3rd Class Science Our Changing Life Our Changing Life

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

This lesson -will help you to:—

• understand how pottery was invented.
• understand how clay is used in making different things.
• understand why it is necessary to bake the clay pots.
• observe the diversity in different types of clothing.
• study different colours and designs used in various types of textiles.
• know how fire was invented and how we use fire in our daily life.

Interesting Facts

• The potter’s wheel was invented in Egypt around the year 3000 BC
• High Fired ceramics, like stoneware and porcelain, were first produced by Chinese culture
• Silk is obtained from the cocoons of silk worms, and is harvested by dipping the cocoons of silk worms, and is harvested by dipping the cocoons in hot water and unwinding it. It is then spun silk culture has been practiced for at least 5000 years in china. A silkworm’s diet consists mainly of mulberry leaves.

POTTERY

The term "pottery" refers to any type of ceramic ware that is made from clay and hardened by fire. Pottery making is the process of turning raw clay into a bowl, plate, cup, pot or other vessel.

The art of making pottery began as early as 6000 B.C. and was used to keep important things of everyday life. In the beginning pots were made of stone and clay. Earlier people used to make pots of clay by kneading the clay and shaping them with their hands.

Later discovery of potters wheel made it easier to make pots. As time passed, the potter's wheel became better and better. Today electric wheel is used which has made pottery making much faster.

People also discovered that they can make the clay pots harder by baking them. A kiln is a kind of oven in which pots are placed to bake. Pots are heated at very high temperature and taken out only when they are cool.

POTTERY VESSELS WERE CREATED

• To store and cook food.
• To gather and transport grains, berries and nuts.
• To carry water.                                
• To have food in it.
• Later, pottery evolved as an* art form, with pictures being shown on the vessels to share stories.
• In modern times pottery pieces are used as decorative accents, dinnerware, vases, and other useful items.

VARIOUS STEPS INVOLVED IN POTTERY

1. Kneading clay

2. Making pots

3. Baking the pots in kiln

4. Decorating Pots

5. Selling different pottery items in the market          

THREE MAIN TYPES OF POTTERY

Earthenware is lightly fired, readily absorbs water if not glazed, and does not allow light to pass through it.                                    

Porcelain ware was first made in China, hence its common name is chinaware.                                  

Stoneware is extremely strong and will not absorb water. It is fired at higher temperatures than earthen ware  so that the ingredients melt and fuse together. It will not allow light to pass through it. Because stoneware is nonporous, it does not require a glaze; when a glaze is used, it serves a purely decorative function.

Misconcept / Concept

Misconcept: All clothes are made of fibres obtained naturally from living organisms.

Concept: Only cotton, silk, wool and jute fibres are obtained from living organisms. Some fibres like nylon, Polyester are made artificially using chemicals.

CLOTHING

Colourful in formation

• In Rajasthan block printing is very popular on bedsheets, dupattas etc.
• In Lucknow chikankari embroidery is very famous.
• Phulkaris and Baghs were worn by women all over punjob during marriage festivals and other joyous occasions.
• Pashmina refers to a type of fine cashmere wool and the textiles made from it is famous in Kashmir.

Have you ever wondered how are clothes made?

• Clothes are made from lots of different materials. Some materials, like leather, are made from animal skins. Cotton and linen are made from plants. Other materials, such as polyester, are called 'man-made materials'. This is because they are not made from animal skins or plants.
• In different regions people wear different types of clothes. In colder regions people need to wear warm clothes while in warmer region people wear light clothes.
• To make cotton clothes the cotton is being stretched out, spun and then carded into thin yarn. The threads that run vertically across the loom are called warp and weaving through horizontally running threads called filling.

WHAT DO INDIAN WOMEN WEAR?

Sari is popularly believed to be the traditional dress for Indian women, but there are other dresses also, like in Punjab the traditional dress is Salwar Kameez with colorful dupatta and in Rajasthan it is Ghagra Choli or also known as Lehenga. In Kerala an older version of sari called Mundum Neriyathum is the traditional dress.

WHAT DO INDIAN MEN WEAR?

The traditional dress for Indian men essentially is Dhoti paired with Kurta. A traditional Indian man's dress is incomplete without a head dress. A Nehru topi/cap or a petah/pagri/turban accompanies depending on the culture and/or religion. In some parts men also wear Kurta-Pajama, Lungi-shirt which is popular in south India especially Tamil Nadu. A Gujarati dress has a typical style of pants and a frock style Kurta.

STORY OF FIRE

The discovery of fire was one of the earliest discoveries of human.

In the beginning thousands of years ago man did not know how to produce fire.

During night they were surrounded by many dangers like animals used to attack them, they could not find the way in the forest, winter nights were very painful for them and so on.

One fine day man produced fire by striking two stones. That was an amazing discovery by them as it paved the way for many more discoveries.

Some of the ways in which they used fire was

• As a source of heat and light,
• To cook food,
• To scare away dangerous animals
• To clear forests for planting
• To heat some stones for making stone tools,
• To burn clay for ceramic objects.

In early times there were only woods which people used to burn. Later on when people discovered coal and petroleum they developed many sources of fire.

Today we have kerosene stoves, matchsticks, wood, coal, petrol, LPG, etc., to produce fire. We use it as a means of energy.

Now a day's fire is used in many ways

• For cooking and heating
• In thermal power stations
• In factories, eg. melting materials

For running steam engines