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The Craft Train

Crafty ideas for kids and parents

You are here: Home / Crafts and Activities / Learning and science / Paper cup telephones

Paper cup telephones

July 1, 2015 By Kate Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post at no cost to you.

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Paper cup telephones

This week the girls are on holiday from school so we decided to have some fun with this classic craft and DIY toy. I’m guessing that many people from my generation or older would remember making telephones from cups or tin cans as kids. I know I do and I remember how much fun my sister and I had playing with them. Our version is colourful and crafty and the kids loved decorating the cups to make them look special. This is a very simple and easy activity that doesn’t take too much time, skill or effort, and it’s a great way to teach kids how sound travels as well.

You will need

Note – affiliate links have been included for your convenience but many items you may already have or be able to get easily and inexpensively from a local store. The items linked to are very similar to what I’ve used but may not be the exact items.

• blank paper cups
• watercolour paints and paintbrushes
• sharpie markers
• string
• sharp knife or scissors
• 2 small beads

How To

To begin with we painted our cups with watercolour paints and allowed them to dry completely before decorating with sharpie markers.

Paper cup telephones - painting

Paper cup telephones - markers

Telephones-4

Once your cups are decorated, cut a small slit in the base of the cup in the centre and thread the end of a long piece of string in. Tie your small bead to the end to stop it sliding back out through the hole.

Now you’re ready to play.

Telephones-8

For best results keep the string tight. Have fun!

More fun ways to craft and play

– make a whirlygig with printable patterns
– have fun designing your own cereal box boardgame
– make simple toilet roll shakers
– make spinning tops from milk bottle lids in just a few minutes
– make boats from sponges and duct tape to take in the bath
– make rock cakes for pretend play
– dance and play with a simple gold ribbon dancer

You can also find tons more ideas on our craft and play board on Pinterest.

paper cup telephone

 

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  • Kate GronoKate GronoCrazy Craft Fanatic

    I’m basically a big kid who never grew up and still loves to muck around with paint, glitter, glue and toilet rolls. With the crafts shared here on this website I’m hoping to give other parents and carers inspiration to get crafty with their kids at home – make our projects, or use them as a source of inspiration to spark ideas of your own. When it comes to crafting no rules apply!

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