A Kite Preview

For my first hand trick:  a bunny out of a hat!

Just kidding.

My first hand trick is more of a preview.  A show and tell, so to speak.  Tomorrow I'm in charge of teaching fifteen ten-year-olds how to make a kite.  (hold your laughter until I tell how you how it went tomorrow).

Rick's class did it a few months back, and he demonstrated to me in his striped blue and gray undies, (I was still lying in bed at 8:00 this morning).

Step One: "Fold the construction paper in half like this."

"Hamburger Style?"

"Like...this."

I watched semi-sweet chocolate intrigued.  This should be pretty easy.

Step Two: "Measure one inch on each end and then make a pencil mark."

I was already losing it at this point.

"You mean, wait...how do you make the pencil mark?"

"I just showed you!  Just make an inch mark on both sides!"

Step Three: "Fold from this pencil mark to that one.  Then open it up."

Got it, I thought.  It looks like Batman.

Step Four: "Cut strips of masking tape, and tape down vertically, holding the kite together."

The bat wings, I thought.  It's a Batman kite.

Step Five: "Cut a skewer..."

"Shiskabobs!"

"Yes, cut a skewer so that it fits perfectly across this horizontal top end to that end.  Tape it down.  See?

"Yes."

Step Six: "Punch a whole towards the back end, and place your string, tying a knot to secure it.

"Now by string, what do you mean?"

"You know...string."

"You mean thread, thin stuff, thick stuff, rope, yarn...I don't get it."

"I mean like that stuff that's wrapped all together from Hobby Lobby."

I had a vision of Oaxacan cheese.  Yum.  But I knew exactly what he was talking about.  Reminded me of the smelly ropy stuff I used to see at the Hardware store.  My Dad always had a bunch of it in the basement.

Step Seven: "Take a piece of ribbon and put it here in the right hand corner for decoration."

"You mean, punch a hole like with the other string?"

"No, just tape it down."

"What kind of ribbon"

"Anything.  We used like colored tape.  It flies around for decoration.  It's just decoration."

He goes over the instructions one more time, and asks me to demonstrate.  I miss three out of the seven steps along the way.  Well, I don't miss them, I mess them.  Can't wait to see how this goes tomorrow.