In my day, I was
probably best known as a printer and publisher. You don't have to publish your own
"Almanac" to be a printer. Here's a way to print your own energy-saving stickers for
your light switches.
Before you begin, though, ask an adult for help because you'll need to use a knife to
cut a potato in half. The easiest way to do this project is to print this entire page of
instructions. If you don't know how to print from your computer, ask an adult for
Here's what you'll need to become a printer...
- A pad of 2-inch by 2-inch adhesive notes (like Post-It Notes)
- A potato at least as large as the picture above
- A small sharp kitchen knife or crafts knife
- A sheet of carbon paper
- A stamp pad (at least 2-inch by 2-inch or larger)
Here's what to do next:
- Print this out onto paper so you'll have a picture of the potato with the
backwards word OFF on it. If you only need the picture of the potato, print only the first page not all the pages.
- Cut a potato in half making a flat surface.
- Use the carbon paper to trace the backward OFF and arrow pattern onto the cut surface of the potato.
- With the knife, cut away the unshaded areas leaving the backwards off and
arrow higher than the areas below it. (If you're too young to use a sharp knife, get an adult or someone older to help!)
You now have a "stamp" for printing your stickers!
Now let's print our energy-saving message!
- Press the raised cut surface of the potato firmly onto the stamp pad.
- Stamp it onto the top adhesive-backed sticky note.
- Remove the note and stick it
above a light switch, just like the picture on the right.
- Make as many stickers as you like.
- If your stamp stops working well, make anotherone using the other half of the
The notes will help remind you and your family to turn off light switches
when you leave a room.
Can YOU think of other places to stick them to remind you to turn things off?
Let's go back to Poor Richard's Energy Almanac to learn more about energy.
Click on my picture to take you back.
Return to Poor Richard's Energy Almanac.
Or if you want to go back to the Energy Quest HomePage, click
on the EQ.