Engineering, Recycling, and Art Collide!
With the pandemic came many new laptops and chromebooks for students, and the exit of a lot of old technology. Rather than toss it all, they were “gifted” to me for students to use in this sculpture exploration. Students could “exceed expectations” on my rubric by bringing in old items from home to be used in their sculpture or donated to peers. Radios, vacuum, adding machine, gloves, shoes, umbrellas were just a few to arrive among others. To get the tools necessary, I did a small Donor’s Choose Campaign to get mini screwdrivers and tools to take apart computers and recycled items. If your school has a “maker’s space,” these tools might already be available to borrow. Key was to have enough for each child to have one mini-phillips head screwdriver as those were the most used.
To assemble sculptures, I had hot glue, 527 glue, and duct tape available which was enough for 99% of student needs. Some opted to use wire and tie components together.
I used the following videos to build interest:
For 2 or 3 days students focused on disassembling items I provided and those they brought. They had individual bins to store items they wanted to keep (Like a shoe box) and I set up some other boxes where they could “donate” their items for others to use. I discouraged students from “settling” on an idea because it would stifle their work. For example, I had a student who wanted to make a robotic rabbit… but did not have enough components to pull it off. Her eventual project was a sci-fi cash register that came out well, but she lost valuable time focusing on that rabbit.
I used the following videos to build interest:
- Sci-Fi Movie Props Auction (bit.ly/2Y9Qgvg)
- DIY Sci-Fi Tech (bit.ly/3F3jyft)
- Sci-Fi Goggles (bit.ly/3ih8Rwn)
For 2 or 3 days students focused on disassembling items I provided and those they brought. They had individual bins to store items they wanted to keep (Like a shoe box) and I set up some other boxes where they could “donate” their items for others to use. I discouraged students from “settling” on an idea because it would stifle their work. For example, I had a student who wanted to make a robotic rabbit… but did not have enough components to pull it off. Her eventual project was a sci-fi cash register that came out well, but she lost valuable time focusing on that rabbit.
After disassembly, it was time to “play” and explore what parts seem to fit together, and what they might be. Students could make their mechanisms wearable or as a stand-alone sculpture. One student brought in a garden work clove and turned it into a “Molecular HyperSonic Pulse Gauntlet.”
These are the directions I posted to Google Classroom for my students:
"Students will disassemble computers, and technology equipment, and recycle these materials into inventions that "look" as if they have a purpose that would fit into a sci-fi/Steampunk universe. Cosmic Wave Generators, Wormhole Portal Projectors, Shield Generator, VoiceBox Manipulator, Time Portals, futuristic medical devices... Mechanisms created should look like they "could" do something.
Items can be "stand-alone" or wearable. Though many supplies will be provided, to exceed expectations, students should bring in old mechanical objects (non-functional radio, digital camera, CD/DVD player...) or wearable objects (Gloves, Shoes, Glasses, Hats, umbrella...) to be altered into sci-fi objects. Though not necessary, battery operated lights can also be incorporated but nothing that can be plugged in. Guns or weapons of any kind are not permissible subjects.
For safety reasons, DO NOT open batteries or computer screens. They can contain toxic components. When in doubt, ask.
This assignment will have a written component at its conclusion. A title will be translated into Latin, and your description will be entered into www.csgenerator.com (Complex Sentence Generator) to make it sound more futuristic or other-worldly. This description will be printed and displayed with your work."
I had stations set up around the room for students to assemble sculptures; a hot glue area, tape area, spray booth, painting table, etc. Some students added patinas to their work to give them an old or worn appearance. Acrylic modeling paste, and watercolor Frisket were good for these. Even rubber cement can add interesting goopy textures for an “alien birthing chamber.” This was also an opportunity for me to clean out shelves with items I had no idea what I was going to do with. Students found uses for almost everything! Imaginations ran wild!
In the end, students explored recycling, engineering, reinforced their literacy skills and created sculptures that had the whole school talking. It was a fun experience!
These are the directions I posted to Google Classroom for my students:
"Students will disassemble computers, and technology equipment, and recycle these materials into inventions that "look" as if they have a purpose that would fit into a sci-fi/Steampunk universe. Cosmic Wave Generators, Wormhole Portal Projectors, Shield Generator, VoiceBox Manipulator, Time Portals, futuristic medical devices... Mechanisms created should look like they "could" do something.
Items can be "stand-alone" or wearable. Though many supplies will be provided, to exceed expectations, students should bring in old mechanical objects (non-functional radio, digital camera, CD/DVD player...) or wearable objects (Gloves, Shoes, Glasses, Hats, umbrella...) to be altered into sci-fi objects. Though not necessary, battery operated lights can also be incorporated but nothing that can be plugged in. Guns or weapons of any kind are not permissible subjects.
For safety reasons, DO NOT open batteries or computer screens. They can contain toxic components. When in doubt, ask.
This assignment will have a written component at its conclusion. A title will be translated into Latin, and your description will be entered into www.csgenerator.com (Complex Sentence Generator) to make it sound more futuristic or other-worldly. This description will be printed and displayed with your work."
I had stations set up around the room for students to assemble sculptures; a hot glue area, tape area, spray booth, painting table, etc. Some students added patinas to their work to give them an old or worn appearance. Acrylic modeling paste, and watercolor Frisket were good for these. Even rubber cement can add interesting goopy textures for an “alien birthing chamber.” This was also an opportunity for me to clean out shelves with items I had no idea what I was going to do with. Students found uses for almost everything! Imaginations ran wild!
In the end, students explored recycling, engineering, reinforced their literacy skills and created sculptures that had the whole school talking. It was a fun experience!
Google Slide Presentation HERE.
(Make a copy for yourself)
(Make a copy for yourself)
For more awesome resources by Eric Gibbons, visit www.FirehousePublications.com
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