How to Make a Model of the Washington Monument Out of Sugar Cubes

The Washington Monument is a structure in Washington D.C. located on the National Mall, a historic district surrounded with world-renowned museums and other historic monuments. It stands 555 feet tall and took 37 years to complete due to budget and political issues. You can replicate the simple obelisk structure with ordinary sugar cubes for a school project, or just to learn about history. The shape of the sugar cubes makes them easy to assemble and durable once glued.

Paint a 13-inch by 13-inch piece of cardboard green and set aside to dry.

Measure from each side to find the center of the cardboard square and make a small dot in the center.

Mix one part white glue with one part water in a bowl.

Paint the bottom of one sugar cube with the glue mixture and place the corner of the sugar cube on the point.

Paint the bottom and one side of another sugar cube and place it beside the first so the corner of the cube is also on the center dot.

Glue and place two more cubes beside the first two so that each corner is on the point and the four cubes make a square.Be sure to paint the sides of the sugar cubes with glue where they touch each other.

Plaint with glue and stack layer on layer of sugar cubes to the desired height. Since the height of the monument is 555 feet and each sugar cube is about ½ inch, you can decide on a few different scales. For instance, if each cube represents 10 feet, you would need 55.5 sugar cubes. This would make a model just over 2 feet tall. Glue the top two layers together but not onto the structure. Set aside to dry.

Sand the top two layers to make the point of the obelisk.

Paint the bottom of the top layers with the glue and water mixture and attach it to the top of the structure.

Draw a circle on the cardboard with a 12-inch diameter.

Insert an American flag toothpick every inch around the circle into the cardboard.