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    • In this activity, students investigate some of the properties of clay1 such as moisture content, shrinkage and strength.

    By the end of this activity, students should be able to:

    • identify by appearance and texture the clay types kaolinearthenware and bull clay
    • determine the water loss that occurs when clays are firstly dried and then heated in a kiln
    • describe how shrinkage in clays occurs
    • state some of the changes that occur when clay is fired
    • effectively use top-loading balances.
    Rights: The University of Waikato

    Defining ceramics

    Dr Ian Brown, a senior research scientist with Industrial Research Limited, explains how the term ‘ceramics’ now has a more expansive meaning. Traditional ceramics are clay-based, but high-performance or advanced ceramics are being developed from a far wider range of inorganic non-metal materials. Advanced ceramics have the properties of high strength, high hardness, high durability and high toughness.

    Download the Word file (see link below) for:

    • introduction/background notes
    • instructions on what you need and what to do
    • discussion questions
    • ideas for extending your students
    • student worksheet.
    Created with Sketch. Investigating clay (word : 980 KB)

    Related content

    Before doing this activity, ensure your students understand what is clay and what are ceramics.

    1. clay: A naturally occurring fine-grained material formed from the chemical weathering of feldspar minerals found in rocks.
    Published 27 April 2010 Referencing Hub articles
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        2. A naturally occurring fine-grained material formed from the chemical weathering of feldspar minerals found in rocks.

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