How to make a thaumatrope

Over on the music page I have posted a fun activity using Frank and Lou Gallo's new song Like Father Like Son. Here is the tutorial on how to make the thaumatropes you see in the post.

But what is a thaumatrope?

Thaumotropes are simple toys, made popular in the 19th Century. They are basically a spinning toy that uses a simple animation technique. Thaumatropes rely on the persistence of vision - that is, the optical illusion created due to the fact that the human eye and brain can only process 10 to 12 separate images per second. Thus if something is moving faster than that, it appears as a single image.

Thaumatropes are very easy to make:

1. cut a circle

2. draw a picture on one side, flip it over to the other side (top to bottom) and draw a complementary picture on the other side

3. punch a hole in either side, making sure the holes are even and straight

4. tie in some elastic bands

5. spin the bands and let go - watch your pictures come to life!

Watch the videos here to see how to spin them and to see them in action!

https://vimeo.com/273520805

https://vimeo.com/273553019

Try it and see. This activity really lets kids use their imagination. You can draw a bird in a cage, a cat chasing a mouse, a man on a motorbike...! The possibilities are endless.

#thaumatropes #animation #opticalillusions #frankandlougallo