Preschoolers, after all, have shorter attention spans. Plus, with the mess of handmade paper–not to mention potentially harmful instruments used–some may wish to skip the risk altogether. Certainly it is a personal choice, but young children can still very much be involved in the paper making process. Here’s how:

Have them bring in paper from home. Chance are you’ve already got plenty of paper to use from the recycling bins at school. However, letting children participate by bringing in their discarded paper from home will let them have a sense of accomplishment and involvement.

Let them tear up the paper. This is one of those times where they can make a true mess and not get into trouble for it! Encourage them to tear the paper as finely as possible, making it a terrific fine motor skill activity. This would also work during a classroom party or birthday when the bits of paper could also be used as confetti.

Let them help with the paste. You’ll have to make or purchase your screen on your own–and likely make most, if not all, of the paste–but you can let the children help stir it and even flatten it on the screen very carefully.

Decide how to use the paper together. Vote on it to teach about sharing and compromising. Offer options if the kids can’t think of many ideas and choose the top two or three to make some great creations with your paper. Perhaps you can use it for letter-writing on Grandparent’s Day, or let each child have a piece to create a special classroom book.

Use caution when handling your screen. Remember, it’s made of wire and can cause a cut. If you make your own screen, you might even wish to wear protective work gloves until its edges are finished. If you cut yourself during construction, stop the project immediately and apply an antiseptic and a bandage. Be sure that the bleeding has stopped before continuing. If the cut is deep, seek medical attention.

Make your paper in a well ventilated area. While most smells are harmless, it’s always possible to come in contact with harmful chemicals if you’re not certain of your paper’s origin. Even benign but strong  smells, such as those released during making grass paper, may make some people sick. Wearing a mask can also help with this.  The best bet is to only use paper that you know has not been chemically treated. Making paper outdoors is also a good option, as it helps minimize the mess.

Use caution when handling your water. If you spill water, be sure to clean it up immediately. It will obviously cause surfaces to become slick, so walk carefully if you must walk in the water. Be sure to have some towels handy prior to beginning, and don’t work near anything electrical to avoid water damage and electric shocks.

Only use mediums that you are comfortable with. If an herb or plant or other item is a known allergen to you, do not use it. Avoid any materials that may cause irritation to your skin. You may also wish to wear gloves and eye goggles while making paper in general.

They recently featured a piece on Adina Levin, the co-founder of Collab. Collab is short for collaborators, and is a Manhattan based company that plans on re-localizing the economy through helping designers, writers, artists, musicians and other creative people collaborate together to form a more sustainable world.

By enabling these innovative minds with the tools and space that they need to collaborate together, Collab hopes to get them inspired and working together, which will hopefully yield environmentally-friendly products and processes to help create localized economy.

One sustainable practice that Levin advocates–and is knowledgeable in–is making homemade paper. Levin uses a very similar process to the one posted here at Paper Making. She also promotes a messy, hands-on approach, often touching the paper pulp and getting very involved in the process. Her video and instructions are perfect for anyone who isn’t afraid to get messy and produce some truly amazing results.

Would using handmade paper really support a more local economy and a sustainable world in general? In a word, probably. By using 50% less energy and 75% less water–as well as creating up to 90% less wastewater and 70% less air pollution–than paper made from unused fibers, it definitely has less of an environmental impact.

First, select your paper. Feel free to use any paper you’ve made for this project–or simply using any paper currently in your recycling bin. Newspaper is considered an optimal choice.

Tear (don’t cut) your paper into thin strips. One to three inches is a good measure, but you can vary the size however you like.

To make your paper mache paste, you’ll need plenty of water, recyclable paper, and your choice of flour or white glue. If you choose flour, you will need to mix three parts flour to one part water until your mixture is uniform and smooth.

For a glue-based paste, mix two parts glue to one part warm water.

Before you begin to lay your strips of paper, be sure to have something to put them on. For example, if you want to create a mask, you may want to first shape the mask with some cardboard, a milk jug or another sturdy material. If your goal is an ornament, you might want to use a balloon blown to the size you desire.

Once you have this base, dip your paper strips into your paste and lay them onto the base. Each strip should be fully coated, so be prepared to get messy! Adding multiple layers can help, but be sure that your first layer is completely dry before adding another.

After your creation dries, you can paint it or decorate it however you like. Paper mache is great for use in piñatas, Halloween costumes, and Christmas gifts.

Many of these ways include other paper products, many of which we’ve already discussed. But did you know that many non-paper products use recycled paper as an ingredient?More than 5,000 items can be made using recycled paper.

There’s papercrete, for example. Papercrete is a construction material that’s just like concrete–only it has any source of recycled paper as its base. Its composition is anywhere from 50% to 80% paper, and puts old paper back to use in the formation of new structures, such as business buildings and homes.

Hospital gowns can also be made of recycled paper. Given how thin and flimsy they are, this may not come as much of a surprise! Dust masks, bandages, and other products we use on our bodies can be created–and often are–using paper discards as well.

While it’s not surprising that coffee filters, paper money, and egg cartons are often made out of recycled paper, the fact that globes can be created from old paper is a very interesting one.

Of course, insulation can be made out of paper as well–particularly for use in cars and pet bedding. Recycled paper can also be used in the production of lamp shades, wallets, vases, handbags and  masking tape. Even office furniture can be made with paper castaways.

Whether the subject is art, with the paper serving as a canvas for inspiration, or science, with the topic being recycled paper, or history, the paper demonstrating the lengthy process of creating papyrus, making handmade paper can enhance the lesson into a tactile and moving experience for both the teach and the students.You can use any paper-making process for the classroom. Here are a few things to keep in mind when introducing the art of paper creation to your students.

Sometimes there is a smell. Like a science teacher preparing a class for a dissection project, you may want to let them know this in advance, especially if you are making grass paper. Take precautions with students who know they have weak stomachs, and let the other teachers and your principal know what you are up to so they won’t question the smell.

Have kids bring in your materials. It’s not an especially expensive art, but allowing students to bring recycled materials from home can help them connect with the project on a more personal level.

Tag team with the shop class. If your students have a shop class, you may want to work with the shop teacher to see if he or she might be able to let them create their own frames in class. Then they can take the frames home and continue making paper there. Alternatively, you may wish to make it a classroom project as well.

Embellish the paper with found art. See if everyone can add something found in their pockets–lint? scraps from a note?–or something found within the school or the school grounds to make the paper more interesting. Show how you don’t need a lot of glamor or new material to create something beautiful and useful.

Make it fit with other lessons you’re doing. In an English class, you may wish to have the students compose a sonnet on aged-looking homemade paper; in science, perhaps plants can be used during cell studies.

Though rice paper traditionally means paper made from rice plants, today it can be made from just about any plant source, such as bamboo.

To make your own rice paper, you will need about a pound and a half of bamboo leaves, two and a half pounds of wood ash (such as from a fireplace), a big pot, a basin, water, a couple of towels, some mesh for straining, a mortar and a pestle for grinding, a wooden spoon, the frame you made for paper-making, any decorations you’d like in the paper, and some heavy books for pressing your paper.

To begin, shred your bamboo leaves and set them aside. Prepare your ash by mixing your wood ashes with your water in the pot. Boil the mixture for half an hour and let it sit overnight.

The next day, strain the mixture through your mesh. Mix your bamboo and the ash mix in the pot and cook it together for five hours. When it’s finished cooking, strain the whole mixture once again, and wrap the fiber that’s left in a towel.

Rinse the towel out with fresh water and squeeze out the excess water. Empty the fibers from the towel into your mortar and grind it into a paper pulp with your pestle. Next, fill your basin up with water and pour in your pulp. You should have about four parts of water to one part pulp. Stir it well with your spoon.

Follow through with the rest of your paper-making steps, and when you are finished, lay a piece of cloth over the paper before covering it with your books to flatten it out.

Dryer lint may not have been on your list of things to reuse, but it can actually be a good base to use for making paper.To make new paper out of your old dryer lint, gather the items you need to make paper out of any other material–your blender, preparation frame, sink or basin, etc. You will essentially be performing the same steps–just with something you may have thought had no use whatsoever rather than your recycled paper or grass!

Like any other paper base, your lint color will show up in your final product, so keep that in mind as you collect your dryer lint. Soak your lint in warm water for half an hour to break it down for blending. If you want a more full-bodied paper, feel free to add bits of paper as your lint soaks.

Next, blend it in your blender as you normally would when making paper. Use about a cup of lint and fill the rest of your blender with water; then, blend until it’s a smooth mixture.

Follow through with the rest of your paper-making steps and you’ll have a wholly homemade creation that’s great for arts and crafts, letters or other paper projects.

You may have already dabbled in trying to make your paper age quickly before. You may have even learned the hard way that burning the edges only reduces your paper’s size and tossing dirt and coffee on it will only make it look dirty and smell like a diner. (Though you did have the right idea.) If you want to truly give your paper an ancient look, here is what you do:

Start by making your own handmade paper, or using some you have on hand special for this occasion. Then crumple your paper up into a ball, as if you were throwing it away (but please don’t throw it away!). Then, after brewing a strong cup of tea, unfurl your paper and paint on the tea color.

Alternatively, you can use a very strong cup of coffee (see, you did have the right idea). You can either paint it on as you would with the tea, or actually bake it into your paper. Place your paper on a cookie sheet (after unfurling it) and preheat your oven to its lowest setting. Pour the coffee over the paper, sponging off any excess, and bake it in the oven for just a few minutes. Keep a close eye on your paper; it can catch fire. Remove it after three to five minutes and it will have a dry, aged look.

While we might save a few for sentimental value, most are fairly generic. Sometimes we can use them in scrap booking, or creating cool origami crafts or boxes; but for the most part, we’ve got an extra box of recycling to turn in.

Fortunately, this is a problem that can be easily remedied with plant-able paper.How cool would it be to enjoy your card–and then plant it into the ground to have a long-lasting gift of nature in its place? Every time you saw it, you would think of the person who sent it to you, and be reminded of the earth-friendly, natural gift of beauty from such a thoughtful friend.

While you can buy such paper, it’s also possible to create your own. You can use all of the steps in creating regular paper to begin with. Why not select some greeting cards for your paper base? Then they will already be infused with good thoughts and holiday cheer from past senders.

Now the variation comes in to make your paper plant-able. During the step where you add your paper “shake” mixture to a sink or basin, be sure to also add plenty of the seed of the plant you wish to be grown from the paper. Flat seeds work best, such as tomato, hollyhock, chili pepper, and forget-me-not. Then, follow through with the rest of the steps and you will have made an incredible gift of plant-able paper!

If you decide to give the paper as a gift in the form of a card, gift tag, stationary or anything else, be sure to note somewhere that it is plant-able and it can be torn up and directly deposited into the ground as seeds would be. The paper around the seeds will naturally disintegrate as the seeds grow.