3. Pedagogical theories and socio-emotional learning

Digital Fabrication for Kids with the Laser Cutter

For this activity, I designed a sign to be used alongside the trout tank to indicate the current life cycle stage of our trout. It’s titled, “Trout Time.” I decided to use Adobe for this assignment due to the issues I experienced using Canva in the Vinyl Cutter assignment. The process of designing the image went smoothly, and I enjoyed testing different methods of tracing and augmenting imported vector graphics.

I ran a test cut on a WeCreat machine that I am still learning how to use and found that the engraving was much lighter than I wanted. At my lab session, Jaymes helped me to navigate the settings on my WeCreat machine, and we set up the file for the laser cutter in the lab. A main difference between the two machines is that the WeCreat automatically adjusted the size of the image to fit the material, whereas the lab’s did not. I had not double checked that the image would fit, and it was partially cut off. My engravings were not cut off so I was able to use the piece to think about any changes to the positive and negative space or images in general for my final piece. I also cut out the cardboard version to see how the engraving differed between the two materials and it was not quite as pronounced on the cardboard.

I edited my original design to encourage a more tactile experience and to emphasize the physical trait of spots that show up in each stage of the life cycle. To do this I made the spots positive space in the engraving instead of negative.

Once back at school, I added a layer of colored acrylic over three quarters of the circle. The negative space is used to highlight the current stage of the trout.

I plan on placing the sign near the trout tank as an interactive piece that kids can use to connect with and learn about the trout. Even though the students are interested in trout, the tank is mostly covered with insulation to prevent UV exposure to the eggs and keep the water at an optimal temperature. This creates a barrier for some of the more tactile kids. My hope is that having this and different tactiles around the tank will allow students to have a more sensory-rich experience.

UPDATE: Now that the trout eggs have arrived, and I’m introducing them to the classes, I’ve begun to use the Trout Clock manipulative for students to pass around. They enjoy shifting around the slider and using the negative space to highlight the stage that they’re curious about. The two carved stages are more popular, so I think that I will go ahead and create second version that incorporates more carved out areas highlighting the trout’s physical traits.

Reflections

*** Think on one or two educational activities in which you could integrate laser cutting at some stage of the activity. Explain briefly the activity. Do not forget to clear indicate the learning outcomes.**

*** Reflect on your own practice. When you prepare a lesson activity what are the things that you take into consideration? What are the critical aspects? What additional aspects do you need to take into consideration if you utilize digital fabrication processes?**

My first consideration when planning lessons is for the learners that I intend to teach. It’s important to me that the content is interesting and that activity is engaging. Many of my students respond to sensory-rich experiences and I try to engage as much of their whole body as possible in the work that they’re doing.

Learning goals are also a main focus. I have a limited amount of time with students every week, and it’s important that every lesson directly supports a content learning goal or skill. If I choose to include a learning experience that is unrelated to our goals, I make sure to do so intentionally and think about the value of the experience for the specific age group.

DF (with and by kids) integration will be tricky with my younger groups. We are a low tech school with limited resources. In planning an integration that takes place during science class, I will need to ensure that it supports a science learning goal to justify the inclusion. Partnering with the computer teacher would be helpful in making a DF-science integration possible.

*** Reflect on your past educational activities. How have you considered Socio-Emotional learning (or soft-skills) when preparing the activities? How do you integrate these soft-skills in your education? Could you provide some concrete examples? How have you changed your perspective on socio-emotional learning / soft-skill / horizontal competences after this lecture?**

In support of our school’s mission, teachers in all subjects focus a lot of class time on cultivating students’ sense of being community members and their growth as activists. In science, I begin the year with an engineering challenge for each grade that loosely ties into the theme of a future unit or builds upon a unit from the prior year. In these challenges, students work in groups and intentionally practice problem-solving alongside others, working through conflict, and being kind while under pressure. This prepares them for lab work and projects with partners, begins to strengthen their ability to persevere through challenging moments (both social and content), and gives them practice asking for and offering help to their classmates. The lecture did not change my ideas around socio-emotional learning. However, it was a nice reminder of the importance, and I appreciated the way the different parts were broken down.