Houses & Buildings - CONCRETER
Natural
Concrete Sculpture for Kids (How
Stuff Works)
Primary
Australian
Curriculum General Capability: Critical and Creative Thinking
1. What You'll Need:
•Water
•Clean sand
•Cornstarch
•Pot or bowl
For thousands of years, people have mixed sand with other natural
ingredients to make bricks, pots, and other things they need. You can do the
same thing.
Step 1: With the help of a parent or adult, boil some water.
Step 2: For each cup of clean sand, mix 1/2 cup of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of
boiling water in a sturdy pot or bowl.
Step 3: Stir the mixture several times as it cools.
Step 4: Shape the mixture into pots and jars, or make sculptures of animals
or other shapes.
Step 5: To harden the concrete, bake your creations in a 300 degrees F oven
for one hour. Let it cool completely before handling."
(Source:
How Stuff Works)
Lesson:
Concrete for Kids
Primary
Middle
Secondary
1. Follow the instructions for Concrete for Kids.
A
Problem with Concrete?
Secondary
Australian Curriculum Cross Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability
Priority
Cooperative
Learning Activity
1. In groups of 4 - 5 students, read the following
article from
Explain That Stuff
2. Start creating a presentation on the benefits of concrete and the science behind it.
Look up images of the structures noted in this article and incorporate them into your presentation.
3. Read the following article from
The Conversation 17 June 2016
5. As a group, finish your presentation and answer the question:
Should modern buildings use reinforced concrete? How can the problem of concrete cancer be overcome?
| Did You Know? Precast concrete is a construction product produced by casting concrete in a reusable mold or "form" which is then cured in a controlled environment, transported to the construction site and lifted into place. In contrast, standard concrete is poured into site-specific forms and cured on site. The New South Wales Government Railways made extensive use of precast concrete construction for its stations and similar buildings. Between 1917 and 1932, they erected 145 such buildings. (Source: Wikipedia) |
Copyright © On the Job Online
