DEEP DIVE WORKSHOPS
NEW WINTER 2023-24 WORKSHOPS AVAILABLE
Has your student visited the Electronics Studio and wanted to create even more advanced circuitry? Or maybe they’ve added to a collaborative project in the Textiles Studio but wanted to design something of their own?
We’ve got a suite of exciting new workshop series to scratch that maker-itch! Dive deeper into a variety of subjects with these three-session workshops and discover something new.
Sundays, December 3 - 17, 2023
Tech Lab Studio Deep Dive Series: Textile Transformations
10:30 AM – 12 PM | 2nd – 4th Grade
Explore how different textile materials are made and transformed through a variety of experimental projects. Create custom textiles, transform their colors and patterns, and learn how to hand and machine sew. Signing up for this workshop includes registration for all three sessions of this Deep Dive Series.
Session 1: 12/3/2023
Get out the magnifying glass and inspect fabric samples to investigate how a fabric is made. Then, they practice the corresponding technique to create a small-scale textile sample.
Session 2: 12/10/2023
Transform fabric colors and patterns using innovative dyeing materials and printmaking – with a reactive twist!
Session 3: 12/17/2023
Use hand and machine sewing to create new forms from naturally dyed fabric swatches, cotton, and felted experiments.
Woodshop Deep Dive Series: Woodworking Basics
1 – 2:30 PM | 5th – 7th Grade
Explore basic woodworking techniques including carving, shaping, and assembly. Use various tools including rasps/files, scroll saws, and drills to complete projects throughout the series. Skills will build over the three weeks, culminating in a final project utilizing everything learned. Signing up for this workshop includes registration for all three sessions of this Deep Dive Series.
Session 1: 12/3/2023
Use rasps, files, and coping saws to carve and transform Balsa square wood blocks into sculptural creations.
Session 2: 12/10/2023
Cut thin wood sheets into shapes to create the base and lid of a custom shaped box. A special method of mimicking scoring will be utilized to create flexible wooden sides to fit the shape of the box.
Session 3: 12/17/2023
Utilize previously learned skill building in rasps/files, scroll saws, screwdrivers, and drills to assemble unique wooden creations with movable parts.
Sundays, January 7 - 21, 2024
Fab Lab Deep Dive Series: Fab Lab Fashion
10:30 AM – 12 PM | 3rd – 6th Grade
Explore how Fab Lab technology can be utilized to create wearable creations. Utilize laser cutting, 3D printing, circuitry, and woodworking to design, make, and display unique wearable pieces of fashion. Signing up for this workshop includes registration for all three sessions of this Deep Dive Series.
Session 1: 1/7/2024
Laser cut designs using Glowforge Trace feature for plexi jewelry pendants, charms, and keychains. Plus, explore beading techniques and jewelry-making tools such as pliers, wire, and crimp beads.
Session 2: 1/14/2024
Use Tinkercad to design 3D shapes that can be 3D printed into pins or hair clips. Incorporate simple circuits to make these wearables light up!
Session 3: 1/21/2024
Design a unique wooden holder or customized stand with drilled holes and screw hooks to showcase a wearable creation.
Sundays, February 4 - 18, 2024
Deep Dive Series: Black History Month Clay & Ceramics Spotlight
10:30 AM – 11:30 AM | 5th – 7th Grade
Celebrate Black History Month by getting hands-on with different types of clay mediums and exploring ceramics and techniques inspired by creative and innovative creations made by historical and contemporary ceramicists and sculptors. Signing up for this workshop includes registration for all three sessions of this Deep Dive Series.
Session 1: 2/4/2024
Isaac Scott Hathaway was a sculptor, ceramicist, and educator who famously crafted more than 100 busts and masks of prominent African Americans and was the first Black artist to design U.S. coins. Begin the exploration of ceramics and clay techniques by learning about his work and getting hands-on with new materials. Artist Highlights: Isaac Scott Hathaway & Chotsani Elaine.
Session 2: 2/11/2024
Get an introduction to new clay and ceramics building techniques that build upon the previous session, practicing skills to move from 2D designs to a 3D piece. Artist Highlight: David Drake.
Session 3: 2/18/2024
Learn armature techniques and figurative sculpting as to create a capstone clay creation. Express their own artistic identity by creating a portrait sculpture incorporating the clay tools and techniques they have learned throughout the course. Artist Highlight: Murjoni
Sundays, November 5 - 19, 2023
Electronics Studio Deep Dive Series: Power Explorers
10:30 AM – 12 PM | 2nd – 4th Grade
Explore electricity, circuitry, and inventing in this deep dive into our Electronics Studio. Get hands-on with Little Bits circuit blocks as an entry point into the world of electronics, then apply new knowledge to design a mechanical invention that uses electricity as its power source. Signing up for this workshop includes registration for all three sessions of this Deep Dive Series.
Session 1: Motorized Launcher (11/5/2023)
Explore Little Bits circuit blocks along with other maker materials to make a catapult that can launch a ping pong ball.
Session 2: Circuit Exploration (11/12/2023)
Learn how to build a switch circuit with resistors using heat shrink and then use new skills to design an electronic invention.
Session 3: Mechanical Intentions (11/19/2023)
Build, test, and iterate! Work with facilitators to tweak an electronic invention. Friends and families are invited for the last 15 minutes to see their child’s work.
Fab Lab Studio Deep Dive Series: Laser Focused
1 – 2:30 PM | 5th – 7th Grade
Explore what can be created with a laser cutter. Learn how to use a Glowforge laser cutter, explore the materials it can cut, engrave, and score, and learn how to make a 3D digital file using TinkerCAD. Signing up for this workshop includes registration for all three sessions of this Deep Dive Series.
Session 1: Multi-layered Woodcuts (11/5/2023)
Practice spatial problem solving to create art by building shapes out of stacked layers of material. Learn how to use the laser cutter to scan and cut hand-drawn designs, bringing 2D drawings to life.
Session 2: Introduction to TinkerCAD (11/12/2023)
Learn about different materials that a Glowforge can manipulate in a mini challenge. Explore TinkerCAD as a digital design platform to design a custom clock, creating a design that can be cut and engraved with the laser cutter.
Session 3: Clock Work (11/19/2023)
Finish cutting and assembling a customer laser cut clock that was designed in the previous session. Friends and families are invited for the last 15 minutes to see their child’s work.
