Make Your Own Paper
Papermaking gives your child a chance to explore science concepts, as well as create unique cards or art you'll want to frame.
What You Need:
- Paper towels
- A blender
- A mold and deckle (a frame that holds the pulp in place and shapes the paper - you can but this at a crafts store or make a simple one with two embroidery hoops and some nylon window screen. See How to Make A Mold and Deckle below)
- A dish pan or water-tight tub, such as Rubbermaid® tote
- A sponge
- Wax paper
- Construction or other colored paper aor other times, such as flower petals, pine needles, spices, magazine pictures or bits of fabrics, to make interesting-looking and/or scented paper
Here's How to Do It
Paper is made from plants fibers, and the longer the fibers, the stronger the paper. You can reuse the fibers in old paper to make recycled paper, and in the process, add home-made flair.
1. Tear several paper towels into strips and put them into a blender 3/4 full of water.
2. Add any optional materials to give your paper color or scent.
3. Blend on high for about a minute (the longer you blend, the shorter the fibers become).
4. Pour the mixture into your tub. Repeat until you have at least a couple inches of pulp.
5. Stir the mixture. Fit the deckle (the open hoop) over the mold (netted hoop), sandwiching the netting in between.
Dip the mold and deckle into the tub with the screen facing up. Scoop up a layer of pulp, making sure to hold the deckle steady on the mold.
6. Holding the deckle and mold parallel to the basin,lift them quickly several times to shake out excess water.
7. Remove the deckle, cover the mold with a piece of wax paper and turn it over onto a flat surface.
8. Soak up excess water with your sponge through the screen.
9. Allow the paper to dry completely (usually overnight). You can speed up the process and make your paper flat pressing in onto a sunny window and peeling off the wax paper.
Learning more about paper
Paper can have different amounts of pulp in each sheet, and the pulp can have longer or shorter fibers. Paper with a high "bond number" has more pulp. Paper that has been recycled several times has shorter fibers. When the fibers get too short to make strong paper, the pulp can be recycled into cardboard. You can use a hand lens or a microscope to see the fibers in paper.
How to Make a Mold and Deckle
What You Need:
- 2 small embroidery hoops
- Nylon window screen
Here's How to Do It
Cut a piece of screening at least two inches larger around than your hoops. Separate the two parts of one of the hoops and stretch the screen over the inner one tightly. Secure it with the outer hoop, just as you would a piece of fabric for embroidering. This hoop is now the mold and the unscreened hoop is the deckle.
Dr. Fred Stein is a science educator at the Exploratorium Institute for Inquiry, a national elementary science education reform project based in San Francisco. He holds a doctorate in science education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and has a 4-year-old daughter, who keeps him excited about the joy of teaching and learning.
