Science Craft: Hovercrafts

Our last elementary-age drop-in craft for our Summer Reading Program was to create hovercrafts. It involved really simple supplies, and was a hit with the kids.

Each kid needed:

• 1 CD (we asked for donations of old/used CDs initially, but didn't get nearly enough, so I purchased the cheapest 100-pack I could find at Staples)
• 1 water bottle pull top (again you could get donations, but if you're doing this craft with a large group, I recommend just purchasing these from US Plastic Corp)
• 1 balloon

We also used the library's hot glue guns, and packs of Sharpie markers.

The steps: (I posted these around the room and on the tables)

1. Take a CD. Bring it to a table and decorate one side (this will be the top) with markers. 
2. Bring your decorated CD back up to the counter to have a library volunteer or an adult hot glue a pop-top-cap onto the colored side.
3. Take a balloon and return to a table.
4. Once the hot glue is cooled and dry, make sure the pop-top-cap is in the “closed” position. Blow up your balloon and stretch the neck over the top. Lift the pop-top-cap to the “open” position and watch your hovercraft scoot across the table!

If the air seems to be coming out of the balloon too fast, place a piece of scotch tape over the hole and poke a few smaller holes in it with a pin. We didn't need it with ours. The kids also discovered they could blow their balloon up through the CD hole while it was attached, twist the balloon, then set it down on the table and untwist.

I eventually also put out scrap paper, to put the CDs on top of
while coloring, to keep the Sharpie marker off my tables!

Kids who came in the afternoon had a special treat. A local gentleman had seen our flyers about making these crafts, and asked if he could bring in his own, real hovercraft for the kids to see. OF COURSE!!! I made sure to get his name and number to maybe have a full program with him sometime. :) What a special treat for our kids in our last week of Summer Reading!