Music has been a powerful tool for self-expression for thousands of years. And while modern instruments are often very expensive, the truth is that anyone can make their own! With the information, projects, and resources found within these pages, young musicians will quickly be making and playing their own instruments.
Learning the ins and outs of robotics can take a lifetime, but learning the basics just takes reading one book! Different types of robots and their components, functions, and purposes are explored in a way that students will find helpful and encouraging when they begin working on their own projects. More than just a beginner’s guide, this may be the spark to ignite limitless possibility for kids who love to use their minds and hands.
Microcontrollers are small computers embedded in many everyday devices. The average person interacts with several of them each day without even thinking about it. But why have microcontrollers become so ubiquitous, in what devices are they found, and—most importantly—how does one go about making one? All this and more is explained in the engaging text. It will turn even the technologically illiterate into budding tech wizards.
The possibilities of what can be made with a 3D printer are endless. This guide presents the basics of 3D printing, beginner’s projects, and additional resources to set young makers on their way to becoming masters. With up-to-the-minute information, simple language, and hands-on projects, this is the prefect launching point into the exciting world of 3D printing.
Humans have been obsessed with conquering the skies for millennia. This book documents that journey from the earliest days of projectiles to modern-day rockets. Armed with this crucial background information, students will then be directed through a step-by-step project to make their own rocket. Additional high-tech projects will keep their hands busy and their imaginations soaring.
Electronic gadgets are fun to play with, but they’re even more fun to build! Students will unlock the mysteries of electronics, sensors, and LEDs with this book as it provides both technical information and step-by-step projects. Clubs, online communities, and additional resources are also discussed to help ambitious makers progress to the next level in their newfound hobby.
Music has been a powerful tool for self-expression for thousands of years. And while modern instruments are often very expensive, the truth is that anyone can make their own! With the information, projects, and resources found within these pages, young musicians will quickly be making and playing their own instruments.
Technology and tools once available only in factories can now be found in classroom makerspaces. Maker culture uses 3D printers, laser cutters, and other manufacturing tools to provide invaluable learning experiences. Combining technology with more abstract ideas such as social justice, history, and civics can lead students to become more involved with the local community as well the global one. This interesting guide provides step-by-step instructions to help both educators and students experience social studies projects like never before. Learn how to implement STEM principles to make social studies hands-on and fun at the same time.
Improvising Across Abilities: Pauline Oliveros and the Adaptive Use Musical Instrument (AUMI) brings together scholars, musicians, and family members of people with disabilities to collectively recount years of personal experiences, research, and perspectives on the societal and community impact of inclusive musical improvisation. One of the lesser-known projects of composer, improviser, and humanitarian, Pauline Oliveros (1932–2016), the AUMI was designed as a liberating and affordable alternative to the constraints of instruments created only for normative bodies, thus opening a doorway for people of all ages, genders, abilities, races, and socioeconomic backgrounds to access artistic practice with others. More than a book about AUMI, this book is an invitation to readers to use AUMI in their own communities. This book, which contains wisdom from many who have been affected by their work with the instrument and the people who use it, is a representation of how music and extemporized performance have touched the lives and minds of scholars and families alike. Not only has AUMI provided the opportunity to grow in listening to others who may speak differently (or not at all), but it has been used as an avenue for a diverse set of people to build friendships with others whom they may have never otherwise even glanced at in the street. By providing a space for every person who comes across AUMI to perform, listen, improvise, and collaborate, the continuing development of this instrument contributes to a world in which every person is heard, welcomed, and celebrated.
This text has plans for 50 musical instruments, including over 100 drawings and photographs. It teaches the reader how to build their own musical instruments, using knowledge of a variety of diverse cultures from around the world. It includes instruments such as: oil drum gongs, thumb pianos, cowbells, tube drums and willow whistles. All necessary materials can either be purchased or found in nature or a junkyard.
