paper making at school

When we went on a field trip last week, one of the kids' favorite stations was the paper-making table. We found out it's extremely easy to make recycled paper, and we also found out it's extremely easy to collect more than enough paper to make our own at school. For one week we kept all scraps, and then on Wednesday, the kids had the supreme fun of tearing all that paper into shreds that we then put into a tub of water.

A few hours later, the paper was soggy enough to start blending. Each child scooped some of the squishy mess into the blender.























After the paper was pulverized, they dumped it into a large tub with more water.







They then scooped out a layer of pulp, using a stretched-out metal hanger with panty-hose fastened over it. Laying the hanger face-down on a dish rag, they sponged off the excess water. After they'd dried it enough, they removed the hanger, leaving a layer of paper to dry on the rag. We'll use this new paper to make Mother's Day cards.