Our community is dedicated to democratizing digital fabrication learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. UNPLUGGED is our timely approach to digital fabrication learning that includes this curated lesson collection for teachers and parents as they work with students at home.
If you have a lesson or can adapt a lesson that can be done without access to a Fab Lab, please share it with our community. Fully analog lessons that can teach digital fabrication processes with common items found at home are also welcome.
Create an Obama Poster
Students will engage with concepts of leadership and service and reflect on MLK and Obama’s legacy in a variety of different ways before creating their own ‘Obama Hope’ poster.
Exploring Arduino
This is a 5 days track focus on learning basic circuits theory and fundamentals in addition to Micro-controllers (parts and operation). Also, we will make some advance applications using the…
Digital Circuits
This is a 5 days Track focus on learning basic circuits theory and fundamentals in addition to Micro-controllers ( parts and operation ). Also we will make some applications using…
Mini T-Shirt Cannon
Engineer a mini T-shirt cannon out of a toilet paper roll and rubber bands to shoot marshmallows at a target or into a crowd! Safety note: This activity requires…
Cardboard Backboard
Learn how to make a cardboard backboard out of household materials. Once assembled, complete the attached statistics worksheet and see how many shots you can make. Apply digital fabrication skills…
Unplugged: Make and Animate- The Thaumatrope
Makers create Thaumatropes with low tech methods and materials. Suitable for fab lab projects from home.
Unplugged: Projecting Geometry for Precision Cutting and Assembly
In this lesson you’ll learn how to make complex and precise geometric assemblies – like the skateboard halfpipe seen here – without the need for a laser cutter. Inherent to…
Unplugged: Design a Biomechanical Cyborg
This activity is a perfect blend of science and creativity as students work with their partner(s) to create their version of a cyborg appendage (or device). This part must mimic the workings…
Unplugged: Cardboard Container
Students are introduced to the Engineering Design Process by creating a cardboard container to hold the contents of their pocket. In this rapid prototyping activity, each step of the EDP…
Unplugged: Makers Making Good- Stopping the Spread
Designed for distance learning, home schooling, and maker machine independent learning. Using household materials, students prototype devices to help stop the spread of infectious diseases.
Coding 3D Models Using Tinkercad Codeblocks
Inspired by contemporary South African baskets and hats, this activity explores craft through computation, 3D modeling and 3D printing. Students will use object-oriented computer programming, meaning they will place a…
UNPLUGGED lessons will:
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Make use of materials and tools found at home.
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Specify learning objectives that are clear and measurable.
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Provide details in each step so that many others can follow.
Tag your lesson with “Unplugged,” so we can feature it in the collection. You can also “Remix” a lesson from another contributor if you have an idea to make it analog. Thanks for helping make this time away from our Fab Labs and maker spaces educational and inspiring.
Make a statement
In this lesson, students will use the engineering design process to make an item that promotes an environmental or social justice message. The students will research an area of interest…
December 13, 2024
understanding plant life cycle
During this lesson, I showed students the life cycle of a plant, using the example of an apple, and since the students had no experience with digital production, I showed…
December 11, 2024
Christmas Cards
This series of lessons will take you through how to make a Christmas card using the Brother ScanNCut and the circuit playground express. These lessons can be adapted to be…
December 8, 2024
CO2 Dragsters
In this series of lessons, you will take students through the design and production processes in order to create their own CO2 Dragster. As a class, you will design a…
December 7, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Balsa Glider
Students will design and fabricate a glider. Test its flight, then optimize their design by adjusting the shape of its wings, tail, or body. This activity will introduce two…
December 3, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Dice
Design your own 3D-printable dice! Use CAD (computer-aided design) software to build out an idea in three dimensions. Choose your dice geometry and decide what to put on each face.…
December 3, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Spinning Tops
Give engineering a spin: experiment with physics while designing and fabricating a custom spinning top! Get hands-on with energy, force, and momentum as you experiment with different 3D-printed designs. How…
December 3, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Botanical Press
Combine art and science: customize and fabricate a botanical press that can be used over and over again to preserve leaves and flowers for crafts or dissection.
December 3, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Stamps
Students will embark on a creative journey to design a personal logo that reflects their (or a brand’s) unique identities and values. By combining graphic design principles with self-reflection, they…
December 3, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Invention Kits
Create your very own invention kit! Design and laser cut a set of two-dimensional shapes that can slot together to make three-dimensional structures. Finished kits can be used for…
December 2, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Pop-Up Cards
Explore math, form, and function while engineering pop-up paper art. Use a vinyl cutter to make two-dimensional artwork “pop!” Add score and cut lines to cardstock to fabricate custom, folding…
December 2, 2024
Fab-in-a-Box Stickers
Design and fabricate your very own custom stickers! Use digital CAD software to bring your ideas to life before cutting them on the vinyl cutter. Whether you’re a budding graphic…
December 2, 2024
ScaleSpace – Visualizing the Solar System Through 3D Models
In this lesson, students will explore the vastness and diversity of the solar system by creating scale models of planets, moons, and other celestial objects. Using astronomical data, they will…
December 2, 2024
SHAPE BUILDERS
This lesson is designed to help students deepen their understanding of geometry – shapes and their attributes. Prior to the lesson, students must have been introduced to the vocabulary…
December 1, 2024
Chemical Bonding Game
Driving Question: How can we, as game designers, create a playable board or computer (Chromebook) game that teaches players the properties, behavior, and structure of ionic and covalent compounds? …
November 26, 2024
Human Eye Model: A Hands-On Investigation of the Functions of the Parts of the Eye
This lesson provides students a constructivist approach to learning the functions of the different parts of the human eye. Leading up to this lesson, students learned the properties of light…
November 21, 2024STANDARDS-ALIGNED
Community contributed lessons aligned with Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) offer formal educators innovative pathways to teaching content knowledge. The Fab I Can Statements are a resource to develop technology-literate learning progressions to align with content standards.
FAB TESTED
Periodically lessons are adapted and tested by the Fab Foundation team based on a call for submissions from fabbers, educators, and makers. Our inaugural set of lessons for the SCOPES-DF project were Fab Tested in 2016 and are tagged Fab Tested on the website.
OPEN-SOURCE VALUES
Lessons are distributed under a Creative Commons CC BY-NC license, that permits free use and re-purposing by others.