Christmas Tree Mobile

Wooden Tree Mobile

CRAFT MATERIALS:

Coping or other small saw
Two 36-inch piecesbalsa wood with a 1/2-inch-square thickness
one 12-inch, piece of balsa wood with a 1/2-inch-square thickness (available at craft supply stores
Drill or hand drill with a 1/8-inch bit
Acrylic paint in green, brown, and yellow
Small wooden star
4 feet of plastic lacing or lanyard
4 brown beads with a 1/8-inch-(or larger) diameter hole
11 green beads with a 1/8-inch-(or larger) diameter hole
Wood glue

Time needed:

About 2 to 3 Hours

Directions:

1. First, saw one of the 36-inch wooden strips (parents only) into 8 pieces, each 1 inch longer than the previous one: start with a 1-inch piece, then a 2-inch piece, and so on until you reach 8 inches.

2. Saw the second 36-inch strip of wood into a 9-inch piece, a 10-inch piece, an 11-inch piece, and three 1 1/2-inch pieces. The remainder is scrap.

3. Drill a hole through the center of each wood strip. Paint the three 1 1/2-inch pieces brown and paint all of the other wood strips, including the 12-inch strip, green. Paint the wooden star yellow and let all of the paint dry (about 15 minutes).

4. Knot one end of the plastic lace, then alternately string on the beads and the wooden strips as shown. Finally, glue the star to the top strip, let it dry, then hang the tree where it can spin freely.