Clay is a natural material made up of tiny particles of rock. When clay is mixed with enough water, it feels like soft, gluey mud. Unlike plain mud, however, clay holds its shape. Clay can be pinched, rolled, cut, or built up in layers to form shapes of all kinds.

Wet clay makes a very useful building material because it hardens as it dries. Clay baked, or fired, in an oven becomes especially hard and may last a very long time. Archaeologists have found pots and bowls made of clay that are thousands of years old.

Like many other minerals, clay is mined, or dug up, from the ground. Before clay can be used, it must be cleaned. Cleaning removes small pieces of rock and other debris, or unneeded materials. Sometimes workers add sand to the clay to make it stronger.

People use clay to make many things, including flowerpots, tiles, sewer pipes, sinks, toilets, and bricks. A very fine coating of clay gives certain papers a smooth surface. One type of clay, called kaolin, is used to make fine china and ceramics. Kaolin turns pure white when fired in an oven.

Craftspeople who make things from clay sometimes use a pottery wheel to shape the clay. A pottery wheel is a round, flat surface that rotates, or spins. Clay placed on a pottery wheel can be shaped into such objects as vases, jars, and pots.

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