Making It: Programmes 16–26
Programme 18: Sand Castles

Aims

After watching the programme and participating in the activities, pupils should be able to:

communicate design ideas in different ways, bearing in mind aesthetic qualities and the use and purpose for which the product is intended
explore the sensory qualities of materials and how to use materials and processes
measure, mark out, cut and shape materials
assemble, join and combine components and materials accurately
follow safe procedures
investigate and evaluate a product to appreciate how it works and how it is used.
design and make assignments using mouldable materials

It's a sunny day at the beach and two older boys are showing the younger kids how to make brilliant sand castles. First, they use bucketfuls of damp sand to build up the main sections of the castle. The trick is to make sure you compact the sand – squash it down well. That way, the walls hold together much better.

Then, the lads use flat-bladed palette knives and small pointed trowels to cut away steps and to carve out details like windows. When you get as good as these two sand artists, it's amazing how much detail you can carve into the soft sand. But watch out! If you're not careful, the tide will come in and wash away all your hard work.

The good thing is that with so much sand on the beach, you can always try again somewhere else. And when you've finished gazing at your sandy masterpiece, can you resist the chance to jump right on top of it and demolish all those towers and turrets?

Curriculum Relevance

Science – materials and their properties
Art – design and make artefacts; collect visual and other information; develop patterns and designs
Personal, Social and Health Education – safety issues; co-operation, cultural diversity

Background

Sand has been used to make designs and buildings for thousands of years. Combined with lime and gravel, it can be used to make cement for building.

Tibetan monks use coloured sand to make complicated religious designs called mandalas. Hindu families celebrate the festival of Diwali with rangoli patterns made from coloured sand or rice powder. These symmetrical patterns are created out of repeated elements, such as flowers or simple geometric shapes. They are often made on the ground near to the door of a home, as a symbol of welcome. The Navajo people of North America and the Aborigines of Australia also used different colours of sand to build up complex designs. It is easy to add coloured dye to sand. Many seaside stalls sell ornaments made with coloured sand and you can use it too, to make pictures.

There are many sand sculpture competitions around the world. People work very hard to carve out imaginative designs from wet, well-compacted sand. They make all kinds of things, not just sand castles. The links from this site show you plenty of examples.

Sand is an excellent material to practise with, because it's so easy to carve. And if you make a mistake, it's simple to start over again. On some beaches, sand artists make elaborate carvings and collect money from passers-by, just like street musicians and pavement artists. Perhaps one of the most attractive things about a sand sculpture is that you know it won't be there very long. You have to make the most of it while it lasts. At the end of the day, the tide will come in and wash it away.

Activities

Make Coloured Sand

You will need: small bottle with a screw cap, funnel, sand, food colouring, stick, small pots or tubs, newspaper.

Half-fill the small pots with sand. Add 2-3 drops of food colouring to each.
Stir the colouring into the sand, mixing well. If the colour is not deep enough, add a few more drops of food colouring.
Pour your coloured sand onto a sheet of newspaper to dry.
When the sand is dry, return it to its pot ready for use.
When you have several colours of sand you can build up different coloured layers inside a bottle to make a stripy design. Use a funnel to pour the sand smoothly into the bottle.
Make sure you fill the bottle right to the top and press it down very firmly with the stick, so that there's no room for the layers to move about after you have screwed the cap on.

NOTE: If you can't get hold of any sand, you can use salt instead. And if food colouring is a problem, try using powder paint as a substitute. Just mix it into the sand (or salt) with a little water and then follow steps 3 to 6.

Make a Sand Painting

You will need: coloured sand, newspaper, glue and brush, pencil, sheet of thick card or hardboard. (You can find quite cheap clip frames. Use the back board for your design and clip the glass back into place when it's finished. This is a great way of displaying your artwork.)

Sketch the main outlines of your design onto the board. Flowing designs with strong lines look good. Animal, plant and seashell patterns work well.
Decide which colours of sand are going to be used in each different part of the design. It's a good idea to plan all this before you get the sand out - you can always adapt your design as you go along.
Spread glue over a small area of your design.
Pour a single colour of sand over the glue. Leave it for a minute, then shake off the loose sand onto the newspaper. (You can collect this loose sand and re-use it later.) Your design should now have a layer of sand stuck to one small area.
Carry on building up areas of coloured sand until the design is complete.

Make a Sand Sculpture

You will need: sand, water, a large tray (if you're working at home and not on the beach), bucket, yoghurt pots, flat tool (such as a ruler) and a pointed tool (a sharpened pencil will do). Sketches of the design you want to make.

If you get the chance to carve a sand sculpture at the beach, you can work on a large scale. But if you can't get to the beach, you can still make a sculpture, by working on a small scale with a tray of sand.
Sketch out the design you want to make. You need several drawings, showing the sculpture from different angles.
Fill buckets or pots with damp, well-compacted sand and tip them out to make the basic shape of your sculpture. If your heaps of sand crumble away, you need to use a little more water and press the grains of sand together harder.
When you have a basic shape you're happy with, use a ruler and pencil to cut away sand gradually to make the fine details.
If you can, photograph your design when it's finished.

Make a Sand Sculpture You Can Keep

This sand dough dries hard, so you can make a sand castle that won't fall apart at the end of the day. Before you start: This activity involves heating the mixture on the stove, so you need an adult to supervise you. Also, make sure it's OK to use the saucepan!

You will need: 3 cups of sand, 1.5 cups of cornflour (it's sometimes called cornstarch), 1.5 cups of water, old saucepan, wooden spoon, newspaper, board.

In the saucepan, stir together the sand and cornflour.
Slowly add the water, mixing it in well.
Heat the mixture gently, stirring all the time.
When the mixture is thick, take it off the stove.
Let the mixture cool.
Turn the sand dough out onto a board. Give the dough a good squeeze, kneading it until it is firm and ready to use.
Make your design on the board.
Leave the dough in a warm place (such as a sunny window sill) to dry out. It will probably take 2-3 days to harden.
Wrap any left-over dough in cling film to keep it fresh.

Links

This web page contains links to other websites that are neither controlled nor maintained by Channel 4 Television. Channel 4 Television is not responsible for the content of these sites and does not necessarily endorse the material on them.

Find out more about sand sculpture competitions, get some tips and see some photos:
www.sandcastlecentral.com/

It's not just sand castles! Check out this gallery:
www.sandscapes.com/Gallery.htm

Some more great sand sculptures:
www.sandsculpture.co.uk/

Make a virtual sand picture:
http://hicards.com/games/sand.html

Find out more about the ancient sand art of India:
www.geocities.com/kanika_sandart/

…and Tibetan mandalas:
www.civilization.ca/cultur/mandala/mandal0e.html

www.earth-mandala.com/e-mandala.html

…and rangoli patterns:
www.onlinebangalore.com/life/women/rangoli/rangoli.html

…and designs used in Australian Aboriginal art:
www.cooinda-gallery.com.au/gallery.htm

…and the sand art of Namibia, West Africa:
www.classicsand.com/sandartnamibia.htm

…and Papua New Guinea:
www.univenter.com/art-artifacts_png-art.html

Making It: Programmes 16–26 Programme 18: Sand Castles