STUDENT WORK

Motors

Motors come in endless shapes and sizes, each bringing its own set of possibilities to maker creations. Experimenting with how motors work and adding movement to creations is a great way to level-up one’s skill and push one’s creativity.

On the left is a picture of a student’s hand holds a vertical contraption made from 2 popsicle sticks, a battery and a motor. A propellor spins at the top. On the right is spinning windmill made from a paper cult and popsicle sticks.

How can you NOT make propellers once you know how to make the shaft on a servo motor rotate?

A rectangular cardboard house sits horizontally on the floor. A wind turbine made from paper and clothes pins sits on the top. A battery is attached to the wires that come from the motor in the center of the wind turbine.

This teacher maker integrated multiple circuits in this wind-powered home. Aside from the light that goes on over the door with a “push” of the button, notice the coin cell battery hanging behind the clothespin. It’s attached with tape to a small servo motor whose rotating shaft spins the blades of the turbine.

On the left is a picture of an upside down white paper cup with a smiley face. There are four green straws attached to the sides of the cup to make it stand. Two purple popsicle stick arms stick straigh out. A motor sits on the top. A short glue stick hangs down from the top. A student’s hands holds a red and black wire against a battery. On the right is a picture of a white paper plate standing on three toothpicks. On top of the plate is an upside down clear plastic cup. A motor is taped to the top of the cup. A red and a black wire come off the motor. A glue stick is attached to the shaft of the motor and spins.

Students build creatures out of everyday materials and attach the battery and motor to it. What do you then get when you take a piece of a hot glue stick and attach it, off center, to the stem of the motor. A vibrabot! When the motor turns on and the stem rotates with an off center weight, the object wobbles and vibrates.