Hint: a thicker card stock paper works best.) And cut a slit in the circle to create a cone (see image).  I discovered tape was the best method to hold the cone together.

Feed your ribbon or string through the holes in your rocket base and then through the cone. (As part of my upcycled craft, I used curling ribbon from a balloon that recently came home with my daughter.) I taped the cone to the base from the inside to keep it from sliding off the rocket.

Finally, tape additional ribbon to the inside of the rocket for streamers.

BONUS – Sing the Star Spangled Banner while you work for a little history lesson with your craft.

“Oh, say can you see by the dawn’s early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?“

Happy 4th of July!