Aerial Screw

Hello there. I am a little screw. Do you see my swirly, twisty body. I have lines that go round and round, all the way down to my pointy tip. I love to spin and twirl. Have you ever seen me before. Maybe you have seen me on a chair, or on a toy car, or even on a bookshelf. My job is to be a super helper. When I twist and turn into something, I hold it together so tight. I make things strong. I can also help move things around in a fun, whirly way. I am a very busy and important helper, and I love my twirly, whirly job.

My first big job was so exciting. I had a very smart friend named Archimedes. He lived a long, long time ago. He had a great idea on the 1st day of summer in the 3rd century BCE. Archimedes saw that people needed help getting water out of the river and into their pretty gardens to help the flowers grow. He looked at me, with my twirly shape, and thought, "Aha.". He realized that if I twirled around inside a big tube, I could scoop up the water and lift it up, up, up. It was like a magical water slide going the wrong way. The water would ride on my back all the way to the top. It was my very first job, and I felt so proud.

Now, my family is everywhere. There are billions of us screws all over the world. We are tiny, and we are big. We hold your comfy chairs together so you can sit safely. We keep the wheels on your favorite toy truck so it can zoom around. We even help build big, tall houses and strong bridges for cars to drive over. Every time you see one of my family members, know that we love our job. We love twisting and turning to be strong helpers, holding your world together, one twirl at a time.