Slashdot Mirror
What To Cover In a Short "DIY Tech" Course?
edumacator writes "Our school is working hard to provide our students with relevant opportunities of study. We have a short 'seminar' period that meets three days a week for thirty minutes. I've chosen to teach a seminar on 'Home Grown Technology' even though I'm an English teacher and only an amateur techie. If you had thirty minutes, three days a week, for nine weeks, what would you teach a group of high school students? I'm considering the Wii-mote smartboard and multitouch displays, but I'm afraid I'm overreaching."
Morse Code.
Dave Barnes 9 breweries within walking distance of my house
See above.
# cat
Damn, my RAM is full of llamas.
Lego Mindstorms would be a good, fun place to start.
I'm considering the Wii-mote smartboard and multitouch displays, but I'm afraid I'm overreaching."
Not necessarily overreaching (I guess it depends on their prior experience), but those projects, while they have a definite "cool" factor, aren't particularly useful.
Personally I would stick to teaching them more useful stuff... maybe basic repair of electric appliances, or if you want something more advanced and that has both the cool factor and would be useful (at least to some people), maybe this DIY book scanner.
"Anyone who [rips a CD] is probably engaging in copyright infringement." - David O. Carson
Crop agriculture, farm equipment repair, and irrigation systems.
Kroger is NOT the future.
Pyrolysis of wood or other biomass such as garbage into carbon monoxide and hydrogen gas for use as a fuel for vehicles or cooking.
Go with basics: EM interference/signal crossover and Electrostatic Discharge. Each one can be taught in a 30 minutes session and would provide such a foundation to further lectures.
Bad Panda! No Bamboo for you! In matters of importance ACs will not be responded to. Want to say something critical,OK
I'm sure there will be many interesting suggestions, but to me it would be preferable to focus on building simpler devices which the students design themselves, rather than something fancier that forces them to simply follow a blueprint (because they won't have the time/expertise to design it from scratch). Of course, there will be a continuum between 'built from scratch' and 'paint by numbers'-type projects, with different levels of student involvement in its design, and you'll have to find your balance.
I've always thought that teaching something that combined science, engineering, and Vo-Tek would be highly practical in high school.
How about Small Engines? You can buy a small lawnmower engine (and a manual) and teach them principles of mechanics and combustion while also levening parts of "how things work" as well as basic repair techniques. Eventually you put the thing back together and start it up. You can even show how to mess with it to trick it out or solve common problems.
Not only would this get kids interested in science and engineering, but it would be practical.
-The more you learn, the more things you realize you don't know-
can probably be found in those "Things every man should know" articles, which should have a few tech-related items.
rather useful skill... develops a desire to learn more about computers.
i would spend at least a couple of weeks having them build and program some microcontroller projects.
here's a place to start: http://hacknmod.com/hack/top-40-arduino-projects-of-the-web/
Arduino is a physical computing platform based on a simple open hardware design for a single-board microcontroller, with embedded I/O support and a standard programming language. The Arduino programming language is based on Wiring and is essentially C/C++ (several simple transformations are performed before passing to avr-gcc). The goal of the Arduino project is to make tools available that are accessible, low-cost, low capital investment, flexible and easy-to-use for artists and hobbyists. Particularly those who might not otherwise have access to more sophisticated controllers that require more complicated tools.
Like clicking on a link in an unsolicited email is a BAD idea.
I took a course in 10th grade, it was some simple electricity course, Electrical safety, series and parallel circuits. resistors and capacitors. The final project was to build a simple electric motor. Including winding the armature and coil by hand.
I found this course much more useful in real life than just about anything else I have ever learned.
If I were God, wouldn't I protect my churches from acts of me?
I'm currently in high school, taking a handful or tech courses so I have a good idea on what the population wants.
First, one real to abide by, please: Make the work more about giving them what they NEED to know; as opposed to just giving them some busy-work (Put in some projects and hands-on labs).
Since programming isn't it for everyone, I'd go a hardware direction. First teach them what the components in a computer are, and take a few sessions to explain what they do (Power ratings, manufacturers, ect.) ;D)
Once they know the basics well, try to get your hands on a few old computers. In my experience, every school has at least a handful of old desktops, laptops, and a few CRT's laying around waiting to be disposed of (Or in this case, tampered with
Put the individuals in groups and let them attempt to dissemble and re-assemble the machines. If you still have some time left, maybe go into gadgets and consoles? That's sure to be a hit.
-P
"The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits" - Albert Einstein
What level is the School High school, Junior College? what is the tech Background of the students? How relevant to Life do you want the class to be?
If the class is High school level I would Start with Basic home networking and computer repair. with that as a base you can move in to DIY network devices For Example my 12 year old daughter and I built a home surveillance system over 6 weekends. 12 wifi cam covering the entire property all recorded on a 72 hour loop on a server in the basement.
I did something similar with 8th graders. Use short physical projects to keep them engaged. Have each student build a tower out of a single sheet of copier paper and tape. The tallest free standing tower wins. Build boats out of measured amounts of aluminum foil. The boat that holds the most marbles before sinking wins. Build water rockets out if 1L plastic bottles. Build bridges out of tooth picks, paper, and glue. The bridge that holds the most weight before failing wins.
Each of the projects can be completed in 2-3 half hour sessions with almost no material cost. These projects teach basic physics and engineering in a fun and competitive way. You can even repeat the same projects later in the term so that the second rounds of towers are designed with knowledge gained in the first round, etc.
First I'd teach some basics: Ohm's law, serial/parallel circuits, etc. Then using a transistor as a switch to turn LEDs and/or relays on and off. Then build up some AND and OR gates, followed by some address decoding and control logic. Throw in some parallel port I/O stuff in as well.
When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
Ask them to prove where Celcius and Farenheit meet. After they struggle, give them the equation as a hint. F= 9/5C+32
I would do a series on creating a basic home network, where you cover the basics of setting up a wireless network for their home:
1. Configuring and installing an off-the-shelf wireless access point.
a. Password protect your network (Basic explanation and good/bad about WEP, WPA, etc.)
b. MAC address filter
2. Configuring laptop to connect automatically to wireless network.
a. How to connect to network that doesn't broadcast SSID.
b. Profiles
3. Printing wirelessly
4. Accessing a shared storage device on the network.
a. Copying files to/from networked storage.
b. Mapping network drives. (Windows)
c. Backing up to networked storage.
etc.
If that doesn't take up most of the time, you could also teach them basic troubleshooting techniques.
Oh wait.. It's been done.
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
Seriously, how many photos of hot young girls in the mirror or even worse that look like they're trying to point the camera at themselves.
Do the world a favor, show them that most cameras have a self timer. Heck my Canon has an awesome feature where it'll crank off up to 10 photos after a custom timer delay. Plenty of time to 'get into position'.
"How to Make Noise and Break Things"
Thermite: intro class
Potato Gun: that will take about a month.
Tannerite (look it up)
Black Powder
Muzzle loading canon
All of these things could be a wonderful teaching tool for all sorts of physics and chemistry.
And social science when everyone else freaks while your kids stare with rapt attention.
And then for Political Science when your ass gets arrested to doing things that are perfectly legal.
"As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly." A. Carlson
If the school will let you burn things, try building alcohol burning camp stoves. They don't take long, and different styles can be compared/tested against each other in scientific method experiments.
The idea is that you want them to come back the next day.
If you are looking for "home grown technology", Instructables is pretty much your wet dream.
You got 27 half-hour sessions. At least three of these should be spent on basics if the students haven't already had them, such as soldering & desoldering, basic principles of electrical/electronics (including reading diagrams) and using a multimeter... one that measures capacitance, frequency and temperature if you can afford it.
And basic safety, of course.
From there it's really a matter of what, exactly, you want your students to take away from your class.
The multitouch display is neat but the bulk of it is programming; do your students have any programming experience? Do you have time to teach them?
Homebrew robotics can be pretty straightforward and inexpensive. A few stepper motor drivers (Allegro used to give free samples of their 5804 controller...), some stepper motors of course (Easily salvaged from dead scanners/printers), a spare PC power supply, an old PC with a parallel port and adequate amounts of wire can make a pretty versatile robot platform.
If you want something more digital, microcontroller projects might be a bit of an initial investment but are also pretty cheap in the long run. Build robotic platforms, embedded data loggers, "smart" appliances, etc.
$20 worth of properly rated relays and isolation components will turn a PC into a crude home automation system. Add in photo sensors, temperature sensors (thermistor + ADC chip), motion sensors, etc for a more complete system.
Keep is simple, keep it cheap, keep it interesting.
=Smidge=
You don't have to go overboard and etch your own circuit boards, but learning to solder really goes a long way. you can talk about cold solder joints, RoHS and the future of equipment failure. It would be great to show how to splice and insulate wires properly, how to replace a frayed cord on an appliance (huge money saver), and the basic safety tips about working on household current. teach them to read a wiring schematic while you're at it, and show them how to use a multimeter properly.
if you have 9 weeks and three sessions a week, could do 9 small projects, and maybe assemble a Arduino clone on a breadboard by week 2, which would provide a spark for other homegrown ideas by week 9.
What amount of time do you expect the students to put in outside of class? 30 minutes three times a week is not enough to much, unfortunately. It will take 10 minutes for them to start concentrating, and if you need lab materials, that leaves about 15 minutes of combined teach/work time before they'll be leaving.
Week 1: Bring in hardware that they can touch, and physically identify components on. PC, mobile phone, monitors, different connector types. (i.e. hardware you don't need, and aren't going to require ground straps for the students...)
Week 2: Show them the software side. Show them BIOS, what an OS is, drivers for hardware, services.... Programs utilizing said hardware: Games for graphics, Audio suite for audio, etc.
Week 3: Server-side, vs. client-side relationship. Show them how a web server works, and why not all browsers visually render the same site code, exactly the same ( unless coded to counteract that ).
I'll leave the rest up to you, but your options are wide open. Main point to all this, is put them in a hands on environment, thinking differently about technology.
its a very easy and satisfying solution (I wont use the P word)......
This sounds a little broad. Are you looking at it from a hacker scene? Electronics and Mechanical building? Electrical, mechanical, and chemical technology?
Most of the projects posted on blog.makezine.com would be a good starting point. While the wii is cool, it only touches on a small number of technologies. I would recommend having a final project in mind, and developing the skills required to finish that final project. For example,
1.) Basic electronics (How to solder). Use a kit from ladyada or sparkfun.com. If you get a small enough kit, a beginner can solder a kit in less than 10 minutes. (http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=9206 might be fun). Addon: How to use a voltmeter ...
2.) Basic programming (Create a simple program on the PC).
3.) Basic woodworking: How to use a drill, saw, and other tools Safely.
4.) Basic Plastic/Metal working: Create a professionally looking project enclosure. (Look at the proper glues, cutting methods, tricks for a decent enclosure)
5.) Basic Chemistry: Creating a mold, possibly making gears for # 6
6.) Basic Mechanical: Creating a gearbox
7.) Basic Plumbing/hydrolics/pneumatics: How to get water/air from point A to point B
8.)
The best programs will have an end project in mind, such as a small car or an elaborate prank. Each step will be directly related to the final product, giving the students a purpose and motivation to do well.
how about you ask the students what they wanna learn? because these days, oh man high school students are beyond our imagination!
Try an Arduino experimenters kit or several, depending on the size of the class.
http://www.adafruit.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=17&products_id=170
It would give the students some idea of how modern tech works.
Anything but "how to make a LED flash with an arduino"
Build a basic DC motor - copper windings, permanent magnets, bend up tin for brushes. Then after you've messed with the tech for a little while build a brushless DC motor. Build a little dynamometer and compare mechanical power out to electrical power in.
All generalizations are false, including this one. Mark Twain
Do not insert soldering iron into eye.
Instead of bomb making, take a lesson from bomb makers all over the world. Improvisation. Each week teach the students some basic principles, say, how electric motors or toasters or pulleys or whatever work. Then give them a range of materials out of which they can make their own device. As you go, choose items with which you can teach basic but important principles in physics and electronics. Later on in the course, do repairs on household appliances etc (pref low voltage or get an electrician on hand to take care of your public liability). Each lesson tell a short story about a cool but simple invention.
Man I would love to teach that course.
sudo mount --milk --sugar
I would think a lot of the stuff from MAKE! Magazine would be useful.
Check out the book, "The Complete Problem Solver" by Arnold ( http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Problem-Solver-Competitive-Decision/dp/0471541982/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top ) . Then use these methods for troubleshooting technical problems that abound locally, in order to teach principles. Take easy problems, and reward students for finding and reporting on useful examples of their learning during the week. This way you can find a variety of problems in different technical areas and keep them interested. Advanced methods of this sort are in, "The New Rational Manager" by Kepner and Tregoe and, "The Thinker's Toolkit" by Jones.
Basic Electricity is a good topic to work with, as is, "Caveman Chemistry" by Dunn ( http://www.amazon.com/Caveman-Chemistry-Projects-Creation-Production/dp/1581125666 ) . Remember, technology is not just about computers and electronics; it is a way of thinking. US Army Combat Engineering courses have pretty good low tech instruction (as do some Boy Scout courses) and basic Geometry/Trig problems in doing things like finding the height of a tree/cliff/building or basic astronomy principles all contribute. I'd suggest treating it more like a lab than a lecture. Good luck.
"The mind works quicker than you think!"
I'm making one right now with a buddy. Parts will cost you about $75 after you find your neon sign transformer.
Start out with the transformer. Right there is a lesson in power/watts/amps etc right off the bat.
HV caps are expensive, so make some leyden jars.
Hook up your coils and caps and you've got some sparks.
Then you can move on to inductance and resonance and tune the thing.
Add a rotary spark gap, terry filter, power conditioner etc as they learn more.
Get a couple neon bulbs, build a corona motor, etc.
I've got some experience in electronics, but in the past few days my knowledge is really starting to solidify.
Plus giant sparks are fun, everyone will dig it.
How about the original home grown tech, ham radio? Simple projects abound and the technician license is easy to teach and pass.
-- I have a private email server in my basement.
Teach them how to use GOOGLE and other online search tools to help them solve their problems. Got an error message? Don't bitch about it! Write it down and google it. Teach basic trouble shooting DIY tips. Future IT professionals will thank you for this.
I would encourage you to teach the students about project management. Put them into groups of three, tell them to come up with a concept of a project, and develop a plan to bring it to fruition. Have them search for resources among peers. Encourage them to form relationships with other groups so that projects can support each other. Teach them about managing resources - time, money, talent, etc.
Let them figure out the specific details of their projects and approach subject matter from a higher level - skills in leadership, teamwork, resource planning, and organization. This will encourage them to make their own decisions about what they want to do, which leaves detailed subject matter open to the students' interests and strengths. You could also take it a step further and see if you can get the hours in place towards PMP certification. This way, the education *directly* applies to a potential career after high school is over.
Everyone I knew back in high school who as into electronics was into it for one reason: Fixing guitar amps, guitar wiring, effects pedals, etc. In high school I built a solid-body electric guitar for a project and then did a demonstration through a tube amp cobbled together by a dude who is now married to my little sister. My guitar is beautiful... that amp, not so much... BUT it worked very well.
Maybe make a PA and a speaker cab, wire some pickups or something, etc... you're bound to have a few kids in class who play, and if they don't already know how to fix their own shit, you can bet that they'll thank you forever when they're able to -- repair work isn't cheap, but the materials aren't that bad if you know how to do a little soldering and follow a schematic.
Robots and things are cool to us, but this is something that's both cool, kinda geeky, and which the students will actually see practical value in.
do the lego stuff!
there are many schools where it is now in the courses for certain subjects!
it also can be used with many diff prog languages and also DIRECTLY uses the stuff from NI, labview i think. which is an industrial product.
also easy to prototype add-on boards
Pick up an original Xbox, walk them through a softmod and a Linux install, teach them to make USB adapters for the mouse and keyboard. Voila...you've taught them about computer internals, BIOSes, operating systems, and how to solder, and they thought it was all about video games.
Stasis is death. Embrace change.
You can get some pretty cool projects going quickly and easily with an Arduino. Combine that with Processing and you can do almost anything...
Unexpect the expected!
In a short time frame like that I believe a lot of the topics suggested above require more time then you'll have. My suggestions, which falls right into yours, is to teach them how to learn. While it seems like it's implied, very few people in society these days have the ability to learn on their own. In the DIY community this is extremely easy, given the plethora of how-to's and guides out there. I would say your first topic should be effective search techniques, part of learning is weeding out all the bad information and knowing where to find it. I myself believe the concept of "Teaching" is a dying art, as the true goal of it is to promote "Learning" which can be done any place at any time. Unleash the power of the Internet and the global community and maybe they'll go far. "Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime." Some good resources for the job, howstuffworks.com, ehow.com, wikihow.com, about.com and google.com. From those, one could amass the knowledge our ancestors only dreamed of. Hope that helps and good luck.
1. Basic customer service skills. I'm assuming you will also be teaching some about fixing stuff. Get your victim's/customer's/friend's name, and use it. Pay attention to what they say. Rephrase your responses until the understand. Try to leave them with a solution that not only works, but that they can see works, and can see if it fails. Stand behind your work. Be focused on your customer first, and then do the techie stuff.
2. Ethics. Same scenario as above. Don't go snooping around their hard drive looking for music and warez.
I come at this as a service tech, so I'm usually making stuff for people to use. Sometimes they have no idea what it is, just that it does whatever they need.
Of course, since you're more into the DIY stuff;
3. Safety. Glasses, gloves, long-sleeved shirts, safe work area, flammable precautions, etc. Oh, and tool safety, like how not to stab yourself with a screwdriver, and how to use a table saw (which the short version is, as if it will reach out and steal your fingers, cause it will).
All the other stuff is way more fun, so feel free to leave my suggestions until the last day of school.
I'm probably about 70% off-topic. Sorry bout that.
deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
To preface my answer: if you are asking what things you need to found a country, most people are telling you courts, money and laws, and I am saying something more like "air".
Cover some things that are the very basics. I am thinking of things like what is a bit, byte, hertz, watt, ohm, and so on (tailored to what you will be doing over the course). Also cover the SI prefixes and note the difference between 2^10 and 10^3. I would not, however, spend more than an hour (and even then, that may be too long) on it. Have them do a small quiz or worksheet (etc.) on it - whatever fits your teaching style. And then maybe have it be a single question on later tests, quizzes and what not to make sure they remember.
They need this because they need to understand the language of what you are talking about. The Slashdot page about poor computer salesmen underscored this when people related tales about being sold something like a piece of memory with a 2GHz capacity. Granted, this is a bit boring, but they cannot be as engaged in your class if they do not understand what you are saying.
Show them how to use basic geek tools to build drug paraphernalia. They'll already know they're not cool (if they're taking this course) and will be leaning towards drugs as a crutch. You'll just be giving them life skills while helping them help themselves.
a2t.org
I would teach them how to use a screwdriver, an old toothbrush, and clean a computer!
Along the way, they would learn chemistry, phyrics electronics and quality assurance.
result would be you could use the compters to build internet labs.
(although the MAKE! Magazine is an increadubly good idea!)
I think a course about learning how to do handle semi-technical projects in general would useful.
Cover things like:
* How to define the scope of the project
* How to identify the goals or requirements of
the project _before_ getting started
* How to estimate time to project completion
* How and where to search for information when
they get stuck on something
* Basic application of scientific method for
testing their project
I think this would be sort of a "project management" course but with entry-level hands-on and technical experience. I think the challenge would be to keep it from becoming to dry and boring, but hopefully that's where the hands-on aspect would help. I think the key would be to make all of the above relevant to a project of their choosing.
Electronics. people don't know jack about electricity. could start as simple as static electricity and giving shocks to people. you could make a van-dagraph from junk.. old soap bottles with paper clips make nice capacitors. then work towards a simple circuit from scratch--- a motor might be a nice idea but a generator / motor would be better-- ties into the 'green' movement; they could power an LED from their hand-made generator and a simple prop placed on it.
Could mess with solar, but the cells cost and are ez to break.
I've seen plenty of "educational" kits out there for doing solar and mini wind generators-- both are jokes but get the point across. The kids are expensive and a WASTE of money because it takes the learning out of it-- those things are no better than assembling a model of something. Actually, assembling a model of something-- as dumb as it is-- does teach motor skills, patience, attention to detail, and spacial relations. My brother is a shop teacher and kids these days have a hard time doing a half decent job assembling simple plastic models -- in high school!
Democracy Now! - uncensored, anti-establishment news
The only thing that I an really say is teaching them when to be afraid of opening things and when not to be afraid of opening things. I spent 3 months with the dreaded disc read errors on my PS2 before my brother could convince me to open the damned thing up and that I wouldn't break it or get hurt. Manufacturers do a damned good job of scaring the ignorant into not opening products for fear of electric shock, and the average user can easily fix simple things themselves.
If you have a few hundred dollars to throw at it, get components off of Newegg to build a low-budget PC. As an alternative, see if the school has a working machine that can be broken down to component-level and rebuild that...the parts don't have to be new.
Spend the time explaining the in-and-outs of each component, and get it all running in a case, with assistance from students.
Install Linux to instill the intrinsic value of "free" (as in beer) software and you'd have done them a great favor.
My $.02.
Seriously I deal daily with people who have MBA and have trouble opening doors! The ability to think out a simple process is underrated. Just about any thing which teaches people basic principals or processes is a great start.
try looking at parallax.com and there BOE (Board Of Education) it teaches basic electronics, computer programming, mechanical ,and how microcontrollers
Cigar box guitars and amps. http://www.cigarboxguitars.com/
Flexible bare-metal recovery for Linux/UNIX
That's about as "DIY" as it gets. You can teach about how pornography and technology has made it more fun, or something...
I have used Mindstorm kits in my classroom, and they are great (and actually cheap comparatively. I was able to get a 3k grant that allowed me to purchase 15 kits from Target on sale). They do, however, require lots of prep time to develop and test an idea before bringing it to students. A nice benefit is that there is tons of existing curriculum and books to help out if you go this route, which is the only way to go for classroom robotics.
My dad, a middle school science teacher, would have his kids make Rube Goldberg machines for a GATE class. The projects were always outstanding, and it really puts the focus on ingenuity and original design. Now, it's not really DIY tech, as the point is that there is no point, but there are many practical mechanical principles, and if you really get adventurous, chemical or electrical principles (which may lead directly to important first aid principles).
An idea that I have had, but haven't done, is to have students build a simple amplifier. The reason I haven't done it is that I can't figure out how to really make it a great educational experience. I want them to use the soldering iron, I want them to learn how to use a multi-meter, and that's all covered. But I also want them to do some design or discovery, or at least understand what's going on, and a simple amp design is usually going to involve an opamp, which isn't going to make any sense. Or maybe it does and I'm just not thinking about it the right way. A project like the Cmoy pocket amp would be perfect, especially as it can work with a super cheap opamp like the tl086.
"DIY" and software do not appear together often enough.
I would teach them how to create their own personal "apps" using Squeak. Use Nebraska to collaborate and share in class. Look for a few techies to help.
To get stared, try Sugar on a Stick and look at Etoys, a specialized subset of Squeak. (You use Squeak to create Etoys.)
http://www.squeak.org/
http://squeakland.org/
http://www.sugarlabs.org/
Nebraska: http://wiki.squeak.org/squeak/1356
Wider range of info: http://squeak.zwiki.org/SqueakNotes
A recent class at University of Illinois: https://agora.cs.illinois.edu/display/cs598rej/Spring+2009;jsessionid=3BA508D972A809064DC117DBDF7C36C8
Gary Dunn
Open Slate Project
Persistence-of-vision toys are fun and easy to make. They're a great way to learn how to solder. (You, the teacher, would need to download messages into them.) Kids quickly see the results of their work and it piques their interest for more technology.
POV Kits are available at many places online for $10-$20 each, probably less in bulk. One place I know is http://adafruit.com/
Read and use Handmade Electronic Music: The Art of Hardware Hacking by Nicolas Collins.
I think I saw this on Make TV. I can't wait to find more time to dive in.
...teach them how to say "Yes Sir" in Mandarin & Cantonese...
You've got to get their attention first -- impress them with something that makes them say, "Wow, that's cool!" This is particularly important when reaching out to high schoolers and others who aren't necessarily techies yet. While some "neat" algorithm or circuit may capture your attention or mine, it's really hard to visualize for people who aren't already in that mindset, so you generally need a good physical interaction to capture their attention and spark their interest in the first place. From our NerdKits DIY video tutorials collection, I can particularly suggest USB-Guided Servo Squirter (a water gun you can point and control with a computer), our iPhone-controlled R/C car, our Valentine's Day LED Heart with PRNG for a randomized twinkling effect, or even our Morse Code Decoder which automatically translates dits and dahs into letters.
Then, only once you have their attention and interest (they've got to be asking, "How'd you do that?"), you can go deeper into the underlying concepts and electronics and programming. Open up a dialogue, ask "How would you build this (conceptually)?", and once you've done that kind of analysis-style thinking on a few existing projects (learning to take things apart), the students will be empowered with the skills they need to start doing synthesis-style thinking on building projects of their own.
Only after that should kind of top-down, system-level thinking should you dive down into the details, like how to use printf and scanf in C for the LCD or serial port, or how to use interrupts in microcontroller programming.
Just yesterday I taught four high school physics class sections, 10th-12th grades, and we were able to talk about concepts around feedback control systems, sensors and noise, motors, etc all around a currently-unreleased project we're working on with our electronics kit. (Lots of links here, but I think they're quite relevant to my reply and show off how we do things in our part of the DIY educational space.)
So in summary, capture their attention with a few exciting projects, make them think analytically to figure out how they work, and from there, let their imaginations run with taking those projects in new directions or in coming up with their own!
The most useful and far reaching thing you could teach in such a limited time are skills surrounding how to structure online information searches, how to clearly ask the right questions when speaking or writing, who to ask various types of questions, and how to understand the validity of the answers (marketing, technical, or just FUD).
The students would then be able to make use of these skills to find more appropriate and direct information about whatever interests them now, and into the future.
- James
...could even make a blue box :-)
I second the basic electricity, diy motor, wiring a 3-way switch, high voltage (110 and up) safety,
take stuff apart - get old (free) radios, old VCRs, old lawn mowers, old motors, old washer/dryer controls, old computers, old electric drills, old wind up clocks,... take stuff apart.
Don Lancaster's TTL Cookbook, some 7400 parts, LEDs, fantastic fun.
Typing is the the most useful tech skill ever.
Living in Chile
How to take things apart. That's the best thing my father ever taught me. Everything comes apart and is made of smaller pieces. He had a shelf of random carp at the back of his work shop, any time I was bored or started to get under foot he would pull something off and tell me to take it apart. Water pumps, electric motors, alarm clocks, radios, chain saws, whatever he had lying around. But the key to is was after I took it apart he would sit down with me and explain what each part did. By the age of five I had a very good handle of how things like internal combustion, electricity, and gear reductions worked.
My advice, go to a thrift store and buy a bunch of old VCRs, radios, toaster ovens, and make the students take them apart and tell you how they work. I'd avoid any thing that has high power components like TVs and microwaves for the safety of your first time DIYers. Then save the parts and use them through out the class as teaching aids. Try to teach the idea of scavenging for parts by using those parts over and over again for future projects.
"You can see I know very little about pimp policy." George McGovern.
Here's a link for additional links with a lot of resources for teachers to get kids exposed to alternative energy.
Alternate, your choice on google, just look for DIY windchargers. Ton of hits from many sites, some freebie, some cheap plans, many interesting homebrew projects.
I am sure you meant to write: piñata.
Dave Barnes 9 breweries within walking distance of my house
I am sure you meant to write: piñata
Dave Barnes 9 breweries within walking distance of my house
How to pirate software and not get caught. How to set up a VPN. How to encrypt a hard drive to store their pirate software. How to set up Linux with 1024 bit encryption.
Oh and basic electronics.
Do-it-yourself Lego robot. Not very hard to cook up, and kids will enjoy the thrill of killing other robots in competition. (Because there WILL be a competition.)
Playing music off of Game Boys (i.e. 8-bit). I haven't done this, but I'm sure it could be fun.
Find stuff that's very hand-on (especially if they're younger), but involves a fair share of thinking and conceptualization. You don't want TOO much of that, though (by too much, I mean whole sessions of just thinking and no doing); that will become boring for younger kids.
Good luck!
Cool, good for you Dad! I took presents apart - alarm clocks, Christmas toys, etc... some mixed feedback... The gears were fun. Lots of free junk to take apart. Add alarm clocks, locks, maybe some vivisection... open up stuff still running... use a volt meter, an oscilloscope, etc the controllers in washing machines are cool... should be possible to get broken stuff for free from repair / used appliance stores
Do you have a near by AM radio station? crystal radio is cool. Also, you could get a KENNER HYDRO-DYNAMIC BUILDING SET off of ebay and have fun with fluids... o
Get a bunch of old comps with an ad in the paper or hit up Goodwill or a recycler and take all the ram and hard drives and optical drives and stuff out and then put them in a big arrangement. Then have the course members put together the old Pentium 3 and celeron and maybe p4 systems. Have them find the best working hard drive they can find in the pile and as much compatible ram as possible and install Ubuntu on them and then get them up and running and surfing the web and playing Chromium and stuff. Then let them take the systems home :) I do that just for fun and it's totally educational and green and pro-recycling and all that stuff.
Google's Super Secret Search Algorithm: SELECT @search_results FROM internet WHERE @search_results = 'good'
you should introduce slashdot to your students b/c im a college student and i freaking need to know how to get score 3 on this thing :(!!!!!!!!!!!!!! for my hw.......!! lol. but i think this would be great site for students :D
I've always thought that teaching something that combined science, engineering, and Vo-Tek would be highly practical in high school.
You can buy a small lawnmower engine (and a manual) and teach them principles of mechanics and combustion while also levening parts of "how things work" as well as basic repair techniques. Eventually you put the thing back together and start it up.
I did this in jr high, the school had a small engine repair class and workshop. I didn't take the class the whole term, I had moved and transfered to the school most of the way through the year, however I grew up helping others repair car and truck engines so I wasn't lost. The school I started the year at had a metal shop class I was taking however the new school didn't, the closest they said they had was small engine repair so I took it.
Falcon
Should there be a Law?
My brother is a shop teacher and kids these days have a hard time doing a half decent job assembling simple plastic models -- in high school!
This may be true, kids today may have trouble doing something we did growing up, but they have skills that didn't exist then. When I first got into computers microprocessors and microcomputers were only for hobbiest and were homebrews. The kids today that are the age I was then can post their own websites, even if only on Facebook or Myspace. I used to be able to work on car engines and repair as well as rebuild them, but now I wouldn't try to work on the engine in my car without first taking a class on repairing engines.
Falcon
Should there be a Law?
Ack, grammar failure due to changing parts of sentences and not proofreading the changes.
I though the multimeter's was
should read
I thought that the multimeter was
open source modern art: laser taggi
My 6th grade class spent a month learning how to, then building our own, and launching them at the end of the year. You can get into it fairly cheaply, and it can be as simple or as complex as you want, given your students.
Introduce them to the culture & ideas behind DIY movements to give context & inspiration to their ideas
examples > .org culture (it's about community not consuming)
- Punk (it's about expression not virtuosity)
- Independent Media (from zine making to micro-fm)
-
- alt tech (high/low tech green gadgets & sustainable systems)
Then, ask the students to think of one thing they want to talk about. Let them bring the items into the classroom with lab time to take them apart, guided by the instructor, and other students. They can choose junk in their basement or garage, or buy something cheap from a second-hand store. Or even from the local recycling center. Need basic tools, multimeters (inexpensive from Harbor Freight -- good enough for this class), etc Provide some basic instructions on safety and tool usage.
They might even figure out how to fix something.
Then, for the rest of the couse, each student does their presentation. (They also "accidentally" learn some presentation skills.)
The best way to learn is to teach!
Years ago, I participated in a "How Things Work" seminar at MIT just like this. Great stuff!
Clocks: everyone knows them, uses them, and thinks they're boring. So let them build their own.
27 half hours is more than enough time to learn to solder and understand the principal of voltage, current, and resistance. Make them solder the displays (individual LEDs shaped as 7-segment) first, as practice.
A clock is easily designed with a couple logic IC's. Give them a blueprint but do explain how it works. If it's still too hard, or too easy: use a microcontroller. Make the software for it yourself, or let them do it, depending on their skill.
The Anarchist Cookbook. Ultimate DIY.
Let's face it: in that short amount of time, you're not going to be able to teach an entire class the skills they need to actually need to make DIY projects of any significance (electronics, programming, system design, etc.). You're an English teacher - take it into your ballpark!
:)
I would lead your class in exploring their *creative* ideas about technology. That's where it all starts! In this modern world, if someone goes to school and/or lands the right job, they will have whole teams of technicians to work out the details. Being "creative" is a vital occupation in itself. Learning how to make the creation is secondary.
A curriculum I would propose is...
- List some ideas for technologies/devices/software/machines you think would be cool. (free-writing!) Discuss.
- Describe one in detail or draw a picture.
- List the skills you think you would need to actually design and build the one you have chosen. Teacher helps student fill in missing skills.
- Read some very introductory stuff on *each* of those skills.
- Build a model/write a story/create a presentation about your own technology.
If that doesn't take the whole time, break it into sections and have them repeat this process in each section for a new technology
OR
have them learn and report on each skill they need to learn about, one at a time.
More than anything, emphasize creativity, fun, discussion and research.
I love thinking about this stuff! Drop me a line at flash@earthling.net if you want to chat more.
You're class sounds awesome! I wish that had been around when I was in High School (though I did take a very open-ended Independent Study class in Comp. Sci. - there was just no mentorship...)
~J
This is the generation that must have GREEN TECH as the default setting for their thinking & making.
Inspire & empower them to use/create/customize technology to reduce their carbon footprint
You'll find plenty of ideas for DIY green gadgets online. Here's a few :)
- pedal power the lighting for the class room
- build a solar-powered ipod charger
- invent new uses for old mobile phones
You could also show them how to use iCyte to save their web research, instead of printing pages!
Pipe bombs would not be a good idea... in case you were considering it...
These are high school students so I am assuming they are coming from different classes.
2 Mins to sit down. I'm being an optimist here.
5 miuntes to explain what the project will be.
1-3 minutes to answer student questions.
5 minutes for everyone to get their materials out and start working.
At this point half of the class time is over.
Another 5 minutes to put everything away and pack up to get ready for the next class.
So the students have 10 actual minutes to sit down with what ever project is put in front of them absorb the information, try to get last minute questions answered, finish the project and turn in any homework/labwork. I think a 20 minute run would probably be a better option for everyone involved.
I would start with a steam engine. Get a basic hobby model and fire it up, explaining what's going on. Then attach a motor/generator to the output shaft and make it do some useful electrical work. Then explain that this is the same basic design that is still powering all their electronic gismos over 2 centuries after steam engines were first employed in industry. Try powering the same load using wind, solar, water.
Have an expedition to the car park. Start up a new car, put a kleenex over the tail pipe and see what you catch. Now do the same with an old clunker and compare the results. Explain why there is a difference and what is used to effect that difference. Move on to clean air regulations if there is time.
Get a pint of oil and find as many everyday objects as you can that are either made of or ultimately powered by the oil. Show how wasteful just burning it is.
teach them how "every day things" are made (soap, etc)
take some device they use without thinking how it works and dissassemble it to show its part then challenge them to reassemble it
If that's the case, the best thing is to examine what the students are actually studying and find a way to make it concrete.
I can't believe so many people are suggesting electronics projects. The Slashdot bias is showing. Very few of these students will make any use of electronics knowledge. We live in a world of microtechnology, not solder-and-wire. We can't even see some of the machines we use on a daily basis without a microscope. Do you really think it's meaningful to tell a student, "Ok, we're going to illustrate the principles behind your computer and cell phone by making some LEDs light up"?
For all the reverence Slashdotters have for breadboards and soldering irons, basic electronics are completely irrelevant to contemporary students' experience. Maybe ten percent of the class will have any reaction beyond, "Neat, when's lunch?"
Likewise for entertaining displays of chemistry and physics. It's fun to blow up stuff and make solutions change color, but then what? Again, you'll fire up (not literally, I hope) the minority of the class already interested in science, but everyone else will see, "Oooh, shiny."
You'd be better off teaching students to build something mundane. MAKE had a project recently to build a drawer organizer. It's very basic, but it's the kind of thing 90% of students would never consider doing. Need an organizer? Go to Wal-Mart. The project is simple, but it requires skills many students never exercise: planning, measuring distances and angles, evaluating materials, and even making a project aesthetically pleasing.
I loved the idea of tearing down a PC and upgrading it. That's the scale on which students can work without specialized equipment. They'll never build a circuit outside the classroom, but they'll be using PCs into the foreseeable future. It's a plug-and-play process, granted, but how many of them even know that desktop PCs are built from commodity parts, and can be assembled by anyone with a screwdriver and a spare Saturday?
Taking stuff apart to see how it works is the secret origin of every geek. It doesn't matter what you're disassembling, so long as you're disassembling something. Teaching students to break down a project into parts (and then break the parts) is the key to teaching underlying principles.
27 weeks? No problem. A couple of weeks for basic electronic measurement. A session on "Aggregating existing technology into a new format" Give examples, and let the students brainstorm. One suggestion is building a Jambox for their MP3 players. 1. Used 12V UPS battery, Obtain locally from a IT shop as they "Clean house" 2. A mid sized plastic tool or tackle box with a removable internal shelf. If the students are advanced enough, get many different sizes and let their creativity go. 3. A pair of speakers, look at Partsexpress.com for very low cost, or hit up the local car stereo shops and ask for donations. 3. A low cost car amplifier, This will be the most expensive item, and may prove difficult to locate them in a large number on the cheap. (But I did..) An alternative is the PWB from a set of computer speakers. You can also harvest the speakers 4. A switch to power on \ off the amp. 5. 1\8 phono to RCA cable. 6. If the MP3 player the students provide use a replaceable battery (A very good idea) include a 12v to 1.5v LM317 reg and 2 resistors and a cap for noise. Fabricate a dummy "Battery" and provide the power to the MP3 player VIA the LM317. 7. If the MP3 player is USB, a LM78M05 12 to 5v, and a scrap USB cable obtained from the local electronics "treasure bin" (Mind the alley. This would power the MP3 player. Assemble. Stand back and be amazed. I can assure you, every child that builds one of these will be the envy of their peers, AND these boxes will not be discarded. Once excited, and engaged your class will not fail. You may spark the development of an engineer or two.
... I'll have a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster with a side of Plutonium Nyborg
How about teaching them something they won't get anyplace else (including public schools): basic reasoning skills, plus how to spot fallacious arguments. I know it's not as exciting, but the world sorely needs more people who can think rationally.
Hey here's a goddamn excellent idea, while we're at it why not get techies to teach English?
Show them how to do this technology: http://www.rubber-power.com/ http://www.rubber-power.com/Gallery04.htm http://www.rubber-power.com/Education.htm
Inventor, Artist http://www.Rubber-Power.com
See http://space.1337arts.com/ Launch a helium baloon! Link above is to a group that did this for $150, including camera, GPS tracking, weather balloon, and helium
using affordable fullrange loudspeaker drivers and MDF panels.
A fullrange horn speaker is fun for example, and quite doable to calculate.
You should pick up a copy of the classic book that has certainly inspired many children to study science / engineering.
The Way Things Work.
Pick examples of mechanisms from there. Use a page or two from the book to introduce the topic. Then build a working model of it with the class. Or have the class draw up their own takes on the mechanism (modifications, alternate uses, etc.)
-
Paul K.
Start by explaining the Scientific Method, then move on to simple logic, simple physics, six basic machines, simple hand tools, fire & combustion. Each of these could be one lesson. All 'tech' comes from these. Then bring in a one cylinder four-stroke and put it together. Do the same with a permanent-magnet brushless motor. Teach the basics; they will learn DIY.
First, assuming this is high school and voluntary, find out what the physics teacher's lesson plan is (or, alternatively, history if they do any sort of tech history). Try, where possible, to make your projects relate to what they are learning there. If they are learning ballistic motion, make catapults or pea cannons, let them experiment with different forms of propulsion. If they are doing electricity, build a generator flashlight.
My ideal would be to have a different project each week, with maybe a couple of two-week projects at the end. For example, the flashlight, Day 1 would be wrapping the coil and showing that it can light up an LED while you shake a magnet through it. Day 2 would be storing that electricity using capacitance and Day 3 would be making a case to hold it, preferable out of something like a clear plastic bottle. Ending up with everyone having a flashlight, that they built, to take home.
I like the idea of designing and building a model rocket -- no plans or kits -- but try to push that by the administration.
I don't like the ideas of trying to throw in project management or communications or customer service that have been suggested. If I signed up for a DIY Tech Seminar and I didn't get to build cool stuff it would piss me off.
Even though I'm a programmer I wouldn't suggest going with programming, not even a programmable robot system. Perhaps a bump and turn turtle if you wanted robotics.
--
JimFive
Please stop using the word theory when you mean hypothesis.
I teach a class about PID control loops at 18-19 year old students in a technical degree in building mechanics and I'm looking into showing them more than the cursus objectives. I'll be showing them soldering, arduinos, basic PC repair and upgrade, potato gun construction, and thermal engine basics. Any other ideas? suggestions?
Gever Tulley really impressed me in this talk at TED: http://www.ted.com/talks/gever_tulley_on_5_dangerous_things_for_kids.html
Here's his blog on the Tinkering School: http://www.tinkeringschool.com/blog/
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." -- Albert Einstein
Teach them basic TCP/IP networking including DNS, DHCP, FTP, Telnet, etc.
Why not a make a grand challenge? split them up into groups and see who can make a robotic arm that lifts a certain weight or make bio-fuel to run a small diesel motor the longest? This way it builds fun and excitement and teaches them about science and how it can relate to everyday use, let alone the problem solving skills it will allow them to learn.
How tightly do you want to control the course?
Must everyone in the class perform the same actions or can this be a class project?
1. Have everyone bring in "busted stuff".
2. Look at what you have. Everything is made of parts that can be used to do something else. Taking things apart can teach you a lot too. Make a list of the parts you have to work with
3. Decide what to make: Teams come up with possible projects using the parts list. The class decides what the coolest thing is.
4. Make it. Here's where you find more teachable moments. Riff on math skills, tool skills, safety, philosophy, whatever!
Designing this course sounds a lot of fun, but quite challenging. You want to make the most of the kids' capabilities and past experience, while not disadvantaging too much those who haven't had much opportunity to make (or break) things before.
I really like Clockwise_Music's list. As a teacher, I am sure you won't forget that girls are people too, and you may need to exert a strong hand at times to make sure they get a fair share of the fun and the learning. Do listen to them about the tech they want to try -- and obviously to the boys' ideas too.
Do you have to grade their work? Whether you do or not, I strongly suggest some attention to making lab notebooks. If they all have access to computers then various software solutions suggest themselves, but learning how to make and use a paper-based system is also constructive.
Do enjoy yourself. I assume that an aim of the course is to teach them the fun of doing it for yourself, so a relaxed pace is best.
USB power.
http://www.google.com/search?q=diy+usb+power&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
You can do a ton of cool things with the power provided by the USB bus on a PC. It is a great jumping off point to other things.
An excellent resource is here:
http://www.teachmetomake.com/
The founders are happy to share insights and ideas!
From the website:
Teach me to make provides science workshops and classes for all ages. Our popular electronics and mechanics workshops for children encourage tinkering: taking things apart; building whimsical comtraptions using salvaged components, recycled objects and inexpensive supplies; and repurposing contraptions to different needs. Using both an artistic and technical approach, each child is guided and encouraged in the way best suited to their way of thinking. Our bilingual instructors are further able to engage and mentor children of varied backgrounds.
Watch out for mites.
birdmites.org has more info.
If you are right for the job in the first place, teach them to think. Teach them how to analyze. Teach them how to see things. Teach them the value of an open mind. Give them the raw materials of problem-solving, not the specifics of 'how to grow worms in your backyard'. Remember the old story about don't give them fish, rather, teach them how to fish? Whatever your choice of project, keep the project secondary, only an excuse to think deeply. Thanks for lis'nin' seekertom