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From Trees to Products
Main ideas
After harvesting, a tree is turned into many products which we use every day - wood for building and all types of paper products
Synopsis
After harvesting, two of the ways logs can go are to sawmills or pulp mills which use the latest technology to make the most effective use of the raw materials. Almost every part of the tree is used.
Papermaking is possible because plant cell fibres stick together when they are pulped, spread on a screen and allowed to dry. Kraft pulp is the strongest and most widely used commercial pulp grade available.
When finished products are manufactured locally, our region sees the benefit of even more employment - manufacturing, packaging, transportation and marketing.
Scene 1
Recap of Video 2
Seed to Harvest to Seed
Scene 2
To the sawmill
Scene 3
And now it's lumber
Scene 4
What about by-products?
Scene 5
To the paper mill
Scene 6
Making kraft
Scene 7
From pulp to tissue
Scene 8
The process of papermaking
Scene 9
It's a wrap!
- list all the products which you can think of that are made of wood. (see included list)
- Name as many different kinds of paper as possible. (see included list)
- What kinds of employment opportunities associated with sawmills and
papermaking
are available? (mill workers, chemical engineers, technicians, computer programmers, engineers, office staff, welders, pipe fitters, electricians, marketing professionals, salesmen, etc.)
Important note: In today's competitive marketplace, employers are looking for people who are able to adapt to numerous skills and job descriptions.
Set. . .
While viewing Trees to Products, ask the students to watch carefully and
complete the included blackline master which requires them to fill in the
blanks with key vocabulary that they will hear. (two versions of the activity
are included with answer keys)
Go!
The following activities and resources are designed to complement this video.
They are not intended as an exhaustive list of things to do, merely as a
starting point. Please add your own activities - others will be grateful
you did!
Digging into the Discovery Box
1.Various wood product samples are included in the Forest Discovery Box. Each sample is in a plastic bag and labelled. Allow the students to examine the labelled samples.
- ask them to identify any items made with each wood product
- for an enrichment activity, have some students research the development of one of the samples from seed to finished product
2. Also included in the Forest Discovery Box are many wood samples. Allow the students to examine the labelled samples. Have the students, in groups of two or three, choose one type of wood to research. (historically, traditionally, and in nature)
3. Invite a woodworker (or craftsperson) from your community to show
how he/she uses certain types of wood in their work.
Across the curriculum
1. Follow-along activity sheets (2 versions & answer key)
2. Make a collage! (Science/Art)
3. Think about it! (Science/Critical thinking/problem-solving)
4. Take a tour through a paper mill (Science/Technology)
5. Papermaking in the class (Science/Art/Language Arts)
6. Find-a-word (2 versions & answer key)
7. Crossword puzzle (& answer key)
From Trees to Products - follow-along #1
Name:__________________________________ Date:___________________
Follow along carefully as you watch From Trees to Products. Fill in the blanks with some key words found in the video.
- After a tree is cut down two of the ways it can go are to a _______________or to a _______________. A modern sawmill uses almost every part of the log. First, the logs must be sorted by size, type of wood and ______________. Good quality straight logs end up as _______________ for building materials.
- First the full-length tree trunk is cut into logs of various lengths. Logs go into a _______________ to loosen the bark and then the bark is removed. Computerized equipment helps to sort the logs so that the best yield can be obtained from every log. Modern sawmills are very _______________.
- Raw wood contains a lot of_______________. To be useful as building material the moisture must be removed in a_______________.
- ____________, a German word that means strong, is the strongest and most widely used grade of wood pulp made today. Making pulp is a bit like making a cake there's a different _________ for each type of paper product.
- Raw wood is about half water. One quarter is wood fibre and the other quarter is something called_______________. The first stage of making pulp is ungluing the wood fibres. After this, the pulp mixture gets _______________ and then it must be _____________. The most modern pulp mills now use a _______________ process to bleach the pulp.
- Newsprint paper is made with a thermo-mechanically processed pulp,
better known as _______________. Modern paper makers are always improving
their process and their recipes so that the paper is stronger and works
better with coloured inks.
From Trees to Products - follow-along #2
Name: _________________________________
Fill in the blanks while you watch the video From Trees to Products.
You may choose from the vocabulary provided below.
- kiln
moisture
high-tech
pulp mill
kraft
washed
sawmill
bleached
lumber
- After a tree is cut down two of the ways it can go are to a _____________ or to a _______________. Good quality straight logs end up as _____________ for building materials.
- Modern saw mills are very_____________
- Raw wood contains a lot of _____________. To be useful as building material the moisture must be removed in a _____________
- _____________, a German word that means strong, is the strongest and most widely used grade of wood pulp made today.
- Raw wood is about half water. The first stage of making pulp is ungluing
the wood fibres. After this, the pulp mixture gets _____________ and then
it must be _____________
1. Form small groups of 3 or 4 students. Ask the groups to find as many
examples of kinds of paper as possible (they will need to cut samples from
each) and place these together on a large sheet of paper to form a collage.
The students should be creative - perhaps they could form the word
P A P E R with their samples! Each type should be identified in some way.
(see LIST A for types of paper)
2. As an alternative to #1 above, each student could be required to find
different kinds of paper, and each must be identified. The student must
then determine the species of trees needed to make these different papers.
(research will be required)
1. Ask small groups of students to find a certain number of items made of wood and bring as many examples as possible to class. Students should identify the species of tree used to make each item, and make a presentation to class.
2. Ask the students, working in small groups, to find the following:
a) things made from the cellulose of a tree
b) things made from the bark of a tree
c) things made from the sap of a tree
(see LIST B for examples)
List A: Kinds of paper
|
List B: Wood Products From cellulose:
From bark:
From sap (resin):
(Teacher - add any more you can think of) |
Think about it!
Divide your students into small groups, and give each group one of the following situations for consideration. For each situation:
- they must list the pros and cons for each proposition
- they must include a recommendation for or against the development
- they must explain their recommendation to the class as a whole
(An alternative to this activity is to choose one of the situations for the whole class and have each group represent a different interest group in the community. In a forum-type situation, each group could present their views on the situation.)
Situations:
- a) A company would like to install a pulp mill near a river that runs
very close to your town.
- b) A company wants to build a hydroelectric plant. They will have to build a dam, which will flood some forest land.
- c) A company would like to establish a campground and amusement park in a large section of forest near your town.
- b) A company wants to build a hydroelectric plant. They will have to build a dam, which will flood some forest land.
You can make paper in your classroom or you can do it at home. Just follow these simple instructions.
A. You will need the following:
- 1. scrap paper torn into small pieces (plain paper or facial tissue).
You can also add some small pieces of potato peels, carrots or other plants.
- 2. a blender
- 3. a wooden frame 15 cm by 15 cm (6 in by 6 in)
- 4. a fine mesh screen (try recycling some old panty hose) attached tightly to the wooden frame
- 5. dishcloths
- 6. an iron
- 7. liquid starch
- 8. a large basin
- 2. a blender
B. Directions
- Place the small pieces of paper in a bowl of hot water for a few hours or overnight. (The mixture should be one part scraps to five parts water).
- Put this mixture in the blender and mix until it has the consistency of soft porridge.
- Add an equal amount of hot water (eg. to 1 litre (4 cups) of mixture add 1 litre (4 cups) of water).
- Add 30 ml (2 tablespoons) of liquid starch and mix together.
- Pour the mixture into the basin.
- Place the wooden frame with the screen on it into the basin scooping up some of the mixture. Lift the frame carefully, trying to get an even layer of the mixture on the screen. Keep the frame level so the mixture has the same thickness all across the screen. Let it drain.
- Place a clean cloth over the wooden frame and mixture. Carefully flip the frame over. The mixture should now be on the cloth.
- Place another cloth over the paper mixture and with a hot iron press the paper mixture between the two cloths to dry it.
- When it is dry gently peel the paper off the cloth. Put it somewhere
safe to
dry completely.
Download Crossword Puzzles and Word-Finds with answer keys in
Adobe Acrobat format. You can then print off as many copies as you need.
Acrobat Reader is available from Adobe's
Website for free, and is available for all operating systems.
Activities (Around 250k)