Get your students buzzing with excitement as they explore sound, vibration, and scientific curiosity with the Making a Kazoo Activity! This hands-on experience gives students the chance to build their very own musical instrument while learning how sound is made and how it travels. By blending craft, inquiry, and writing, this resource makes science both memorable and meaningful.

Using everyday materials like a toilet paper roll and wax paper, students will create a simple kazoo and observe the way vibrations produce sound. After constructing their instruments, they’ll use them to experiment and then reflect on the process through a procedural writing task. It's a playful, effective way to reinforce key science concepts and writing skills in a cross-curricular format.

The Making a Kazoo Activity is ideal for whole-class science investigations, small group STEM tasks, or as a literacy integration piece during inquiry learning. Whether you’re diving into a sound unit or just looking for a fun, educational project, this resource will have your students thinking, laughing, and learning all at once.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• ✅ Understand how sound is produced through vibrations
• ✅ Explore how sound travels through air using a practical example
• ✅ Follow and sequence procedural steps
• ✅ Use time-order words in writing to describe a process
• ✅ Apply inquiry skills like observing, predicting, and reflecting

What’s Included:

• Step-by-step student instructions for constructing a kazoo
• “How is Sound Made?” worksheet to consolidate science concepts
• Scaffolded procedural writing worksheet with prompts (First, Then, Next, Last)
• Extension suggestions for decoration and sound modification

Materials Needed:

• Toilet paper rolls (1 per student)
• Wax paper
• Rubber bands
• Scissors
• Markers or craft supplies for decorating (optional)
• Printed worksheets (science reflection and procedural writing)

How to Use:

1. Introduce the topic of sound and vibrations with a class discussion or demonstration.
2. Distribute materials and support students as they construct their kazoos.
3. Allow time for students to blow into their kazoos and listen to the buzzing sound.
4. Discuss what is happening - how vibrations create sound and how it travels through air.
5. Complete the scaffolded procedural writing worksheet to document the kazoo-making process.
6. Use the “How is Sound Made?” sheet for reinforcement or assessment of key concepts.

Ideas for Classroom Use:

• 💡 Integrate into a science unit on sound or materials
• 💡 Use during literacy time to practise procedural writing in an authentic way
• 💡 Set up as a STEM station or early finisher activity
• 💡 Have students perform a short musical piece using their kazoos
• 💡 Link with storytelling activities - add sound effects using kazoos!

Top Teacher Tips:

• 💛 Pre-cut wax paper squares for younger students to speed up prep
• 💛 Model the kazoo-making process step-by-step to ensure success
• 💛 Laminate the instruction sheet for reuse in future science rotations
• 💛 Encourage students to personalise their kazoos for a creative twist

Making a Kazoo Activity is a playful, purposeful way to explore the science of sound while integrating writing, creativity, and hands-on learning. It’s a guaranteed classroom hit that turns a simple craft into a meaningful educational experience.