Our World of Wonders, The Eiffel Tower, a Thematic Unit Study

The Eiffel Tower was supposed to be built in Barcelona for the Universal exhibition in the year 1889, but the idea was dropped as it did not fit with the infrastructure of the city and also it was considered to be very costly.

Alexandre Gustave Eiffel's design was chosen from among 700 other designs for the entrance way that were submitted to the World's Fair design competition. However, many Parisians, especially artists, did not like his design and protested the tower being built. They thought it would be an eyesore, but once it was built, most Parisians soon loved the tower. During the time it was being built there was a lot of criticism around the Eiffel Tower. Guy de Maupassant ridiculed it as a "high and skinny pyramid of iron ladders," while novelist Leon Bloy labeled it a "truly tragic street lamp."

It took 2 years 2 months and 5 days to complete.

The tower is made of iron and weighs over 14.6 million pounds (7,300 tons). It features open latticework supports, an unusual design for that era. Many of the scientific principles used in its design and construction are still used today to design and build modern skyscrapers. Over 50 tons of paint are used to repaint the Eiffel Tower every seven years to keep it from rusting, and this takes about 18 months.

When Eiffel designed the tower, he bragged that "the French flag is the only one with a 300 meter pole." (At 984 feet, the tower was for many years the world's tallest building; modern television transmitters on top have increased its height it to the present 1,063 feet.), and it has a staircase with 1,665 steps.

Did you know?

The first great pyramid was ordered built by King Khufu (or Cheops), about 2600 B.C. This is the Great Pyramid, near Giza. It is 481 feet tall and 755 feet wide at each base. Until the Eiffel Tower was built in France in 1889, it was the tallest building in the world!

There are also elevators to take visitors to the top platform where there is a magnificent panoramic view of Paris. The original elevators, now computer-operated, are still in use.

The Eiffel Tower was to remain in place for only 20 years, but its antenna saved it from being demolished in 1909. Telegraph companies were using it at the time. Since then however the tower has played important roles for the International Time Service, transatlantic radio telephone service, radio broadcasting, and French television.

The tower has also become a symbol of Paris. It is the most recognized monument in Europe and many people think it is an architectural masterpiece. Over 200 million people have visited it since May of 1889. In 2000, a new lighting system was installed and a nightly light show has added to its appeal for both Parisians and tourists.

The cost of building the Eiffel Tower was $1.5 million which was a really enormous sum of money back then. This huge amount that it cost was all recovered within its first year from money received from the ticket sales for elevator rides.

Being one of the world's most romantic and beautiful monuments, people from all around the world come to visit the Eiffel Tower in huge numbers.

The Eiffel Tower is painted with a dark brown color, with the darkest shade at the bottom and there is lighting from within that transforms the Tower at night to look like a jewel box of gold and silver. For 5 minutes every hour during the night, around 20,000 light globes light up the whole of the Tower - and of surrounding Paris. On a clear day you should be able to see as far away as 42 miles.

The Eiffel Tower by Night courtesy of ->

Some truly great ideas I have come across from many different sources regarding a Parisian Themed birthday (or Halloween) party, and the ideas just flowed from there.

For a girls' only party a dress-up/fashion show would have them screaming with laughter. Have the guests bring a couple of changes of clothing, not going to any expense, because anything can be dressed up or down. Sometimes bigger is better, mom's old fake pearls, wigs, the sought-after Parisian cap, colorful neck-ties, striped tops and black leggings. Anything goes. And then each guest parades her outfit to the wondrous applause of other guests. Take lots of photographs! This might also work well with boys who are good for a few laughs also and don't mind dressing up and painting on the traditional little french mustache.

A few games that could also be a lot of fun include:

Play MIME DRAMA GAMES! Children will need to get dressed up for this as well. The fantasy make up will be a hit!

Play the traditional game of PETANQUÉ or French lawn bowling...The game of boules, otherwise known as petanqué, is perhaps the sport that is closest to French hearts. Similar to British lawn bowling or Italian bocce. However, with bocce the ball is rolled and with pétanque the ball is thrown.

Honoring both the art and fashion of France, play "artists and blobs". Have children work in 2 or 3 person teams. Ask each team to pick an 'A' and a 'B'. 'A's' are the artists...and 'B's' are the blobs. The artist (s) forms his/her partner into some kind of statue. The blob relaxes as much as possible until the statue is formed, then tries to hold that pose. (TIP: PLAY MUSIC while artists are forming blobs.) When art works are complete have artists walk about and admire each other's creations!

Strike a pose - a game to go with the above 'French Fashion' Theme
1. Form a circle. Each person chooses one other person in the circle to secretly watch.
2. Everyone closes their eyes and strikes a pose.
3. On "GO" -- everyone opens their eyes and begins to copy the person they chose to watch. (In posture, pose, stance, etc.)
Watch as the whole team morphs into the same pose!

Have an Eiffel Tower Building Contest. There are some really great ideas on this lens.
-Split kids up into pairs or teams.
-Give each team a set amount of straws and tape Example: 25 straws & 2 feet of masking tape (or more of each)
-Set a pre-determined time to build the free-standing 'Eiffel' tower.
-For teamwork and creativity give certificate for the tallest, shortest, straightest, most leaning, most authentic, most realistic, most unusual or unique, most original, most humorous, etc.
The towers should be left on display in the 'Open Air Market' or 'Cafe' area! (Maybe a wide hall area in the garden or living area, wherever the party is being held.)

Play 'Jacques Dit' which is 'Simon Says' in French

How to Make an Eiffel Tower Cake
from wikiHow


Ingredients

• 2 sheet cakes of choice (a sheet cake is a cake baked in a large, flat rectangular pan); the article uses a chocolate sheet cake with Ghirardelli chocolate chips mixed in
  
• Butter cream icing/frosting
  
• Fondant and food coloring (gray, red)
  

Steps

1. Bake the two sheet cakes of your choice. Let them cool.
   
2. Cut four 12" x 12" (30.5cm x 30.5cm) squares from the sheet cakes.
   
   • Stack the squares on top of each other. This will give you the base of the cake.
     
   • Shape the base by shaving gently with the knife down each side of the layered squares. Shape the base as shown in the picture here:
     
   
   
3. Using the remaining cake from the sheet cakes, cut three squares (the size of these will depend on how much sheet cake you have left over). The cakes need to be the appropriate size to continue creating the narrowing shape that approximates the shape of the real Eiffel Tower.
   
   • After you cut the three squares, stack them and then shape them as shown below. Ensure that there is a gradual narrowing to the top layer, using the image as a guide:
     
   
   
4. Once you have the base and middle section shapes correct size-wise, you can dismantle the base and middle section to start crumb coating each section. A crumb coat is a light coating of butter cream icing. Do this for both the base and the middle section. Only the base is shown below:
   
5. Since the real Eiffel Tower is gray, use gray fondant with gray butter cream icing for the majority of the cake. Color and then roll out the gray fondant. Then cover the entire base of the cake with the fondant.
   
   • Cut out the gray fondant to make arches on all four sides as shown below.
     
   • Use a red fondant for the middle sections.
     
   • Use a model kit knife to slice through the fondant. Do not worry about matching the fondant edges to each other exactly as these will be covered with a border in the next step.
     
   
   
6. Use a darker gray for the border and roll a brick pattern over it before cutting it into strips and applying them to the edges of the arch. This covers any gaps you have between the red and gray fondant.
   
   • It is important note at this time that you do not need to worry about any small bumps or blunders with the base. As the cake progresses, the small bumps and blunders will be hidden.
     
   
   
7. Cover the middle section with the gray and red fondant as you did with the base section. You can use a different pattern and color for the border if you want.
   
8. Start the piping, this is where any bumps or blunders will be hidden. Using the gray butter cream, start with the base and pipe as shown below. You can use freehand when piping, however, you could also use a guide by using a straight edge pressing in on the fondant and then piping over the creases. Use the image below as a guide:
   
9. Continue to pipe the middle section and then stack it on top of the base section as displayed below. Make sure you use dowels and cake pads between the two sections to ensure stability. As you can see now, the cake is starting to take shape:
   
10. For the top portion use Styrofoam covered with gray fondant. You could use Rice Krispie treats covered in fondant as well. Make sure you have a dowel protruding from the top portion so you can attach it to the middle section. After covering the Styrofoam in fondant, continue to pipe it with the gray butter cream as shown in the picture below.
    
11. Create a cylinder covered in fondant with a small tower at the top and attach it to the top section of the cake. Finally, you will need to assemble the top section to the base and the middle section. Your final cake should look like the image below:
    

Video
This You Tube Video shows the making of a wedding cake quality Eiffel Tower cake. You will see the frosting is done in a different manner and is much more fiddly!

Tips

• If you have small models, add a few cars, people, park benches, and trees around the base to make it appear more lifelike.
  

Things You'll Need

• Cake baking equipment and recipe
  
• Bread knife or similar suitable cutting knife
  
• Flat, clean surface to work on
  
• Picture of the Eiffel Tower to help your sizing (optional)
  
• Model kit knife
  
• Piping equipment
  
• Brick pattern roller (ask at cake decorator's)
  
• Dowel and cake pads
  
• Styrofoam
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Make a Princess Cake
  
• How to Make a Fire Breathing Dragon Cake
  

Sources and Citations

• http://www.cakenicing.com - Original source, shared with permission.
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Original wikiHow article on How to Make an Eiffel Tower Cake. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

More images from Make an Eiffel Tower Cake

How to Draw the Eiffel Tower
from wikiHow




Millions of tourists flock to France to view the tallest tower in Paris, the Eiffel Tower. Built in 1889, the Eiffel Tower was constructed as an archway to the World's Fair. With these easy steps, you can learn to draw your very own Eiffel Tower!
Steps
Front View or Profile Perspective

1. Draw the basic shapes of the Eiffel Tower. Draw a curved triangle and another smaller one inside of that.
   
2. Draw the levels of the Eiffel Tower. On top, just a bit below the tip of the tower, draw a line. Now, almost half way down the triangle draw a horizontal line and again half way from that, draw another line.
   
3. Draw a curved line (half an oval) as shown. This forms the arch at the base of the Eiffel Tower.
   
4. Sketch in details for each level as shown.
   
5. Now draw a series of "X"'s in between the columns. The sizes of the X's vary depending on where you will be putting them in the drawing. Start with the larger ones at the base of the tower and decrease their size as you progress to the top.
   
   • Draw in vertical lines through the Xs as shown to create the impression of the steel structure.
     
   • Add in the base blocks of the Eiffel Tower as shown.
     
   
   
6. Outline the entire drawing in a fine pointed marker. Erase the guidelines.
   
7. Color in the Eiffel tower. Although optional, this step completes the look. You are done!
   

Looking Up Perspective

1. Compared to the standard or profile view of the tower, this drawing is drawn as if you are looking at the tower from below, from a worm's eye view. Draw guidelines according to that perspective, as shown.
   
2. Draw in a much smaller curved triangle and smaller one inside that. Draw another thinner set of triangles for the back part.
   
3. Now sketch in the levels. Remember that the parts will seem to be closer due to the perspective the picture is being drawn in.
   
4. Due to the perspective, the lower inside part of the tower is shown. Therefore, instead of just drawing one to two half ovals, draw four of them, to connect the columns. Always remember to add volume.
   
5. Sketch in details. Draw in the X's and lines in between each column. Follow the image here as a guide for placement of the X's.
   
6. Outline in the tower using a fine marker. Erase the guidelines.
   
7. Color it in and you are done!
   

Video
Another method for drawing the Eiffel Tower.
Tips

• The Eiffel Tower is a wonderfully versatile drawing that can be added to cards, invitations, posters, paintings, t-shirt prints, pavement chalk drawings, and more.
  

Things You'll Need

• Quality drawing paper
  
• Pencil and eraser
  
• Fine marker
  
• Coloring in pencils, paints, markers, etc.
  

Relateds

How to Make a Teacup and an Eiffel Tower With String

How to Make an Eiffel Tower Cake

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual.Original wikiHow article on How to Draw the Eiffel Tower. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

More images from Draw the Eiffel Tower

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