Making paper with plants’ elements

Paper bowl – making paper with plants’ elements

Type of resource: Websites, You Tube

Web address

film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxepK9sh4kY

or: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCDD6pZWsGA

Language: English

Description

Producing paper in home environment with plants’ elements. Introducing the concept of “homemade paper”. Distinguishing between garbage and recycled material.

Scientific concept introduced

Paper, types of paper (cardboard, blotting paper, bulk or paper thickness etc.), handmade paper, recycled materials

Creative and critical thinking

Creative thinking – divergent thinking, critical analysis

Mathematical reasoning

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Scientific thinking

Observing and investigating, asking questions, formulating hypotheses, analyzing, solving problems, drawing conclusions.

Learning how to learn

Patience, independence, resilience and feeling fo self-efficacy, cognitive curiosity, motivation and engagement, self-evaluation

Additional

Fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, artistic sensitivity, interpersonal communication – understanding and following teacher’s instructions, teamwork.

Paper bowl – making paper with plants’ elements

Overall aims

– Developing a concept of „handmade paper”;
– Shaping the ability to make paper in home environment;
– Distinguishing between garbage and recycled materials (wasting and recycling)
– Developing fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

Vocabulary – keywords should be understood

paper, types of paper (cardboard, blotting paper, bulk or paper thickness etc.), handmade paper, recycled materials

Expected learning outcomes (operational aims)

– recognize and name different types of paper;
– prepare paper following teacher’s instruction;
– explain the difference between garbage and recycled materials;
– follow the rules safety and neatness at the workplace;
– use kitchen tools and equipment, such as: a blender, sieve, roller, scissors etc.

STEM skills – to which the learning unit is related to

CORE STEM SKILLS

Scientific thinking: observing and investigating, asking questions, formulating hypotheses, analyzing, solving problems, drawing conclusions
Creative thinking – divergent thinking, critical analysis
Learning how to learn: patience, resilience to stress, cognitive curiosity, motivation and engagement, self-evaluation

ADDITIONAL SKILLS

fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, artistic sensitivity, interpersonal communication – understanding and following teacher’s instructions

Teaching methodologies/activity outline

1. Introduction — observing and investigating different types of paper (blotting paper, printing paper, cardboard, constructing paper – bristol, etc)
What is it? What are the names of such papers? How do you recognize?
What are the differences between these types of paper?
What do we need the paper for?
Do you know how the paper is produced?
Can we produce paper at the preschool? How – what ingredients and materials are necessary?

2. Building problem situation – investigating the qualities of handmade paper
Teacher presents the examples of handmade paper. Questions:
What is the difference between this paper and the papers we were observing earlier?
Do you know the name of such paper – where does this name come from?
How can we produce such paper at the preschool? What materials and tools will be necessary?

3. Formulating hypotheses – children can draw their own ideas (or teachers writes them down on a big chart of paper)

4. Verifying hypotheses — Preparing paper following the teacher’s instruction:
Version I – elastic paper to create a kitchen bowl:
– Tear up the old newspapers, tissues or paper towels into a big bowl.
– Pour it with hot water and leave for 2 hours to swell up. Then cook the substance for 30 minutes.
– Mix the boiled mass with a blender carefully, making sure that the paper and water blend together. Then drain the mass on the sieve.
– Mix the paper mass with potato flour and plain flour to make an elastic paper dough.
– Create the shape of a bowl, glue the plant elements (flower, leaves etc.) to decorate your bowl, and leave it to dry.
– You can also decorate your bowl with paints.
– Make an exhibition of bowls – present your bowl to others

Version II – postcard from handmade paper
– Tear up the old newspapers, tissues or paper towels into a big bowl. What shall happen when we pour warm water into the bowl, and blend it?
– Pour the warm water and mix the ingredients with a blender. Observe – what happened? How has the paper changed?
– Pour the blended paper dough into a large, square bowl and mix carefully – add plant elements (such as colorful flowers, small leaves, pieces of green onion, parsley or other seasoning available in the kitchen). Teachers should provide a range of different elements to decorate the chart – elements in different colors or with different smells to make a smelling paper (with seasoning such as cocoa, coffee, cinnamon, dry pepper etc.)
– Scoop up some paper dough on a square sieve – making sure you take as much dense mass as you can;
– Drain the dough on a sieve with a sponge or a roller – to separate as much water, as you can;
– Remove the chart from the sieve to the table, cover it with a paper towel and drain again with a kitchen roller;
– Leave it to dry.
– Make an exhibition of handmade paper – observe, compare and investigate: What are the differences between handmade charts? What happened with a paper when we added a cinnamon (or other seasoning? Which paper is the most surprising, original, magical? What can we do with these charts of handmade paper?

Assessment of learning

Self-Assessment of one’s own learning effectiveness: Completing the sentences by children:
Today I have learned….
The most difficult for me was…
It surprised me that….

Equipment and materials to be used in learning unit (tools, ingredients etc)

Version I: kitchenette, big pot, blender, 1 tablespoon of potato flour, 1 tablespoon of plain flour, small bowl for shaping paper bowls, plant elements or seasoning to decorate the paper bowls, paints, brushes etc.

Version II: big bowl, tablespoon, blender, square sieve for draining water, roller and sponge for pressing the dough, paper towels, old newspaper and tissues, food seasoning for colorizing paper and producing smelly paper.