What material are houses made of?

In my class, I am learning about materials. In my class we discussed different materials that houses can be made of. I have explored more about which material can houses be made of. My research showed that a house can be made of the materials sticks, straw, bricks, wood, metal, ice (igloo), glass (greenhouse), plastic or canvas (tents), mud or clay, stones. Now that made me interested. I wanted to make a few of these with the materials I had in my house. Then I learned about construction. Then, I made the houses that are very common and used by many people. I made a house with straw, sticks, and I got a Teifoc set of making a brick house. It was a fun experience and I learnt a lot while making these houses!

Can I build a house at home?

Yes! You can build your own pretend house with many different materials. I made a house with straws, sticks, and bricks. I took straws and stuck it on a outline of a square made from playdoh. The same way I made the other sides of the straw house. But this house was not very strong. It fell down and broke on its own after 1 hour. I also had to make it 2 times to make it stand. In villages, houses are made from hay, which is natural straw.
For the stick house, I took a few sticks (12 sticks) and stuck them together with tape. Then, I took glue gun and pasted all the sides. It was stronger than the straw house because it did not break. But, if I blow it down like the big bad wolf in the story of the Three Little Pigs, I could make it fall. I had to huff and puff to bring it down!
For the brick house, I took some bricks and I took some cement made of cornstarch, sugar, sand, and a few other chemicals and mixed it with water. On each brick, I put some cement (cornstarch, sugar, sand, and a few other chemicals) and placed it on the base. Then I put the next layer of bricks to cover half of one brick in the below layer and half of another brick. This is what makes the structure stronger. I tried to huff and I tried to puff but I couldn’t bring the house down!

What else can houses be made of?

Can a house be made of Ice?
Yes! Can make a house with ice and snow. It is called an igloo. It is found in Arctic region and it keeps people warm during winter months in that area.

Can a house be made of Wood?
Yes! In USA, houses are made of wood. It started because it was faster to make a wood house than to made a bricks and cement house. Then everyone started doing it. Wood helps you stay warm and it is lightweight and less expensive to work with.

Can a house be made of Plastic?
No! Because ordinary plastics are not stiff enough to make good structures. The house will sag under its own weight. But, there is a company in Colombia called Conceptos Plásticos, which is making houses from recycled plastic waste. I saw a Youtube video about it. They take discarded plastic and rubber and crush it to create bricks with them. These bricks snap together to create housing. There is 650 Tons of waste produced everyday. It takes 5 days by 4 people to make 1 small home.

Can a house be made of Metal?
Yes! It is more durable in bad weather. Many buildings are made of metal.

Can a house be made of Glass?
Yes! A house can be made of Glass. Natural light comes through the glass, but it is very hot if you sit or go in the house. It is also very expensive.

Can a house be made of Mud and Clay?
Yes! Houses can be made of stone, bamboo, clay, mud. But, they are not very strong, so in bad weather they fall. You also have to find the right kind of soil for it. This kind of house stays cool during summers and warm during winters. They are usually found in villages. There are also some houses made of cow dung. In jungles, people live in caves that are made of stone.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my research. Below is a video of the 3 types of houses that I tried to make at home to experiment. It was like the Three Little Pigs story.