Plastic Egg Maracas

We had an early Cinco de Mayo celebration at Play Group yesterday, enjoying chicken tacos, black bean & corn salad and watermelon:) We also up-cycled some of the plastic eggs from our Annual Egg Hunt to make festive maracas!

You will need:
plastic eggs
decorative duct tape
scissors
beans, lentils, rice or other small object to shake inside the egg
sturdy spoons

This activity was fast and easy! We provided plastic eggs in a variety of colors, a mix of dried lentils and pinto beans and sturdy plastic spoons.

To maximize the sound in the maraca, use less filling- filling the smaller bottom portion of the egg.
We experimented listening to the difference in the sound with an egg mostly full versus one that was only half full.

Place the egg with the pointed end down and between two spoons. Using about 7"-8" of duct tape, secure the spoons and egg together.

For added stability, tape the bottom of the spoons together. We found that cutting a small strip from the 8" piece created a better width to wrap around the egg and also allowed us a thin strip to wrap the bottoms of the spoons. (see the egg on the right below) Additionally, we would have loved to have used disposable bamboo spoons but couldn't find any in our area. You could also use real metal spoons from a garage sale or thrift store. Both options would provide sturdier handles for the instrument.

Olé