Session Spotlight
Circuits in Play-Doh
Anyone can make an electronic circuit! You might be skeptical, thinking of fragile parts, tiny wires, or special knowledge, but electronics doesn't have to be like that. Good old Play-Doh conducts electricity! Using clay instead of breadboards, small hands can build circuits with joy. This session is an open workshop, with multiple stations, plenty of Play-Doh and electronic components, and kid-friendly instructions on posters. It's the perfect place for young inventors and their adult mentors to sit together and make LEDs light up, build switches to create interactive circuits, and talk about batteries, electrons, and troubleshooting (and make sculptures, of course!).
Prerequisites
Kids should be accompanied by a grown-up; little-little kids who just want to mush Play-Doh are quite welcome; unaccompanied grown-ups are also warmly welcomed. Note that Play-Doh contains gluten.
Take Aways
- Electronics are for everybody
- You are an artist, and you are a maker
- Troubleshooting is satisfying
- LEDs conduct in only one direction