DLTK's Bible Activities for Kids
Make a Joyful Noise

This craft will work with a number of passages, but Psalm 95 was the one I was thinking about.  Make musical instruments to accompany you as you raise your voices in praise to the Lord.

I've included a toddler/preschool instrument, a kindergarten/elementary school instrument and an older kids instrument for you to choose from.

DRUM/SHAKER - youngest children

Materials:

• margarine container, small yogurt container or similar plastic container
• dried beans, sand, rocks (these are a lot of fun to collect outside!) or something like that
• stickers, paint, markers, construction paper, etc to decorate
• glue

Instructions:

• Decorate outside of container as desired.  
  • You can cut out shapes from construction paper or paint it or glue on white paper and color with markers.  
  • Add stickers for extra fun!
• Fill about 1/4 or less of the way full of dried beans (or similar material)
• Put a bit of glue around the edge of the lid and put it on tightly.
• You can put a thick rubber band over it to ensure the lid stays on tight if the kids don't want to wait for the glue to dry.
• Shake your instrument or bang on it with an unsharpened pencil or wooden spoon

TAMBORINE - kindergarten

Materials

• two paper plates
• hole punch and string/wool OR stapler
• dried beans, sand, rocks or something like that
• stickers, paint, markers, construction paper, etc to decorate
• glue

Instructions:

• Decorate outside of paper plates as desired.  
  • You can cut out shapes from construction paper or paint it or color with markers.  
  • Add stickers for extra fun!
• Fill one plate about 1/4 or less of the way full of dried beans (or similar material)
• Put the other plate over the first and punch holes all the way around the plates.  Lace the plates together (tightly) with string or wool.
  OR
• staple the plates together.  Even if you are going to let the kids lace the plates, you may want to put three staples in to hold it together as they're working on lacing.
• Shake your tamborine!

MARACAS - older children

Materials

• balloon
• paper mache and strips of newspaper 
  • I make paper mache with one cup of flour and 4 cups of water.  Boil the paper mache stirring frequently just long enough for it to thicken...  Take off the stove and put in a separate bowl.  Add 4 ice cubes and stir those in  
  • You can make cold paper mache with equal parts flour and water.  It takes more flour and isn't quite as smooth, but it works just fine.
• dried beans or something like that
• cardboard tube (from paper towel roll is best)
• stickers, paint, markers, construction paper, etc to decorate
• glue and tape

Instructions:

• Use a siphon (you can make one by rolling a piece of paper into a cone) and pour some beans into your balloon
• Blow up your balloon (don't swallow any beans!)
• Tape the cardboard tube onto the bottom of the balloon (use lots of tape)
• Cover with paper mache and let dry.
• Decorate outside of as desired.  
  • You can cut out shapes from construction paper or paint it or color with markers.  
  • Add stickers for extra fun!
• Shake your maraca

I've mentioned the three instruments that we've made at home, but I'm sure there are lots of other musical instrument ideas you could use for the same type of theme

Printable version of these instructions