How to Make Hay Sticks

One of the greatest gifts of homeschooling is the way meaningful learning so often arises naturally from everyday life. Recently, Gary and Abigail, 4, spent time together making hay sticks. These could be used on the fire when the wood runs out. It was not a formal lesson planned in advance. Yet it became a rich learning experience filled with cooperation, conversation, and practical skill. In this post, I will be showing you how to make hay sticks.

This activity fitted beautifully alongside our Little House on the Prairie Unit Study. It is here that pioneer life, family responsibility, and self-sufficiency are central themes. Moments like these are a reminder that homeschooling allows children to step into learning rather than simply read about it.

Catch Up! If you haven’t read all about our first week on the prairie, I would encourage you to go and read my Little House in the Big woods post. This covers everything we did from making nightdresses, to prairie cooking and making button strings. It also gives you a good idea of everything we achieved with our own little house on the prairie renovations!

How to Make Hay Sticks at Home With Children

In 19th-century America, “hay sticks” (or twisted hay) were primarily used as a vital fuel source for heating and cooking, particularly on the plains and prairies where wood and coal were scarce. They were made by twisting dried hay into tight, hard, wood-like bundles, which could then be burned in stove

When exploring how to make hay sticks, it is helpful to remember that pioneer families used whatever materials they had available. Traditionally, straw or dried grasses were used, but we chose raffia, which worked perfectly and was easy to handle.

Gary held one end of the raffia while Abs twisted and twisted, until the fibres tightened beneath her hands. After a while, Gary took a turn twisting while Abs held the end strong. Thomas, 11, joined in too, helping to hold the raffia steady as Gary worked. As we continued, the raffia began to twist back on itself, forming a sturdy, compact bundle. This natural twisting back is what creates a strong hay stick, and it was fascinating to watch the process unfold.

These tightly twisted bundles are known as hay sticks. They would have been a familiar and useful item in many pioneer households.

Connecting Hay Sticks to a Little House on the Prairie Unit Study

Making hay sticks brought our Little House on the Prairie Unit Study vividly to life. Rather than simply reading about pioneer children helping with daily chores, my children experienced a small part of what that work might have felt like. The effort required, the patience needed, and the importance of working together all became tangible through this simple activity.

This kind of hands-on learning helps children develop a deeper understanding of history. It also reinforces the idea that children are capable contributors within the family, a value that was essential in pioneer times and remains important in homeschooling today.

Check out week two! Last week we focused on Farmer Boy. This is the second book in the Little House on the Prairie book set. During the week we did lots of prairie cooking (hasty pudding, making a sour dough starter and some prairie bread) and also made some button lamps, a prairie ladder, and some peg hooks. Gary and the little ones did some gardening in our prairie garden and we tried to make some more of our rag rug.

What Children Learn From Making Hay Sticks

Although the task itself was simple, the learning it encouraged was surprisingly deep. Twisting the raffia required strength and perseverance. The children quickly discovered that cooperation made the work easier and more enjoyable. Without formal instruction, they observed how tension builds in twisted fibres, how materials behave under pressure, and why tightly made hay sticks hold together better than loose ones.

Beyond the physical learning, this activity encouraged respect for resources. And it sparked conversations about how families in the past prepared fuel for warmth and cooking. It also provided a natural opportunity to discuss fire safety and the care needed when working with materials that will be used near flames.

If you’d like a book chock-a-block full of prairie activities, do take a look at my review of My Little House Craft Book. This is where we got this activity from.

Extending the Lesson Through Hands-On Homeschool Activities

This lesson can easily be extended in a homeschooling setting. You might experiment with different materials such as straw, dried grasses, or reeds, comparing how each behaves when twisted. Creating a “pioneer afternoon” can also deepen the experience, combining hay stick making with reading aloud from Little House on the Prairie or trying other traditional household tasks.

Children may enjoy recording the experience in a nature or history notebook. They might draw the process or write a narration. They could even imagine themselves as a pioneer child helping their family prepare for winter. These gentle extensions allow learning to continue naturally without turning the activity into a rigid assignment.

Earlier in the week, I wrote about how Thomas learnt to tie different knows in order to make a hammock for his little sister’s rag doll. Click here to read about it!

Reflection Questions to Deepen Understanding

After completing the activity, thoughtful conversation can help children process what they have learned. Asking why pioneer families needed to make their own fire starters. Or which part of the process felt most difficult. Also reflecting on how working together changed the experience often leads to meaningful insights. Reflecting on how life today differs from life in pioneer times can also help children appreciate both the challenges and the strengths of earlier ways of living.

Yesterday, the girls made some home-made prairie curtains for our own little house on the (not) prairie. Cliuck, if you’d like to read!

Final Thoughts on Homeschooling Through Practical Skills

Making hay sticks was a simple activity, yet it held great value. It served as a gentle reminder that some of the richest homeschooling moments come from slowing down, sharing real work, and learning side by side. For families exploring pioneer life or working through a Little House on the Prairie Unit Study, this activity offers a practical, memorable way to connect history, hands-on learning, and family life through homeschooling.

For more activities please do visit my MEGA Little House on the Prairie Unit Study page. This contains all ten weeks of our summer building our own Little House on the Prairie!