If you have a school project coming up on the urinary system, give your presentation added power by making a clay model of it. Mold your clay to mimic the parts of this system and mount them for display. The visual element will add interest to your presentation, and using modeling clay means you can make the modeled body parts as realistic as possible. You will need some basic supplies and the ability to sculpt clay in order to finish this project.
- Air dry modeling clay
- Cardboard
- Marker
- Box cutter or heavy scissors
- Glue
Use different colors of clay for each body part so that they can be more easily identified. For instance, make the kidneys red, the bladder yellow, and the uterers purple. Attach a legend that shows the name of each body part with its corresponding color.
If you don't have air dry clay, fire your molds in the oven to harden them before attaching them to the cardboard.
Sculpt the kidneys. Kidneys resemble beans in their shape, which is why we have a food called kidney beans. Take a ball of modeling clay and elongate it to an oval, then bend it slightly like a bean. Flatten it slightly on one side so it will lie flush against a mounting board. Repeat this for the other kidney.
Make the bladder. The bladder is a large shape resembling a light bulb; heavy and round on top, thinner toward the base. The bladder should be approximately 50 percent larger than the kidneys. Like with the kidneys, make the back side of the bladder flat so it will lie flush against the mounting board.
Take a ball of clay and elongate it into a skinny, narrow oval shape like a tube or a snake. Then repeat this step with another ball of clay to make a second identical tube. Flatten both slightly.
Let all of your clay dry. Meanwhile, take a cardboard box and cut a large flat piece of it. Use a marker to draw the outline of a human body on the cardboard, from the head to the thighs. Alternatively, draw just the pelvic area of the body. Cut out this shape using scissors or a box cutter.
Glue the pieces of the urinary system onto the cardboard background. Glue the bladder in the crotch area, with the narrow part pointing down. Glue the tubes you made for the ureters so that they are coming out of the top left and ride sides of the bladder.Glue the kidneys around the waistline of the body a few inches apart, with the bent portion facing inward for each kidney and each uterer attached to the bent part of its corresponding kidney. When the glue dries, your urinary system model will be ready to display.
Things You'll Need
Tips
Tips
- Use different colors of clay for each body part so that they can be more easily identified. For instance, make the kidneys red, the bladder yellow, and the uterers purple. Attach a legend that shows the name of each body part with its corresponding color.
- If you don't have air dry clay, fire your molds in the oven to harden them before attaching them to the cardboard.
Photo Credits
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