Pencils are made of wood and a special black part inside called graphite ✏️. The wood keeps your hands clean and helps you hold the pencil easily. The graphite makes marks on paper when you write or draw!
Some pencils have a little rubber at the top called an eraser 🧽. It helps you fix mistakes if you draw something wrong!
Pencils have two main parts: the wooden casing and the graphite core ✏️. The wood is usually from cedar trees because it’s soft and easy to sharpen. The dark center is made of graphite mixed with clay—this is what leaves marks on paper!
Some pencils have an eraser attached with a metal ring called a ferrule 🧽. The eraser is made of rubber or plastic.
1. Graphite and clay are mixed together and shaped into thin rods.
2. The rods are baked to make them hard.
3. Wood is cut into slats, and grooves are made for the graphite.
4. The graphite is glued into the wood, and another slat is placed on top.
5. The pencil is cut into shape and painted!
Modern pencils are a mix of engineering and chemistry ✏️. The core is made of graphite (a form of carbon) mixed with clay—the more clay, the harder the pencil (e.g., H-grade pencils). The wooden casing is typically cedar for its smooth sharpening and pleasant smell.
1. Graphite and clay are pulverized, mixed with water, and extruded into rods.
2. Rods are fired at 1,000°C to harden.
3. Wood slats are grooved, graphite rods inserted, and a second slat glued on top.
4. Pencils are cut, sanded, painted, and stamped with labels.
Colored pencils use wax/oil-based cores with pigments instead of graphite.