DIY Box Violin

My 3.5 year old is starting Suzuki Violin lessons tomorrow.  I am extremely excited.  Since he is young he will start on a "box" while he learns how to handle a violin without dropping it.  You have two main options for starting a young child.  1) Buy a "Foam-a-lin" a violin shaped piece of foam.  Kind of cool I guess but for almost $20 I will go with option two.  2)  A Box violin.  These are extremely cheap and easy to make.  I'd estimate mine cost about $1.  And took 10 minutes.  Could take less time if you weren't taking pictures between every step. 

Materials Needed: 
VHS (you know the thing that came before DVD)
Tape
Scissors
Paper (I used a brown paper bag)
Ruler (like the kind you use in elementary school)

Step 1:  Cut paper to the appropriate size.

Step 2:  "Gift-wrap" VHS.

Step 3:  Tape Ruler onto Front of VHS.  Leave about 6 inches hanging over.  (Secure this pretty well, remember it will be dropped.)

And that's it!  You can add some Foam and an elastic to simulate a shoulder pad. 

Now.  If you give a child a box violin, he will also want a bow to go with it. 

Materials needed: 
Dowel
Eraser
Tape

Step 1:  Tape Eraser onto Dowel.  Leave about 1 inch of the dowel on one side. 

 Nothing left to do but try it out. 

Update:  So my daughter loves playing on the box violin too.  Can't help but post a picture of her too.