Aquila Children's Magazine AQUILA Magazine Best Bits | Page 11

THE KNEES-AND-ELBOWS* FORCE
(*not an official name)
Your pillow fort is going to get a few knocks and
bumps – a knee here, an elbow there – and you don’t
want it to collapse with general wear-and-tear!
To fix this, you could:
• Ensure objects are secured well, by using rubber
bands, hair ties and pegs to hold them in place
• Use books, or other heavy items, to prop up
anything wobbly like cardboard walls
• If something feels unsteady, don’t use it as a major
support for anything else, instead use another
support object nearby.
Engineers and architects need to make sure a building
is done right the first time, so they make lots of
calculations to figure out the exact strength and
direction of all the forces in their buildings. When
building pillow forts, most of the statics can be done
intuitively, and through trial and error.
Putting it into
practice: Get
Building!
Mind map
Take some time to think about what sort of pillow
fort you want to build. Do you want it to be light
and airy, so you can read inside without torches?
Dark and cosy so you can tell ghost stories till you
fall asleep? As big as possible, regardless of
everything else? As you go through the rest of the
steps, you’ll need to make decisions (and maybe a
few compromises).
If you know what you want out of your pillow fort,
and judge decisions against those criteria, you’re
much more likely to end up with a fort that you
love!
Make a plan and gather materials
Decide where you want to build your fort, and
which major elements of your home you want to
incorporate, such as sofas and tables.
Gather your pillows, blankets, sofa cushions,
smaller furniture and miscellaneous objects.
Gather your pegs, rubber bands, mops and
brooms. Assess your materials by their pros and
cons: are they strong, weak, rigid, flimsy? Different
materials will be useful in different ways.
With all the fun of pillow fort building, it’s easy to
get carried away. These tips will help keep you
safe:
• Don’t climb on anything that’s not sturdy enough
to climb on normally
• Keep hard, heavy objects near the ground, so
they can’t fall on anyone’s head
• One of the cool things about making pillow forts
is that you’re using objects in ways they weren’t
designed to be used. The downside is that
perfectly safe objects can become dangerous if
used differently. You can put a lot of weight on the
seat of a chair, and yet only a little force pulling on
the back of the chair can tip it over. If in doubt,
rotate the chair so the forces are pulling forwards
★ Be very careful when using electrical equipment
inside your fort. Lamps and stereos, which are
normally perfectly safe, can become dangerous
when surrounded by blankets and sheets. Never
leave these items switched on inside your fort.
• Now start planning! Where will your entrance
be? What different rooms will you have? Check
back with your mind map and balance what you
want against what’s available!
Get building!
Start from the foundations up. Move in the
biggest pieces of furniture, then start building the
skeleton walls. Place any cushions or beanbags
into the walls. Add extra support beams such as
mops and brooms or light washing baskets.
Finally, add cardboard, blankets and sheets for
remaining walls, doors and ceilings.
Things will almost certainly collapse at some
point!
Consider the situation and decide which force you
think caused the collapse? Weight, tension… or a
human bump? Then use the relevant
engineering tips from the previous page to
strengthen your fort.
Finishing up:
We would love to see your fantastic fort photos. Head to
the readers’ page at aquila.co.uk/readers-page and
follow the link to send in your letters, or send them in
the post to our usual address!
Add your final details – perhaps toilet roll
periscopes or homemade flags – and bring in
some entertainment, like books, art supplies or
music.* Settle in and have fun!
Words: Sylvia
SAFETY: