Light Up a Kite
30-60 min
Ages 8+
What Will You Make?
In this tutorial, you’ll learn to add LED lights to a kite so that it can be seen at night.
What Will You Learn?
You’ll learn to hack a common kite and add a light-up circuit to it.
Red Kite
Step 1
Adhere a piece of conductive fabric tape along the edge of the kite on the side that faces down when it flies. Leave about 3 inches of extra tape with the backing still intact to use later. This will be the positive wire in the circuit.
Step 2
Lay a second row of conductive fabric tape next to the first as shown. This will be the negative wire in the circuit.
To connect the battery, add a small loop of tape (shown in the photo below) to the negative line of tape, then place the negative side of the battery on top of it. Finally, peel away the 3-inch section of tape and use it to secure the top of the battery (positive side). Adding an extra piece on top as shown will add extra security.
Step 3
Place 4 LED Stickers between the positive and negative wires as shown. To make them equidistant, measure the size of your kite and divide it by 5, then center the 4 stickers. If you are using the red kite linked in the description, 7 inches between each sticker looks nice!
Bat Kite
Step 1
Make a negative wire of conductive fabric tape in a “V” shape that goes through both eyes.
Step 2
Before you place the battery, put a small ring of conductive fabric tape on the negative side.
Step 3
Place the positive wire of conductive tape on top.
Step 4
Cover the traces with black electrical tape to disguise them.
Go Fly Your Kite
What Is Happening Here?
Parallel Circuits
Creating a parallel circuit allows us to add multiple LEDs to the kite while using just one coin battery. This reduces the weight on the kite, making it easier to get it into the air. Try these Chibitronics templates to experiment with different types of circuits.
What Is Next?
Make a Kite from Scratch
Now that you know how to add LEDs to a kite, why not make a kite from scratch and then hack it to add light? Try these projects:
Chibitronics Educators Guide
Chibitronics Paper Circuits STEAM Educator’s Guide is a FREE comprehensive guide to STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Art and Math) learning with paper circuits!
This 185-page guide includes:
Overview and history of paper circuits, including materials, techniques and troubleshooting tips
Suggested learning standards
Resources on equitable teaching and collaboration in the classroom
7 detailed lesson sequences based on the Circuit Sticker Sketchbook in Part 1 Lessons
12 detailed lesson sequences based on Love to Code in Part 2 Lessons
6 Featured Projects: cross-curricular adaptable project inspirations
Printable templates for each lesson sequence
Throughout the guide, Chibitronics celebrates artists, educators, art techniques, and projects to showcase inspiring work in action. The arts are interwoven into each activity; STEM becomes a medium to ask and explore big questions about ourselves and the world, and nurture new forms of creativity!
Materials:
- LED Circuit Stickers (3)
- Conductive Fabric Tape
- Red Kite or Bat Kite
- Coin Cell Battery
- Black Electric Tape (optional)
- Scissors
