Knots

Students will learn about different types of and their uses in an outdoor setting. Students will practice creating each and master at least one. Students will make a paracord bracelet.

Materials Included in the Kit: Not Included in the Kit: • 7ft length of paracord • Scissors • Side button buckle • ADULT SUPERVISION - Lighter

Lesson Knots are bumps in a rope. These bumps can be made in all different shapes and sizes BUT, they also can be used for a lot of different things! Can you think of activities that we do that we need knots?

We use them almost every day putting on shoes for sure. Survivalists and naturalists also use knots when camping, boating, and fishing. Doctors use even use them in surgeries! Each type of knot has its own special job and today we are going to learn about four knots and practice them.

Activity 1: tying four basic knots You can follow step by step through each knot following the instructions on the last pages of the lesson 1) Let us start with one of the most simple knots out there - an . It will look familiar to you, what do you use this one for…tying your shoes? 2) A forms an adjustable loop or at the end or middle of a rope. You can place the loop around a support and then tighten the knot by sliding it. This makes it simple attaching a line to a bar or post. 3) If you want to tie your fishing line securely to a hook, swivel or lure, the would be your best bet. 4) The SQUARE KNOT can join 2 ropes of the same size.

Activity 2: paracord bracelet What good is a knot if you don’t have any rope? One way to always be prepared is to keep some rope or cord ALWAYS on your person. You could wear it as a headband? Maybe a necktie? OR, maybe we can it into a bracelet! Grab the rope from your kit and stretch it out. Now I don’t know about you, but this seems like one long bracelet - how can we make it shorter without cutting it up? We can use KNOTS! The one we can use is called a COBRA STITCH.

First, we need to get our buckle onto the cord. Fold your cord in half so you have one side with “legs” and another with a “head”. Take the head and put it through the fork buckle then, pull the legs through!

Next, slide the “feet” through the “spoon” end - you should be able to slide it up and down for how long you want the bracelet to be. You're going to measure the distance between the two buckle ends for the bracelet size for your wrist. Add about 1 inch to your measured wrist length, this will make the finished bracelet a comfortable fit - approx. 7 inches

Now, we can begin knotting!

• Take the cord on the left side and place it under the center strands running between the buckle ends • Now take the cord on the right side under the left side cord, over the center strands, and thru the loop of the left side cord • Tighten up the cords so the half knot you just formed is next to the buckle • Now take the right side cord under the center strands. The left side cord goes under the right side cord, over the center strands and thru the loop of the right side cord • Tighten up the cords (not too tight, just until they meet the resistance of the knot) and now you have a completed knot

• You will continue doing this alternating the left and right sides as you go. (If you don't alternate, you'll quickly see a twisting of the knots, just undo the last knot and alternate it to correct) • Pull the knots snug but not too tight and keep going until you have reached the “fork” buckle. • Keep tying the knots until you have filled the space between the buckle ends. The knots should be uniform from one end to the other. Tie each knot with the same tension to keep the them all the same size.

Ask an adult to help you with the next steps • You can now use your scissors to trim off the extra cord close to the last knot that you tied. Trim one at a time and use a lighter to quickly melt the end that is cut. Wait a second for the melted cord to cool just a bit and then use your thumb to press the melted end onto the surrounding cord so it hardens as it attaches. BE CAREFUL WITH THIS STEP! The melted cord is extremely hot, and it's possible to get burned, you can even use something like a butter knife to flatten out the melted end of the cord to finish it.

Finally, you have your cool survival bracelet that can be great in a pinch!