At-Home Projects:
GRADES 9-12

DIY Terrarium

Materials: glass container (with or without a top), rocks, soil, pebbles/gravel, plants for display (air plants, small plants, moss, etc.)

Layer rocks on the base of the glass container for drainage. This can be a fishbowl, a mason jar, or any transparent container you have laying around. Layer the soil and then a thin layer of gravel to top it off. Plants can be anything you find at your local plant store (Home Depot is a good option too) that is small enough to fit inside the container. Air plants require misting once a week and others require more water to stay perky- be sure to research what your plants need. Once you water your terrarium, close the lid and set it out to display!

Recycled Magazine Shelf

**PARENTAL SUPERVISION/ASSISTANCE NECESSARY**

Materials:  80 magazines (as a basis, use however many you feel fit), starch mixture (boil 3¾ cups water. Then add 1 tablespoon of powdered cornstarch and ¼ cup cold water to the hot water in a separate bowl)

Have an ever-growing pile of magazines? Turn them into a useful shelf with paper mache! In this example, 80 magazines are used but you can use more or less depending on the desired length of shelf. Cover each magazine in your starch mixture and then stack them on top of each other. Place a heavy object on top of the stack to ensure they are pressed completely together- a brick or heavy rock would work perfectly. Leave the magazines to harden and combine for ~1 week. After that week, use a bandsaw to cut a rectangular shelf space, leaving a couple of magazines intact on the edges to create stability.