"Everything does not have to be perfect" -Westley, age 5
Mastering simple machines can take making to a whole new level. In this post, I am going to focus on levers, which are simple machines that have a fulcrum or pivot point and applying force to one part moves a different part. This is one of those areas in which seeing how it works makes all the difference, so on to the activity!
First, a little science: Simple machines are devices that change direction or magnitude of force. A force is a push or a pull.
I was inspired by an activity in which a clothespin is the lever and shaped paper is glued to the clothes pin to look like a chick hatching out of an egg. So I tried that first, but knowing that many people don’t have clothespins at home any more, I altered it so that it can be made entirely out of recycled materials. I will show both versions here.
First, the clothespin version.
Using scraps of colored paper I had left over from another project, I cut a half egg shape with a jagged edge. I traced the edge onto the other half-egg so that they would fit together, and cut a simple dome shape for the chick:
Then, I carefully glued the bottom egg/chick part to one side of the clothespin and the top egg to the other side:
The fulcrum is the metal part of the clothespin and when you apply force on one end to pinch it closed, the other end opens. Peekaboo! You see the chick!
So how do we do it without a clothespin? Bring out the recycled cards! I used recycled Christmas cards because yes I still have those lying around my house in April. I found a really cute one with an angel kissing baby Jesus, so I cut around each to separate them and I cut two long strips of card from the back:
I glued each shape to the ends of the strips, being careful to arrange them so that the angel would look like she is kissing the baby when they came together.
To join them, I poked a hole with a pin at first, then widening it with a pencil:
Then I joined them with a twist tie. Twist ties are used on fresh vegetables like celery and chard, so you probably already have one. If not, you can use a pipe cleaner or straightened out paper clip. A brad works really well, but not a common thing to have lying around.
Notice the curl in the twist tie to keep it from pulling all the way through. This part is the fulcrum of the lever.
For this one, I taped a rubber band on the end so that I could work it with one hand.
After that, I looked at the rest of my old Christmas cards and found this one with a photo of my sister's dogs.
Well, I couldn't resist making another.
Enjoy!