Workshops

Registration for workshops will be in-person at the conference registration desk in the foyer of Darwin Building.

The Tactile Picture Book Project: A Multidisciplinary Learning Activity for Secondary Students & Educators (Workshop A)Screen Shot 2016-05-31 at 15.10.31

When: Session S2
Who: Abigale Stangl
What: This workshop will introduce educators to The Tactile Picture Book Project, a critical making activity that engages students in the design of tactile reading materials for people with visual impairments.  Workshop participants will be exposed to current research on using digital fabrication to create tactile graphics and pictures, engage in hands on universal design activities, and learn strategies for using this socially relevant and multidisciplinary design task in a variety of learning environments.

Frankensteacher (Workshop B)Screen Shot 2016-05-31 at 15.09.04

When: Session S5
Who: Susanna Tesconi and Mario Parade
What: The Frankensteacher workshop is addressed to teachers and facilitators interested in open-source 3D modelling/printing tools and reflective practice. The aim is to reflect on our teaching practice through creating artefacts representing a teaching approach that can facilitate a constructionist, maker-centred learning design.

Participants will be invited to reflect in group about their teaching style in order to co-create an artefact, the Frankensteacher, representing a teaching style that can possibly improve making-centred activities. Each participant will model and 3D print a part of it and the final artefact will result from the assembling of the several parts through Lego bricks.

Keeping it Light: Getting Started with E-textiles in Schools and Groups (Workshop C)me-pano1-300x300

When: Sessions S1 and S6
Who: Caroline Finnigan
What: Led by local artist Caroline Finnigan, participants will design and handstitch their own light-up LED bookmarks and wristbands using felt and conductive thread. There will be tips and advice about how to use these ideas in the classroom environment and we will discuss how to save money by making switches and battery holders. Workshop participants will design and make:
1. An LED bookmark using a serial circuit, suitable for primary school children (using sewable components)
2. An LED wristband using a parallel circuit, using standard components.

From Pen to Pixel to Silk (Workshop D)Untitled1

When: Sessions S2 and S5
Who: Bev Bush
What: Join Bev Bush for this unique opportunity to enjoy some creative ‘play’ with watercolour pens and paper in an abstract and intuitive way. Complete your design through digital fabrication onto printed silk or organza and take home a unique personal piece that depicts your own character and backdrop for a game environment.

Bev has worked with many large publishers, including Disney Interactive, Sony, Jim Henson Interactive, on videogames such as Mickey Mania, Crash Bandicoot and Lego Starwars. As an Animation Background Artist, she has credits on many published and award-winning titles for children’s TV such as DangerMouse, Duckula, Wind in the Willows and HRH Prince Charles’ film of his book, ‘The Legend of Lochnagar’.

Wearables with Codebug (Workshop E)codebug-c-big

When: Sessions S4
Who: Claire Garside
What: In this workshop educators will consider Codebug, the ‘hackable’ wearable device, programmed by students aged 12-14 years during the MakerEd Leeds research project. The aim is to reflect on the process of the students’ design thinking steps and how creative problem solving added levels of complexity as ideas developed into tangible prototypes.

As an introduction to coding and physical electronics with Codebug, participants will first use the online drag and drop interface to create a scrolling name badge.  The hands-on session will also offer further opportunities to explore a range of digital making activities using the physical computing device.

Vibrobot (Workshop F) Screen Shot 2016-05-31 at 14.03.32

When: Sessions S1, S4
Who: Mathias Wunderlich
What: For a long time makers have enjoyed creating so called “bristlebots”, mostly made out of the head of a toothbrush, a battery, a tiny vibro-motor and some glue. Different types and variations have been created and some of the concepts are commercially used. Attendees will build a simple vibrating “insect”using refurbished wire and a few easily obtainable components.

1 + 1 = blue // Creative Thinking Gymnastics (Workshop G)1+1=blue_Workshop_poster.jpg

When: Session S5
Who: Dimitris Grammenos
What: Just like we need to exercise our body muscles to be healthy and strong, so we need to exercise our creativity in order to keep it in a good shape and not let it weaken as years go by. The Creative Thinking Gymnastics (CTGs) comprise a series of entertaining exercises coaching many major ‘groups’ of creative thinking (curiosity, imagination, open-mindedness, inventiveness, unconventionality, nonsense, stupidity, ‘stealability’, collectivity and fun). As any complete training program, CTGs start with a warmup and end with cooling down exercises. The program is targeted to brains from 10 to 116 years old.

“Build a House Digitally”: Introducing
Digital Fabrication and Architecture to
Vejle’s 3rd Graders (Workshop H)Screen Shot 2016-05-31 at 15.07.57

When: Session S2
Who: Maria Christine Andersen, Vanja Hansen, Kia Skovbo Ehlers, Ana Catarina Cabral
What: This workshop aims to introduce how to start up digital fabrication with preschool children based on architecture as an overall theme, touching upon theory from math, danish, craft and design, as well as art classes. The workshop shows two easy and hands-on exercises that will give children, at all levels, the opportunity to solve the differentiated exercise with success.
You learn to:
-Explore and understand architecture by playing with miniature building bricks in the structured exercise “Build & Talk”.
-Design a building facade by using a collage technique.
-Fabricate and operate the ScanNCut Machine. Correct and learn from mistakes.
The workshop is for beginners, teachers and educators but can be used by anyone who wants to introduce or try digital fabrication for the first time on a good beginner machine.

Using SketchUp with 3D Printers (Workshop I)

When: Sessions M1 and M2
Who: Dr Liz Granger
What: 3D printers are becoming more commonplace in schools and there is a range of CAD software packages that can be used to design and create models. In the UCLan and Ri Young Scientist Centre we use SketchUp, a free piece of software that students can download after the session on their personal computers to continue experimenting with 3D design. In this session we will show how we use SketchUp with 3D printers to design and print models. We’ll also highlight some of the limitations that come with using this software.

 

Getting started with electronics with the Raspberry Pi (Workshop J)

When: Session M1, M2
Who: Dr Simon Monk
What: The Raspberry Pi single board computer includes a GPIO connector that makes it a great platform for learning about physical computing. Rather than simply interacting with a computer through keyboard, mouse and monitor, you can attach LEDs, buzzers and sensors to a computer and then use programs to interact with this new hardware.

In this tutorial, you will be led through the process of using solderless breadboard to build simple circuits that are controlled by a Raspberry Pi using the Electronics Starter Kit for Raspberry Pi by MonkMakes Ltd. You will follow wiring diagrams supplied in the kit and then running ready-made Python programs. You do not need any prior experience of either electronics or programming and at the end of the session, you will be free to take away the Electronics Starter Kit.

How to Make a PCB (Talk A)eurocircuits

When: Sessions S6 and M1
Who: Steve Jones
What:
Eurocircuits are specialist manufacturers of prototype and small batch PCBs dedicated to providing a PCB service that will help PCB designers bring their projects to market on time and on budget. Eurocircuits is one of the world’s leading PCB manufacturers and provides a huge range of resources for students and hobbyists. Steve Jones from EuroCircuits will be talking about the fascinating processes used in PCB manufacture and key considerations for those in the digital fabricartion and making communities wishing to have their own PCBs made. slides

The Science of Superheroes (Talk B)tumblr_inline_mkbuf5kRPV1rfjshh

When: Sessions S3 and M2
Who: Matt Dickinson
What: Matt Dickinson is an award-winning lecturer in Engineering at UCLan and works within the Tribotechnology research group. Matt will talk about the scientific underpinnings of the powers possessed by fictional superheroes from comic books, how these powers can be realised and their real-world applications with the context of digital fabrication.

3D Printing the Future (Talk C)

WhenHadley_Brooks: Session M1
Who: Dr Hadley Brooks
What:
Hadley Brooks has been a mechanical engineering lecturer UCLan and specialises in novel manufacturing technologies and product innovation. His research interests include novel manufacturing technologies including: additive manufacturing, robotic machining & sculpting and electrospinning. Hadley will be talking about his research with cutting-edge 3D technologies along with their implications for digital fabrication now and in the future.