We have had a cold in our house. It hit me first, then my freshman. My husband and two older teens have somehow dodged it. It has been just over a week for me, and while my congestion is less, the fatigue still lingers. My freshman had a rough weekend, but woke up better this morning and trying to get back into her homeschool routine.
She fell a bit behind last week due to the illness and we still need to wrap up our unit on prokaryotes and viruses. Today, we will go over viral disease (ironic, I know) and build a model (activity available in my TPT store)
The next unit is on protists and fungi. I decided to make the protist model from air dry clay. It was her modeling medium of choice for her biology biome diorama. However, we are using a recipe this time instead of Crayola’s air-dry clay.
Here is the recipe:
Ingredients:
- 1c baking soda
- ½ c cornstarch
- 3/4c water
Directions:
- •Mix the three ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the mixture pulls from the sides of the pot and resembles mashed potatoes. Remove from heat, do not overcook.
- •Allow the clay to cool in a bowl or cookie sheet until cool enough to work with, about half an hour.
- •Once cool, work the clay with your hands or roll out with a rolling pin and cut into shapes If sticky, dust the clay with cornstarch.
- •Allow to dry for 3-5 days or bake in 200o F oven for 1-1.5 hours.
The clay is beautifully white and easy to work with, as soft as playdough.
I made a prototype protist, and was pleased with both the workability of the clay and the finished product. (activity available in my TPT store).
Does it work well for low-cost, easy to-use, non-toxic clay for school projects? Absolutely. Does it crack? Yes. I would give your student(s) a heads-up on this one, so they are not disappointed when it dries with little fissures. Still, a great alternative to save a few bucks, especially if making large quantities.
North Star Homeschool Resources 