How to make a kite and relax flying it with your kids


‘I saw you toss a kite on high, and blow the birds about the sky,’ wrote Robert Louis Stevenson in A Child’s Garden of Verses. His words sum up the romance and sense of freedom that comes with flying a kite – you’re connected with the darting birds and gusting clouds up there by just a piece of string.

Kite-flying is a great stress-buster – dashing back and forth at the park or wherever you are, just trying to keep that kite aloft, pushes your cares away to the back of your mind. Fill your lungs with fresh air and watch your kite soar upwards, lifting your spirits with it. You can buy a very inexpensive kite from a toy store, or make your own as an easy, fun craft project.

Kite

Cut a tail and tassels for the kite from the crepe paper. Place the shorter piece of dowelling over the longer one about a third of the way down to form a cross shape. Tack the pieces together. Twist a tiny eyelet screw into each of the four ends of the dowelling. Run a length of string through the four eye holes and tie to form a diamond shape.

Spread the firm paper flat on the floor and place the wooden frame on top. Trace the outline of the string with a pen. Add another 10 cm (4 in) around all four sides and cut out the shape. Glue the edges, turning them over the string all the way around. Attach the tail and tassels at each end of the crosswise strip.

Thread a piece of string through each of the eyelet holes. Knot the pieces together in the centre back of the kite; the knot should be about 45 cm (18 in) out from the frame and at right angles to the intersection of the pieces of dowelling.

Make a spool out of cardboard. Wind the long twine over it. Tie the end of the twine to the knot in the centre of the kite.

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