BACKGROUND:
Students today are familiar with glue
in a bottle. However, they may not realize that their grandparents
probably made glue by mixing flour and water. The mixture is also used
to make paper mache.
PROCEDURE:
- In this experiment, give students
a glass of water and about 100 ml of flour. Tell them that they have to
figure out how many spoons full of water and flour will make a good
glue. Don't give them much more instructions than that, except for
procedures on keeping their work space clean.
- Newspaper or meat tray are good
for students to do their experiment on. They will need some paper to
stick together to see if their glue is a success. Discuss what they
discovered about the perfect mixture of flour and water.
- Have the students make paper mache
from their invention. Make the glue mixture a little wetter, and then
show them how paper mache is made.
- Cut strips of newspaper about 2 cm
wide and 10 cm long. Dip one strip at a time in the glue mixture. Make
sure the glue mixture completely covers the paper strip.
- Take the paper strip and put it on
a can. Completely surround the can with paper strips and glue, and let
dry. When it is dry, students can paint with water color or temper
paints.
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