Making Things
Class 3 · The World Around Us
4 ideas in Class 3 The World Around Us, explained in plain words, with games and quizzes to practise.
The Art and Craft of Pottery
Part of: Crafting and Construction
Pottery is the ancient craft of kneading wet clay, shaping it on a spinning wheel, and baking it hard in a kiln.
Why it matters. Understanding pottery connects children to traditional Indian crafts, everyday earthen vessels, and material science.
Try it in two minutes
- Observe common clay items: water pots (matkas), piggy banks (gullaks), and tea cups (kulhads).
- Learn the preparation: removing pebbles from soil, adding water, and kneading it like dough.
- Watch the potter shape wet clay on a rotating stone wheel.
- Understand that baking clay in a fiery kiln makes the pot hard, strong, and waterproof.
Try at home. Try shaping simple clay dough into a small decorative bowl and let it dry in the sun.
Patterns in Nature and Folk Art
Part of: Crafting and Construction
Nature is full of geometric patterns—stripes on tigers, spots on leopards, and branching leaves—which inspire pottery and art.
Why it matters. Noticing natural patterns fosters artistic creativity, observation skills, and appreciation for biological design.
Try it in two minutes
- Spot patterns on animals: leopard rosettes, zebra stripes, and peacock feather eyes.
- Examine plant patterns: alternating leaves on neem twigs and petal arrangements in blossoms.
- Understand that folk painters borrow these natural designs to decorate earthenware.
- Recognize repeating lines, dots, and waves in Indian pottery traditions.
Try at home. Collect three fallen leaves from different neighborhood trees and trace their edge patterns onto a notebook.
Brickmaking and Traditional Construction
Part of: Crafting and Construction
Bricks are prepared by packing wet clay into rectangular moulds and baking them in kilns for constructing buildings.
Why it matters. Understanding brickmaking and traditional mud houses reveals how climate influences architecture and natural materials.
Try it in two minutes
- Notice that bricks are moulded in boxes just like cakes or idlis are shaped in moulds.
- Learn that kiln-baked bricks are assembled with mortar to build homes, hospitals, and schools.
- Discover traditional mud houses: mud and grass keep homes cool in hot climates.
- Understand that cow dung coating creates smooth floors and acts as an insect deterrent.
Try at home. Use empty matchboxes to mould wet garden mud into miniature bricks and let them dry in the sun.
Construction Safety and Protective Gear
Part of: Crafting and Construction
Construction sites require strict safety rules, including wearing hard helmets, safety vests, and protective boots.
Why it matters. Understanding safety gear prevents workplace injuries and instills lifelong habits of personal safety at home and school.
Try it in two minutes
- Identify Rohan's father's safety gear: hard helmet with strap, high-visibility vest, and sturdy boots.
- Understand that hard hats protect the head from falling tools, bricks, and scaffolding.
- Recognize that safety vests make workers clearly visible to crane and vehicle operators.
- Discuss simple safety rules practiced at school and inside the home.
Try at home. Spot two safety features in your home, such as non-slip bathroom mats and insulated electrical switches.
What your child will practise
- Brickmaking and Traditional Construction: Explorer'S Map Quest (Collect the Answer)
- Brickmaking and Traditional Construction: Space Quick Fire (Quick Fire)
- Construction Safety and Protective Gear: Jungle Puzzle (Clue Puzzle)
- Patterns in Nature and Folk Art: Jungle Quick Fire (Quick Fire)
- The Art and Craft of Pottery: Treasure Quest (Collect the Answer)
- Quiz: Brickmaking and Traditional Construction (8 questions)
- Quiz: Construction Safety and Protective Gear (8 questions)
- Quiz: Patterns in Nature and Folk Art (8 questions)
- Quiz: The Art and Craft of Pottery (8 questions)