25 Days of Making For the last several years, “Coffee for the Brain” creator Aaron Maurer, a fantastic educator, blogger, and podcaster, has lead an amazing seasonal project. It’s called the 25 Days of Making and it’s wonderful. Basically, Aaron gets dozens of makers, teachers, writers, and educators to create special projects to celebrate creativity.…
Winter Blairstown Recreation Programs We’re excited to announce that our Winter programs with the Blairstown Recreation Department are moving online. After successfully moving to virtual programming this Fall in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are now able to offer our Winter programs through Zoom for 2020 and 2021. Upcoming programs include the following. Winter…
This was a simple project I recently did for my livestreamed Upcycled Makers Club for the Warren County Library System. The goal is to share a fun activity using common materials from around the house and then encourage kids to develop additional ideas based on the original craft. Since March I’ve been offering projects to…
This simple beading project is a great way to upcycle drinking straws into a fun, fashionable bracelet or cuff. What You’ll Need 3-4 drinking straws, paper or plastic 30-40 pony beads 4-5 feet of elastic cord or yarn Ruler Scissors Masking tape (optional) Toothpick or bamboo skewer (optional) Prepare Your Yarn: If you’re using elastic or…
September 19th is International Talk Like a Pirate Day, a grassroots holiday started among a small group of friends that hit the big time when columnist Dave Barry wrote about it because he thought it was cool. So each year an intrepid following of very silly people enjoy a day of talking like pirates, because…
Victorians loved their brand-new, state-of-art photographs, that brought the whole orchestra home for a show. Learn the history of these fantastic devices. Discover how sound works. Then explore the ways you can amplify music using nothing more than paper. Materials: A sewing needles, a piece of paper, masking tape, an old record. This program is…
This project was originally published on Make: Projects. Use your origami skills to fold a “paper balloon.” Then add a battery, LED, and binder clip as a switch to transform your creation into a simple lamp. This easy circuit project is a great way to explore switches. Plus, there is considerable room for self-expression as…
This project was originally published on Make: Projects. Use origami to fold a cute ladybug. Then add a small vibrating motor so that is skitters around. This is a really fun, easy variation on a vibrobot. What You’ll Need Origami paper, one sheet, red 3-volt coin battery (CR2032 or CR2025) Maker Tape or ¼-inch copper…
This project was originally shared on Make: Projects. Fold a simple butterfly using origami and then add LEDs to create light-up antenna. This is a fun way to learn about and build circuits while also practicing the precision of origami and being creative. This project is based on the Luna Moth from The Big Book…
These simple upcycled water bottle submarines are a great way to explore buoyancy, air pressure, and density. When placed in water, the bottle fills with water, pulling it down below the surface, then, by blowing air through an attached straw, the water is forced out and the submarine rises again. Not only is this a…
