Easy Spinning Top Marker Art

Recently Chuck's been interested in making things with me again. (Phew.  I thought our dry spell would never be over!)  He seems to enjoy using materials in different ways (like this rainy day process art activity).  So I thought it would be fun to combine a toy with an art item to make it more fun for him.  Tada... here's our spinner marker top!

Easy Spinning Top Marker Art!

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This activity is just so cool because it combines science and art.  You can actually track the motion of the spinning "top."  (Just wait till you see the cool spirals it makes!  Wow.)






Our "top" was so easy to use, the Chuck could spin it too.  (It took him a little time to get used to spinning it, but once he worked it out, he went bonkers.)

Here's a video of the spinning marker top:


Spinning Marker Top Art.AVI from Pink Stripey Socks on Vimeo.
video here


As you can see, I simply covered our table with a ton of Craft Paper and we made beautiful artwork like this:

See?  You can actually see how the top spun around and around in a spiral... how cool is that? 

And here's my fancy spinner top marker.  Ha!  Just kidding, it's just a marker taped to the inside of a  CD.   And if you have older children, here are some ways to extend this activity...

3 Ways to Extend this Activity:

• How does CD placement affect the spin?  We found that the lower the CD was taped, the better our top spun.  I chalk it up to having a lower center of gravity and being more stable.
• Does adding weight to different locations of the CD affect spin?  It would be cool to see how taping objects (like pennies) onto the CD affects it's spinning abilities. (We never did this, so let me know what you find out!) 
• Spinning competitions!  (Hee hee, this one is self-explanatory)

And if you love looking at other ways that art and science intersect, definitely check out the links below (and check out my friend Ana's blog Babble Dabble Do.  She's a real wizard with this stuff!)

7 Easy ways to combine art, math, and science!

• Build a Bird's Nest
• Articulated, Moveable Cardboard Snake
• Puffy Paint Fall Leaves
• Make Pi- inspired Art (2 ways!)
• Flower Pounding with Kids
• Explore Art Materials Like Scientists
• Construction Paper Sun Prints

Let's keep in Contact!

Like kids crafts and activities?  Then you'll definitely want to check out this awesome craft ebook!  It contains 115 pages of unique crafts written by 18 kid craft loving moms!  And, it costs only $12.99!

   

And, you can always find  fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  (Or subscribe to my email mailing list by filling out the pink bar at the top of your screen.)

Happy making, friends!

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