Discovering the Invention of Paper in the Han Dynasty

Teaching ancient history in a homeschool setting can feel magical—especially when your children get to touch, experiment with, and recreate the technologies of the past. This week, as our study of the Han Dynasty winds down, we shifted from our usual writing exercises to a rich verbal comprehension and hands-on history lesson inspired by the story of Wang the Peddler and the invention of paper. This week we spent time discovering the invention of paper in the Han Dynasty.

What followed was a memorable blend of science, history, creativity, and a healthy amount of messy experimentation. The children not only explored the development of Chinese writing, but also retraced the steps that led to one of the most important inventions in human history: paper.

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Exploring Early Chinese Writing Systems

A few weeks earlier, we had explored the earliest forms of Chinese writing—pictographs that slowly evolved into the calligraphy we now associate with Chinese culture. The children were fascinated to learn that long before paper existed, ancient Chinese scribes used materials that were anything but convenient:

1. Oracle Bones

We had already made our own “oracle bones,” which helped the children remember that early Chinese writing was carved onto bones and tortoise shells during the Shang and early Zhou periods.

2. Bamboo Strip Books

Bundles of bamboo strips tied together with leather formed early “books.” These were heavy, cumbersome, and awkward to transport—even for adults, let alone messengers or scholars on foot.

3. Silk for the Wealthy

Eventually, silk became a popular writing surface among the wealthy. It was lightweight, elegant, and portable, but far too expensive for everyday use.

These challenges set the stage for an innovation that would transform not only China, but the entire world.

The Invention of Paper

Hemp Paper and the Han Dynasty: Re-Creating the Earliest Paper

The earliest known paper dates from the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC–24 AD). This primitive “paper” was made from hemp fibers, soaked, pounded, and dried into thin sheets.

Naturally, the children wanted to try this for themselves.

Attempt #1: Homemade Hemp Paper

Anticipating their enthusiasm, we prepared by soaking cut-up hemp bag material (repurposed from a peanut sack). The children took turns pounding it with a wooden mallet, attempting to break down the fibers into pulp.

Only one problem:
It didn’t turn into pulp. At all.

We learned firsthand what historians suggest: the ancient Chinese likely boiled the fibers to help them break down. So we tried boiling them.

Still no pulp.

Our biggest takeaway? A peanut sack is not the same as a hemp plant—and ancient Chinese papermakers had far better raw materials!

Even so, the children were able to spread what little fiber we had onto a frame and test it with our homemade Chinese chops. The ink absorption was… well, educational.

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Ts’ai Lun and the Birth of True Paper

The next stage of our study brought us to Ts’ai Lun (Cai Lun), the court official traditionally credited with inventing a more refined form of paper around 105 AD during the Eastern Han Dynasty.

According to historical records, Ts’ai Lun’s recipe included:

• hemp
• mulberry bark
• rags
• other natural fibers

This mixture produced a sheet far more recognizable as handmade paper, often dyed yellow—the imperial color.

Attempt #2: The Ts’ai Lun Recipe

The children enthusiastically tried again, this time adding soaked fragments of mulberry bark. The difference was astonishing.

The fibers became much softer, even without boiling, and the texture was noticeably more pliable. Using our homemade drying frame, we produced a small but convincingly “paper-like” sheet:

It was bulkier than modern handmade paper, but far closer to the real thing than our first attempt.

This experiment gave the children an unforgettable sense of how ingenuity, experimentation, and natural resources shaped the invention of paper as we know it.

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Why the Invention of Paper Hands-On History Lesson Matters

In a homeschool environment, hands-on projects bring history alive. Rather than passively reading about the Han Dynasty, the children:

• engaged in scientific experimentation
• practiced observation and comparison
• explored craftsmanship and early technology
• reflected on the everyday problems ancient people faced
• made connections between materials, innovation, and culture

It deepened their comprehension far beyond what a worksheet could offer.

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Hands-On Activity Ideas for Studying the Invention of Paper

Here are additional activities to enrich your homeschool lesson:

1. Make a Bamboo Strip “Book”

• Cut thin cardboard into strips.
• Punch holes and tie them together with string or leather cord.
• Have children write Chinese pictographs on each strip.

2. Try Simple Calligraphy

• Use small brushes and black watercolor paint.
• Practice basic strokes or simple Chinese characters like 山 (mountain) or 日 (sun).

3. Make a Silk “Scroll”

• Cut a strip of inexpensive fabric (or paper painted to resemble silk).
• Glue wooden dowels to each end.
• Write or paint a message or pictograph.

4. Compare Writing Materials

Give children samples of:

• cardboard (for bamboo)
• fabric (for silk)
• handmade paper attempts
  Let them test which absorbs ink best.

5. Create a Han Dynasty Life Sketchbook

After reading stories such as Wang the Peddler, let children sketch 13–15 clues about life in Han China—housing, clothing, markets, animals, inventions, etc.

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Reflection Questions for Your Children

1. Why do you think the invention of paper was so important? How did it help everyday people?
2. Which early writing material—bone, bamboo, silk, or paper—would you prefer to use if you lived in ancient China? Why?
3. What problems do you think Ts’ai Lun was trying to solve with his new paper recipe?
4. What surprised you the most during our experiment?
5. How do you think life would be different today if paper had never been invented?

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Tangrams

Tangrams were also invented during the Han Dynasty.  We had done some work during our last study of ancient China, and the children were very familiar with them. After many exclamations about how easy it all was, I produced this game:

This was such a find (in a charity shop for £1!).  It is a great game.  It’s tricky enough for the adults and yet possible for the children, and I can really see how it teaches you to think mathematically.

It is always great fun playing anything in our family, due to the considerable emphasis we all put on winning!!  We have to be the most competitive family and as the children have got older this has made playing with them even more fun.  They don’t get genuinely upset now if they lose yet there is enough teasing and reciprocal irritation (in fun) to keep everything interesting.  We played many pages of this game and intend to go through the whole book by the time we have finished Ancient China.  The object of the game is to create the picture shown using up all 7 tans, without overlapping:

Our food this week was a take away of sweet and sour chicken and rice, taken from our home school budget!