1 Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities · The Tinkering Studio at the Exploratorium in...
Transcript of 1 Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities · The Tinkering Studio at the Exploratorium in...
Bringing Tinkering to School: Ideas for activities 2019*
© Tinkering: Building Science Capital for ALL ProjectThis publication is a product of “Tinkering: Building Science Capital for ALL” (2017-1-IT02-KA201-036513), funded with support from the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union. This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.
* This document is the first version of the outcome of the work between partners and teacher ambassadors. It accompanies the testing of the activities but precedes the implementation of the activities at the multiplier events. Therefore it will be updated at the end of the events if and where changes of the contents are deemed necessary.
This work is being made possible through the support, commitment, energy, enthusiasm, ideas and action of the partners of the Tinkering Project. A special acknowledgement goes to the Tinkering Studio of the Exploratorium of San Francisco, expert advisor to this project, for their collaboration and support. Our thanks go also to all staff from the partner institutions and to the visitors who participated in the project activities in the different countries.
PROJECT COORDINATOR PARTNER INSTITUTIONS
SCHOOLS INVOLVED IN THE PROJECT
ITICS Armando DiazMeda (MB)Scuola Secondaria di I gradoTeachers: STEFANO ALIPRANDI e ROBERTA ZUFFOLATO
ICS Viale LiguriaRozzano (MI)Scuola Secondaria di I gradoTeacher: FILADELFO GAETA
ICS A. ManzoniBovisio Masciago (MB)Scuola PrimariaTeacher: CHIARA GALLI
ICS A.SchweitzerSegrate (MI)Scuola PrimariaTeacher: VERA CROCIFISSO
ICS E. TotiLentate sul Seveso (MB) Scuola PrimariaTeacher: SARA BONDESANI
NLObs De Bogen Public Elementary School De BogenHarderwijk (Netherlands)Primary School/Scuola primariaTeacher: MARENKA DE VRIES
Pieter Jelles Troelstraschool Amsterdam (Netherlands)Junior High School/Scuola secondaria I gradoTeacher: MARK IJDO
EIMoyle Park CollegeClondalkin, DublinJunior High School/Scuola secondaria I grado Teacher: DEIRDRE BRENNAN
Santa Sabina Dominican CollegeSutton, DublinJunior High School/Scuola secondaria I grado Teacher: PAUL NUGENT
ESEscola ProjecteBarcelonaJunior High School/Scuola secondaria I gradoTeacher: FRANK SABATÉ
Institut Quatre CantonsBarcelona Primary School/ Scuola primariaTeacher: JOAQUIM FONT
ATNMS Anton Sattler GasseWienJunior High School / Scuola Secondaria I gradoTeacher: HARALD MATTENBERGER
Lernwerkstatt Donaustadt SchuleWienJunior High School / Scuola Secondaria I gradoTeacher: RENATE ERNST
EL6th Junior High SchoolThessaloniki (Greece)Junior High School / Scuola Secondaria I gradoTeacher: ATHINA AFOUXENIDOU
Junior High School EchinouXanthi, GreeceJunior High School / Scuola Secondaria I gradoTeacher: GEORGIOS EPSIMOS
This work is being made possible through the commitment and energy of the partners of the Tinkering Project as well as the cooperation and enthusiasm of the teachers who worked in each country to test the activities in the classroom.
INDEX
1 Introduction
2 Tinkering and science capital: how Tinkering can support inclusive teaching and learning in STEM What is Tinkering?
3 Tinkering and inclusive teachinG Science Capital as a theory Science Capital as a teaching approach Tinkering and Science Capital
4 Tinkering Activities at SchooL MARBLE MACHINES LIGHT PLAY SCRIBBLING MACHINES CIRCUIT BOARDS PAPER CIRCUITS
5 REFERENCES
6
7
7
9
9
11
13
16
16
16
16
17
17
18
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities6
Tinkering creates a bridging point between a learner’s personal interests and experiences and a broad range of possible learning outcomes. It offers valuable opportunities to engage all students in STEM and fosters a more inclusive STEM education. In this way, it is very much aligned with a Science Capital Teaching Approach: fundamentally, it is a highly personalised pedagogy, which allows the learner to follow their own interests and set their own goals.
This resource has been designed to help teachers integrate the Tinkering approach and the Science Capital framework in their practice aiming to implement a more inclusive science learning. It is divided in two parts.
The first part gives an overview of the Tinkering approach and of Science Capital, and is a shorter version of the resource “Tinkering and Science Capital: Ideas and Perspectives” produced by the project (the whole version can be found at: http://www.museoscienza.org/tinkering-eu2/resources.asp).
The second part lists the Tinkering activities that have been identified by the partners and tested at the museums with the students of the schools that were involved in the project. The activities are selected among the ones designed by the first European project dedicated to Tinkering and the ones designed by the Tinkering Studio at the Exploratorium of San Francisco.
1INTRODUCTION
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities7
Tinkering is an innovative learning approach that involves creating physical things using diverse tools, materials, ideas and methods. The activity design, materials and facilitation style combine to create a highly engaging learning experience with diverse outcomes. The learner is encouraged to play around with materials and tools. But this playfulness should not be mistaken for something trivial: Tinkering is highly constructive and purpo-seful. It encourages learners to pursue a project, idea, or personal goal according to their interests and personal motivations. It also challenges the learner to embrace moments of being stuck and unstuck. In this way it can help develop 21st century skills such as problem-solving, creativity, confidence and resilience. (Bevan, Gutwill, Petrich, & Wilkinson, 2015; Harris, Winterbottom, Xanthoudaki, & de Piper, 2016; Petrich, Wilkinson, & Bevan, 2013; Wilkinson & Petrich, 2014)
Tinkering activities often cross different curriculum areas allowing learners to work with subjects like physics, maths, art, engineering and technology in an integrated way. Participants in Tinkering will also find themselves asking the sorts of questions asked by scientists, such as ‘I wonder how this works’ or ‘I wonder what would happen if I do this?’.
While Tinkering activities vary in their style and content, they have common core features:
1 Something physical is created using tools and materials.2 The atmosphere should be playful, innovative and creative3 Learners follow their interest and can therefore pursue their own path of learning4 Outcomes are highly variable and sometimes unexpected.5 Although there is a broad goal given at the start, Tinkering activities are designed so that learners can add in or set their own goals. Therefore, they can progress through the activity in a way that is interesting and personally meaningful to them.6 The learner works on the activity by trying things out. They might start by improvising but through a process of iterative design, they can move from improvising to planning designing, testing, redesigning and refining.
The Tinkering Studio at the Exploratorium in San Francisco are the pioneers of Tinkering. Based on observations of hundreds of people taking part in Tinkering activities, they have developed a framework which describes the sorts of learning that Tinkering experiences develop (figure 1). This can be a useful guide to help identify moments of engagement, learning and skill acquisition when watching or trying out Tinkering. It could also be used with students after a Tinkering experience to help them reflect on their learning.
2Tinkering and science capital: how Tinkering can support inclusive teaching and learning in STEM
WHAT IS TINKERING?
LEAR
NING
DI
MEN
SIO
NS
of M
akin
g &
Tin
kerin
g
Initi
ativ
e &
In
tent
iona
lity
• Se
ttin
g on
e’s
own
goal
• Ta
king
inte
llect
ual a
nd c
reat
ive
risk
s;
wor
king
with
out a
blu
epri
nt
• Co
mpl
exi�
ing
over
tim
e
• Pe
rsis
ting
thro
ugh
and
lear
ning
�om
fa
ilure
s
• Ad
just
ing
goal
s ba
sed
on p
hysi
cal
fe
edba
ck a
nd e
vide
nce
Prob
lem
Sol
ving
&Cr
itica
l Thi
nkin
g
• Tr
oubl
esho
otin
g th
roug
h ite
ratio
ns
• M
ovin
g �o
m tr
ial-a
nd-e
rror
to
ne
tu
ning
thro
ugh
incr
easi
ngly
focu
sed
in
quir
ies
• De
velo
ping
wor
k-ar
ound
s
• Se
ekin
g id
eas,
ass
ista
nce,
and
exp
ertis
e �
om o
ther
s
Soci
al &
Em
otio
nal
Enga
gem
ent
• Bu
ildin
g on
or
rem
ixin
g th
e id
eas
a
nd p
roje
cts
of o
ther
s
• Te
achi
ng a
nd h
elpi
ng o
ne a
noth
er
• Co
llabo
ratin
g an
d w
orki
ng in
team
s
• Re
cogn
izin
g an
d be
ing
reco
gniz
ed fo
r
acc
ompl
ishm
ents
and
con
trib
utio
ns
• De
velo
ping
con
den
ce
• Ex
pres
sing
pri
de a
nd o
wne
rshi
p
Crea
tivit
y &
Se
lf-Ex
pres
sion
• Re
spon
ding
aes
thet
ical
ly to
mat
eria
ls a
nd p
heno
men
a
• Co
nnec
ting
proj
ects
to p
erso
nal
in
tere
sts
and
expe
rien
ces
• Pl
ay�
lly e
xplo
ring
• Ex
pres
sing
joy
and
delig
ht
• U
sing
mat
eria
ls in
nov
el w
ays
Conc
eptu
al
Unde
rsta
ndin
g•
Cont
rolli
ng fo
r va
riab
les
as p
roje
cts
c
ompl
exi�
• Co
nstr
uctin
g ex
plan
atio
ns
• U
sing
ana
logu
es a
nd m
etap
hors
to
e
xpla
in
• Le
vera
ging
pro
pert
ies
of m
ater
ials
and
phe
nom
ena
to a
chie
ve d
esig
n
goa
ls
Stud
ents
gai
n va
luab
le le
arni
ng
expe
rienc
es w
hile
mak
ing
and
tinke
ring.
U
se th
is �
amew
ork
to n
otic
e, s
uppo
rt,
docu
men
t, an
d de
sign
ass
essm
ents
for
stud
ent l
earn
ing
— a
nd to
re�
ect o
n ho
w y
our
tinke
ring
envi
ronm
ent,
activ
ities
, an
d fa
cilit
atio
n m
ay h
ave
supp
orte
d or
im
pede
d su
ch o
utco
mes
.
© 2
017
FIGURE 1 / THE TINKERING STUDIO’S LEARNING DIMENSION OF TINKERING, FROM:HTTPS://WWW.EXPLORATORIUM.EDU/TINKERING/OUR-WORK/LEARNING-DIMENSIONS-MAKING-AND-TINKERING
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities9
Recent educational research is helping to explain why some students feel more at home with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) in school, and why some students are more likely to want to pursue STEM than others. Outside influences –such as having a network of people to talk with about science, parents who work in STEM-related jobs, and trips to science museums - all interact to shape whether a young person will aspire to participate in STEM (Archer, Dawson, DeWitt, Seakins, & Wong, 2015; Archer et al., 2010; Archer, DeWitt, & Willis, 2013; DeWitt & Archer, 2015; DeWitt, Archer, & Mau, 2016; Godec, King, & Archer, 2017; King & Nomikou, 2017). These influences from home and the wider community have been categorised into eight dimensions of what is termed ‘science capital’, shown in figure 2 (Godec et al., 2017).
Research has shown that students with high levels of science capital (students who have access to science resources in their lives outside of scho-ol) tend to identify with and aspire to participate in STEM, both in school and beyond (DeWitt & Archer, 2015, DeWitt et al., 2016). On the other hand, students with fewer STEM opportunities and resources outside of school students (with relatively lower levels of science capital) are more likely to feel disconnected with STEM education because it does not resonate with things that they are doing or talking about it their wider lives (DeWitt & Archer, 2015; DeWitt et al., 2016). This has implications for inclusive STEM education.
3Tinkering and inclusive teaching
3.1SCIENCE CAPITAL AS A THEORY
FIGURE 2 / IDEAS FOR INCORPORATING THE DIMENSIONS OF SCIENCE CAPITAL CAN BE INCORPORATED INTO SCIENCE TEACHING. FROM GODEC ET AL., (2017)
SCIENCE CAPITAL DIMENSIONS
1SCIENTIFIC LITERACY
2 SCIENCE-RELATED ATTITUDES, VALUES AND DISPOSITIONS
3 KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE TRANSFERABILITY OF SCIENCE
4 SCIENCE MEDIA CONSUMPTION
5PARTICIPATION IN OUT-OF-SCHOOL SCIENCE LEARNING CONCEPTS
6FAMILY SCIENCE SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND QUALIFICATIONS
7KNOWING PEOPLE IN SCIENCE-RELATED JOBS
8TALKING ABOUT SCIENCE IN EVERYDAY LIFE
IDEAS FOR HOW TO BUILD THE DIMENSION OF SCIENCE CAPITAL IN STEM LESSONS
• A young person’s knowledge and understanding about science and how science works. This also includes their confidence in feeling that they know about science.
• The extent to which a young person sees science as relevant to their everyday life.
• Understanding the utility and broad application of scientific skills, knowledge and qualifications.
• The extent to which a person, engages with science-related media including television, books, magazines and internet content.
• How often a young person participates in informal science learning contexts, such as science museums, science clubs and fairs.
• The extent to which a young person’s family have science-related skills, qualifications, jobs, and interests.
• The people a young person knows (in a meaningful way) among their wider family, friends, peers, and community circles who work in science-related roles.
• How often a young person talks about science with key people in their lives (friends, siblings, parents, neighbours, community members).
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities11
A new ‘Science Capital Teaching Approach’ has recently been developed by teachers and researchers in the UK (Godec et al., 2017) and is summarised in figure 3. In this approach students who have low science capital are not seen as having something wrong that needs to be fixed. Rather, the focus is on adapting the teaching and learning context so that it better connects with and more deeply values the existing interests and experiences of the students (Godec et al., 2017). The approach recognises that what might be in-teresting and relevant for one student may not be for another. The teacher therefore needs to find ways to make the STEM classroom environment one that welcomes, connects with and deeply values everyone’s interests and perspectives, not just those who already feel that they are a ‘science kind of person’.
This does not mean creating new curriculum, but rather it requires a shift in the teacher’s mindset and practice so that they ‘broaden what counts’ as teaching and learning in the science classroom (Godec et al., 2017). At a very basic level, this ap-proach asks educational practitioners to explore and understand all of the wider experiences that influence a young person’s science identity and STEM aspirations (the eight dimensions of science capital), in order to create learning experiences that value a broader range of lived experiences and which help young people to understand how their lives can and do relate to STEM in a perso-nally meaningful way.
3.2SCIENCE CAPITAL AS A TEACHING APPROACH
FIGURE 3THREE PILLARS MODEL FOR UNDERSTANDINGTHE SCIENCE CAPITAL TEACHING APPROACH. FROM GODEC ET AL. (2017)
You can find more information on this teaching approach fromhttps://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/departments-centres/departments/education-practice-and-society/ science-capital-research/pdfs/the-science-capital-teaching-approach-pack-for-teachers
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities13
Tinkering has large potential to engage studen-ts who are facing social, economic or cultural disadvantage with STEM. It creates a bridging point between a learner’s personal interests and experiences and a broad range of possible lear-ning outcomes. In this way, Tinkering is very much aligned with a Science Capital Teaching Approach: fundamentally, it is a highly personalised pedago-gy, which allows the learner to follow their own interests and set their own goals. Table 1 explores the relationship between Tinkering and a Science Capital Teaching Approach.
3.3TINKERING AND SCIENCE CAPITAL
TIN
KER
ING
IN T
HIS
CO
NTE
XTSC
IEN
CE C
API
TAL
TEAC
HIN
G A
PPR
OACH
LEV
EL
(AD
APT
ED F
RO
M G
OD
EC E
T A
L 20
17)
FOU
ND
ATIO
N L
EVEL
: B
RO
AD
ENIN
G W
HAT
CO
UN
TS•
reco
gnis
ing
a br
oad
rang
e of
exp
erie
nces
,
skill
s an
d be
havi
ours
as
havi
ng a
legi
timat
e
pl
ace
in th
e st
em c
lass
room
• en
suri
ng a
ll st
uden
ts fe
el th
ey c
an c
ontr
ibut
e
info
rmat
ion
and
idea
s fr
om th
eir
lived
exp
erie
nces
and
that
thes
e ar
e va
lid a
nd w
ill b
e va
lued
.
PIL
LAR
1: P
ERSO
NA
LISI
NG
AN
D L
OCA
LISI
NG
•
Hel
ping
stu
dent
s se
e ho
w th
eir
inte
rest
s,
at
titud
es a
nd e
xper
ienc
es o
utsi
de o
f sch
ool
re
late
to S
TEM
. •
Pra
ctiti
oner
s bu
ild S
TEM
lear
ning
exp
erie
nces
from
stu
dent
s’ e
xist
ing
inte
rest
s an
d id
eas
and
mak
e
conn
ectio
ns w
ith s
tude
nts’
loca
l liv
es a
nd c
omm
uniti
es.
• P
erso
nal c
onte
xts
link
the
lear
ning
to th
e
‘h
ere
and
now
’of s
tude
nts’
eve
ryda
y liv
es.
Th
is c
an h
elp
stud
ents
who
may
not
per
ceiv
e
them
selv
es a
s ‘s
cien
cey’
to r
elat
e to
STE
M.
PIL
LAR
2. E
LIC
ITIN
G, V
ALU
ING
AN
D L
INK
ING
• U
sing
ope
n qu
estio
ning
tech
niqu
es to
elic
it kn
owle
dge
th
at c
omes
from
the
cont
ext o
f stu
dent
s’ h
ome
and
com
mun
ity li
fe.
• Fo
llow
ing-
up o
n co
mm
ents
and
link
ing
thes
e to
STE
M
lear
ning
con
text
s to
hel
p de
mon
stra
te th
at th
ese
ex
peri
ence
s ar
e va
lued
and
val
id.
• M
akin
g ef
fort
s to
incl
ude
all s
tude
nts
in le
sson
s,
es
peci
ally
thos
e w
ho m
ight
be
quie
t or
shy.
PIL
LAR
3: B
UIL
DIN
G T
HE
SCIE
NC
E CA
PIT
AL
DIM
ENSI
ON
S•
Ref
lect
ing
on th
e ei
ght d
imen
sion
s of
sci
ence
cap
ital
and
to tr
ying
to li
nk to
thes
e to
bui
ld th
ese
sort
s
of
res
ourc
es a
nd w
ays
of th
inki
ng.
• B
y us
ing
Tink
erin
g in
the
STEM
cur
ricu
lum
, pra
ctiti
oner
s ca
n de
mon
stra
te th
at p
erso
nal a
ttri
bute
s su
ch a
s cu
rios
ity
an
d re
silie
nce,
and
ski
lls s
uch
as q
uest
ioni
ng, a
nd te
stin
g id
eas
are
valu
ed in
STE
M, a
nd th
at S
TEM
is n
ot ju
st a
bout
lear
ning
fact
s
or g
ettin
g th
e ‘r
ight
’ ans
wer
. •
The
play
ful,
crea
tive
natu
re o
f Tin
keri
ng a
nd it
s fo
cus
on it
erat
ive
desi
gn (d
esig
n, m
ake,
test
, tw
eak,
ref
ine,
re-
desi
gn) e
ncou
rage
s an
und
erst
andi
ng
of th
e ex
peri
men
tal n
atur
e of
STE
M, a
nd o
f lea
rnin
g th
roug
h m
ista
kes
and
unex
pect
ed o
utco
mes
– r
athe
r th
an s
impl
y le
arni
ng fa
cts
or g
ettin
g
th
e ‘r
ight
’ ans
wer
for
test
s an
d ex
ams.
• Th
e en
viro
nmen
t in
whi
ch T
inke
ring
take
s pl
ace
is o
ne th
at is
wel
com
ing,
sup
port
ive
and
whi
ch v
alue
s id
eas
and
indi
vidu
al c
ontr
ibut
ions
,
incl
udin
g pe
rson
al r
espo
nses
.•
Faci
litat
ors
aim
to s
hare
and
cel
ebra
te m
omen
ts o
f won
der
as w
ell a
s in
tere
stin
g th
ough
ts a
nd e
xper
ienc
es th
at le
arne
rs h
ave.
• Ti
nker
ing
is a
hig
hly
pers
onal
exp
erie
nce
that
aim
s to
spa
rk a
nd m
aint
ain
inte
rest
by
allo
win
g th
e le
arne
r to
set
thei
r ow
n go
als
and
follo
w th
eir
inte
rest
s.•
Par
ticip
ants
follo
w a
per
sona
l pro
ject
that
is in
divi
dual
ly m
eani
ngfu
l and
bui
lds
fr
om th
eir
exis
ting
know
ledg
e an
d id
eas.
•
Tink
erin
g ca
n pr
ovid
e op
port
uniti
es to
cre
ate
pers
onal
ised
lear
ning
exp
erie
nces
th
at d
raw
upo
n in
divi
dual
inte
rest
s or
car
eer
aspi
ratio
ns.
• Ti
nker
ing
faci
litat
ion
atte
mpt
s to
hel
p th
e le
arne
r bu
ild c
onne
ctio
ns b
etw
een
thei
r
Tink
erin
g ex
peri
ence
and
out
side
inte
rest
s.
• Ti
nker
ing
ofte
n ta
kes
plac
e in
out
of s
choo
l con
text
s. T
his
coul
d co
ntri
bute
to d
imen
sion
5.
• Ti
nker
ing
can
enco
urag
e le
arne
rs to
talk
abo
ut s
cien
ce in
thei
r ev
eryd
ay li
ves.
Thi
s co
uld
cont
ribu
te to
dim
ensi
on 8
.•
Tink
erin
g ac
tiviti
es o
ften
dem
onst
rate
the
tran
sfer
able
nat
ure
of S
TEM
ski
lls b
ecau
se th
ey c
onne
ct a
nd w
ork
acro
ss d
iffer
ent m
edia
,
met
hods
and
dis
cipl
ines
. Thi
s co
uld
cont
ribu
te to
dim
ensi
on 3
.•
Ther
e ar
e m
any
poss
ible
sci
entif
ic li
tera
cy g
ains
for
lear
ners
taki
ng p
art i
n Ti
nker
ing.
For
exa
mpl
e, s
tude
nts
mig
ht le
arn
abou
t the
pro
pert
ies
of m
ater
ials
whe
n ch
oosi
ng w
hat t
o us
e, o
r th
ey m
ight
gai
n a
deep
er u
nder
stan
ding
of t
he im
port
ance
of c
ontr
ollin
g va
riab
les
whe
n te
stin
g a
hypo
thes
is.
This
cou
ld c
ontr
ibut
e to
bui
ld d
imen
sion
1.
• Th
e Ti
nker
ing
envi
ronm
ent (
ever
ythi
ng m
akin
g up
the
Tink
erin
g ac
tivity
incl
udin
g th
e m
ater
ials
and
faci
litat
ion)
pro
vide
s a
safe
, non
-jud
gem
enta
l
spac
e fo
r le
arne
rs to
exp
ress
them
selv
es a
nd th
eir
idea
s w
ith c
ompl
ete
free
dom
of e
xpre
ssio
n.
• Th
e Ti
nker
ing
envi
ronm
ent i
s a
‘flat
spa
ce’ w
here
teac
hers
faci
litat
e, a
nd o
ften
col
labo
rate
with
lear
ners
, rat
her
than
dir
ectin
g th
e le
arni
ng jo
urne
y.•
Faci
litat
ion
of T
inke
ring
is s
truc
ture
d ar
ound
ope
n qu
estio
ns. I
t als
o ce
lebr
ates
and
val
ues
wha
t the
lear
ner
is fe
elin
g, e
xper
ienc
ing
and
tryi
ng o
ut,
ra
ther
than
focu
ssin
g on
‘cor
rect
’ or
pre-
dete
rmin
ed o
utco
mes
. •
Tink
erin
g de
eply
val
ues
pers
onal
exp
erie
nce.
The
lear
ner
to p
ursu
es in
divi
dual
inte
rest
and
eng
ages
in a
ctiv
ities
that
are
per
sona
lly m
eani
ngfu
l
as
they
neg
otia
te th
eir
own
goal
s an
d cr
eate
thei
r ow
n le
arni
ng p
athw
ays.
•
Tink
erin
g do
es n
ot r
equi
re o
r as
sum
e an
y fo
rmal
ised
STE
M th
eory
or
tech
nica
l sci
entif
ic te
rmin
olog
y. L
angu
age
barr
iers
are
red
uced
,
an
d st
uden
ts c
an ‘g
et s
tuck
in’ e
ven
if th
ey h
ave
low
er le
vels
of e
xist
ing
scie
nce
liter
acy.
•
Tink
erin
g ca
n be
a h
ook
for
talk
ing
abou
t or
illus
trat
ing
scie
ntifi
c pr
oces
ses,
fact
s, fo
rmul
ae a
nd th
eori
es, b
ut th
is is
not
the
star
ting
poin
t,
no
r th
e in
tend
ed o
utco
me,
and
so
stud
ents
who
may
not
feel
that
‘sci
ence
is fo
r m
e’ a
re le
ss a
t ris
k of
feel
ing
alie
nate
d
an
d m
ay fe
el m
ore
empo
wer
ed to
take
par
t.
FIG
UR
E 4
/ T
HR
EE P
ILLA
RS
MO
DEL
FO
R U
ND
ERST
AN
DIN
G T
HE
SCIE
NC
E CA
PIT
AL
TEA
CH
ING
AP
PR
OA
CH
. AD
AP
TED
FR
OM
GO
DEC
ET
AL.
(201
7)
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities16
The project recommends a range of Tinkering activities that can be used at school, especially in disadvantaged contexts, as we believe they have a strong potential to encourage a more inclusive science education approach. These activities, presented below, have been iden-tified by the partners and tested at the museums with the students of the schools that were involved in the project. The activities are selected among the ones designed by the first European project dedicated to Tinkering and the ones designed by the Tinkering Studio at the Exploratorium of San Francisco.
MARBLE MACHINESA Marble Machine is a creative ball-run contrap-tion, made from familiar materials, designed to send a rolling marble through tubes and funnels, across tracks and bumpers, and into a catch at the end. We often suggest a goal of getting the marble to travel from the top of the board to a target at the bottom as slowly as possible. But that’s only one possible starting point for what can quickly turn into an addictive experience. You can set many challenges for yourself, the fun is in trying to solve them: make the marble travel uphill for a section or go up and then come back down; try to make a loop-de-loop, or an elevator to bring the marble back to the top of the board; or even use multiple marbles for more complex chain-reactions.
Description and the activity guide at: https://www.exploratorium.edu/tinkering/projects/marble-machines
LIGHT PLAYLight Play is an exploration with light, shadow, and colour by constructing a kinetic art vignette. Everyday objects are used as shadow makers with simple to use light sources and slow-moving motors to create graceful light and shadow scenes. At the end of the activity a collaborative wall of illuminated kinetic creations is made from the individual investigations.Light Play lets you explore light, shadow, and motion using a variety of simple materials and light sources. Beginning with gently guided explorations of shadows, single and multiple light sources, three-dimensional objects and translucency, parti-cipants gain the proficiency and “light vocabulary” to express their ideas, and their creativity is sparked. They will work toward building kinetic light and shadow vignettes, and eventually combine them into a collaborative installation.
Description and the activity guide at: https://www.exploratorium.edu/tinkering/projects/light-play
SCRIBBLING MACHINES Scribbling machines are motorized contraptions that move in unusual ways and leave a mark to trace their paths. They are made fr¬om simple materials and set in motion by the vibrating offset motor causing them to bounce, spin, bump and move in interesting ways.
Description and the activity guide at: https://www.exploratorium.edu/tinkering/projects/scribbling-machines
4Tinkering Activities at School
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities17
CIRCUIT BOARDSExperimenting with batteries, bulbs, buzzers, swi-tches, and other electrical components is a great way to start tinkering with circuits. Real parts moun-ted on sturdy wood blocks are designed for anyone to start creating electrical connections between everyday objects. From the basic elements you can deepen the experiments by adding potentiometers, double-pole double-throw switches (DPDT), motors, resistors, and other scrounged inputs and outputs that can do interesting and sometimes surprising things when connected. The set of circuit boards is not only a compelling way to work with electricity, but the parts can also be used in many other tinkering activities.
Description and the activity guide at: https://www.exploratorium.edu/tinkering/projects/circuit-boards
PAPER CIRCUITSMake simple or complex electrical circuits on a piece of paper! Copper tape and surface-mount LEDs allow you to turn a fully functional circuit into a light-up greeting card, origami animals, or three-dimensional pop-up paper sculptures that have working lights in them.
Description and the activity guide at: https://www.exploratorium.edu/tinkering/projects/paper-circuits
MOREIf you want to find out about additional Tinkering activities, see: https://www.exploratorium.edu/tinkering/ http://www.museoscienza.org/tinkering-eu/resour-ces.asp
Bringing Tinkering to School Ideas for activities18
Archer, L., Dawson, E., DeWitt, J., Seakins, A., & Wong, B. (2015). “Science capital”: A conceptual, methodological, and empirical argument for extending bourdieusian notions of capital beyond the arts. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 52(7), 922–948. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21227
Archer, L., DeWitt, J., Osborne, J., Dillon, J., Willis, B., & Wong, B. (2010). “Doing” science versus “being” a scientist: Examining 10/11 year old schoolchildren’s constructions of science through the lens of identity. Science Education, 94(4), 617–639. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.20399
Archer, L., DeWitt, J., & Willis, B. (2013). Adolescent boys’ science aspirations: Masculinity, capital, and power. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51(1), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21122
Bevan, B., Gutwill, J. P., Petrich, M., & Wilkinson, K. (2015). Learning Through STEM-Rich Tinkering: Findings From a Jointly Negotiated Research Project Taken Up in Practice. Science Education, 99(1), 98–120. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21151
DeWitt, J., & Archer, L. (2015). Who Aspires to a Science Career? A comparison of survey responses from primary and secondary school students. International Journal of Science Education, 37(13), 2170–2192. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2015.1071899
DeWitt, J., Archer, L., & Mau, A. (2016). Dimensions of science capital: exploring its potential for understanding students’ science participation. International Journal of Science Education, 38(16), 2431–2449. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2016.1248520
Godec, S., King, H., & Archer, L. (2017). The Science Capital Teaching Approach: engaging students with science, promoting social justice. London: University College London.
Harris, E., Winterbottom, M., Xanthoudaki, M., & de Piper, I. (2016). A Practitioner Guide for Developing and Implementing Tinkering Activities. EU Project “Tinkering: Contemporary Education for the Innovators of Tomorrow”ISBN: 978-88-89432-57-0. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/306066132_A_PRACTITIONER_GUIDE_FOR_DEVELOPING_AND_IMPLEMENTING_TINKE-RING_ACTIVITIES
King, H., & Nomikou, E. (2017). Fostering critical teacher agency: the impact of a science capital pedagogical approach. Pedagogy, Culture & Society, 26(1), 87–103.
Petrich, M., Wilkinson, K., & Bevan, B. (2013). It looks like fun but are they learning? In M. Honey & D. E. Kanter (Eds.), Design, Make, Play: Growing the Next Generation of STEM Innovators (pp. 50–70). New York, NY: Routledge.
Wilkinson, K., & Petrich, M. (2014). The Art of Tinkering: Meet 150 Makers Working at the Intersection of Art, Science & Technology. San Francisco, CA: Weldon Owen.
5References