Paper Tube Binoculars
By making and using binoculars, children will closely engage with the natural world as they explore. Encourage them to notice the small details such as colors, shapes, and patterns as they explore different items, animals, and so much more!
- Audience
- Caregiver
- Subject
- Nature & Outdoor
- Age
- InfantKindergartenPre-KPreschoolToddler
- Languages
- Brazilian PortugueseEnglishHaitian CreoleSimplified ChineseSpanishVietnamese
- Materials
- Recycled paper tubes, tape, markers, crayons, or paint, construction paper, stickers
Try making paper tube binoculars with your child!
Activity
- Give your child two paper tubes and some tape. Show them how to tape the tubes side by side to make binoculars.
- Decorate the binoculars! Draw with markers or crayons, paint them, or cover them with construction paper or stickers.
- Now it’s time to explore! Look at nature through the binoculars, like flowers, clouds, or birds. Ask your child what they see. Encourage them to talk about colors, shapes, patterns, and movement.
Try this with babies
- Gently hold binoculars up to your child’s eyes so they can look through them.
- Explore the paper tube. Stuff scarves or soft clothes inside the tube, and let your child pull them out.
- They can also squish the tubes or roll them on the floor.
Need simpler ideas?
- Use just one paper tube as a telescope. Let your child decorate it and look through it.
Want more challenge?
- Ask your child to use words like over, under, above, and through to describe what they see.
- Challenge your child to guess what you see through your binoculars. Give clues, like colors or shapes. Take turns giving clues and guessing.
Ideas for different weather
- If it is rainy or snowy, look through the binoculars from a window or porch.
- Try this activity over two days—decorate first, then explore outside when the weather is better.
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EducatorGuidePlayful by Nature – Educator Guide
You can incorporate nature-based education anywhere! You don’t need to live in a rural area, or have a forest in your neighborhood, or even have a yard at all. Nature can truly be discovered in unexpected places.