Making a Wind Sock

This lesson developed by Reach Out!
Recommended Age: Later Elementary

1. Pant leg or shirt sleeve
2. Scissors
3. Wire snips
4. 40cm lightweight wire
5. Sewing needle and thread
6. 1m string
7. Tape measurer
8. Fabric paint
9. A weight or stone

1. Measure the circumference (outer circle) of your shirt sleeve or pant leg.
2. Measure this same amount of wire. Snip the wire to the desired length.
3. Bend the wire into a circle.
4. Put one end of the sleeve or pant leg over the wire circle.
5. Thread your needle. Sew the material edge every couple of inches with a few stitches so the wire stays inside. Each time you sew a few stitches, be sure to tie a good knot in the thread before you cut it. Tie a know at the end of the thread each time before you start to sew so the thread doesn't just pull right out and through the material!
6. Tuck the stone or weight into the material around the wire. Sew it in place.
7. Measure and cut off a 4 or 5 foot piece of string.
8. Opposite where you sewed in the weight, tie an end of the string onto the circle.
9. Use your fabric paint to decorate your wind sock!
10. Take your wind sock outside. Find a tree branch, clothes line, or the top rung of a swing set or monkey bars. Tie the other end of the string to this object. The weight you sewed into the material should hold the mouth of your wind sock facing into the wind. When there is some wind, you should see your wind sock in action!