Studying how paper is made turns a familiar material into an engaging design and technology case study for middle and high school STEM. A focused reading passage with questions help with students learning about recycled fiber recovery and wood prep, pulping, bleaching, refining, sheet forming, pressing, drying, calendering, coating, and finishing. Learners could connect chemistry and materials science by analyzing fiber length, lignin removal, sizing, fillers, basis weight, moisture, opacity, br