Building a Shield Volcano

Paper and cardboard volcanoes are easy and inexpensive to make. You have most of the materials in your home. You will need:

A piece cardboard roughly 9 x 12 inches

Small vial (film containers work well)

Tape

Newspaper

Aluminum foil

Spray paint

Spray glue (optional)

Sand or ash (optional)

Shields are another common type of volcanic landform. They have gentle slopes relative to stratovolcanoes. Construction of a model of a shield follows the same basic steps as the model for stratovolcanoes.

Step 1. The Base
The piece of cardboard will be the base of the volcano. Tape a film canister near the center. The vial will be the lava pond or magma conduit.

Step 2. The Interior
The interior of your volcano will be made of newspaper wrapped in tape. Make balls from the newspaper.

You will need balls of different sizes. Use the balls to shape your volcano.

Wrap the surface of the volcano with aluminum foil.

Tape the foil to the bottom of the cardboard. Gently cut the foil above the vial.

Take your model outside and paint it.

To make your model look more volcanic add a coat of spray glue and sprinkle sand over the volcano. You can paint the sand black if you wish. You can add several layers.

This model is of a shield volcano. Shield volcanoes, like Kilauea and Mauna Loa in Hawaii, have gentle slopes. They have gentle slopes because they erupt very fluid lava that travels far from the vent.

Step 3. Eruption

The simplest and safest way to model an eruption is to mix vinegar, baking soda and a few drops of dish soap. We made two modifications. We added red food coloring to the vinegar to give the fluid more lava-like appearance. We also added alka seltzer (crushed and mixed in with the baking soda).

Volcano World, http://volcano.und.nodak.edu/vwdocs/volc_models/paper_card2.html