When Becca and I had our recent discussion about what things she’d like to learn, she mentioned wanting to know how boxes are made. And since then, she’s mentioned it several times. So I thought I’d share what we did in case some of your kiddos have the same questions!
First, I set up a new “How it’s Made” Playlist on my YouTube channel, so you can click over there to check out several fabulous “How it’s Made” video clips that you and your kids will enjoy learning from! We watched the cardboard box video probably a total of 5 times – she kept not remembering certain parts or wanting to re-watch because she had questions still.
Then, we took a regular cardboard box from our recycling pile, and took it apart. We found where the seam was, and “unglued” (her word) it. Then, she enjoyed decorating the inside with some custom artwork, and she helped me re-glue the box back together – inside out. We used a little tape to help the glued flap stay closed.
With Daddy’s encouragement, we took it a step further, and made our own cardboard!! She was most fascinated with the process of making the cardboard itself, so he suggested getting three sheets of paper and making our own! She wasn’t able to make the “fluting” by herself, so I did that part, and then she enjoyed adding the glue and sticking each sheet on. We set a book on top of it for it to dry, and she was AMAZED when it was dry at how strong those three once-flimsy pieces of paper were!! It was a great experiment, and I’m glad he encouraged us to take it a step further.
She really learned a lot from this lesson, and when I asked her if she felt like she adequately had had her questions answered she replied with a hearty “yes, I did!” Mission Accomplished.
Butterbees and Bumbleflies 