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How to fold an origami xylophone

Fold a brown frame with slanted rails, then six rainbow bars, each a little shorter than the last, and two mallets with round heads. Glue them all on.

You need: A 15 cm brown square, six strips of rainbow paper (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple), two tan strips, a black pen and glue. Medium, 18 steps, about 20 minutes.

Steps

  1. Frame: rails. Start with the brown frame, coloured side up. Fold the top and bottom edges behind on a slant, so the frame is tall on the left and short on the right.
  2. Mallet: new strip. Set the frame aside. Take a tan strip for the first mallet, coloured side up.
  3. Mallet: in half. Fold the strip in half the long way, folding behind, to make a thin stick.
  4. Second mallet. Set it aside and take the other tan strip, coloured side up.
  5. Mallet: in half. Fold it in half the long way behind, just like the first one.
  6. Bar 1: red. Set the mallet aside. Take the red strip, the longest, coloured side up.
  7. Bar 1: edges. Fold both long edges a little way behind to make a neat bar.
  8. Bar 2: orange. Set the last bar aside. Take the orange strip, a little shorter than the last one, coloured side up.
  9. Bar 2: edges. Fold both long edges a little way behind, like the first bar.
  10. Bar 3: yellow. Set the last bar aside. Take the yellow strip, a little shorter than the last one, coloured side up.
  11. Bar 3: edges. Fold both long edges a little way behind, like the first bar.
  12. Bar 4: green. Set the last bar aside. Take the green strip, a little shorter than the last one, coloured side up.
  13. Bar 4: edges. Fold both long edges a little way behind, like the first bar.
  14. Bar 5: blue. Set the last bar aside. Take the blue strip, a little shorter than the last one, coloured side up.
  15. Bar 5: edges. Fold both long edges a little way behind, like the first bar.
  16. Bar 6: purple. Set the last bar aside. Take the purple strip, a little shorter than the last one, coloured side up.
  17. Bar 6: edges. Fold both long edges a little way behind, like the first bar.
  18. Glue it together. Glue the bars on the frame in rainbow order, longest on the left. Glue the mallets crossed behind the top, heads up.

Ding, dong, ding!

Colour a round black head on each mallet and draw a nail dot at both ends of every bar. Tap from long to short to play a scale.

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