Steam-Punk sound junk ©
is a refreshing approach to learning through play and creating opportunities for young people to find solutions to problems that impact our world.OUR AIMS
The aim of the project is to encourage learners to take a fresh approach to making. With such a global focus on sustainability and the 6 R’s, it seems like the perfect opportunity for a new approach to music and music making to emerge.
We aim to take broken objects that learners may have at home that would normally go in the bin; and therefore landfill, and attempt to repair or repurpose them into instruments that can project a sound.
This approach supports learners to independently problem solve, learn new skills, such as fine motor skills, hand eye coordination and social collaboration, that are drastically absent or under-developed in young learners.
we are adopting STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and maths) to music making, not only do learners acquire the opportunity to make music, they will also use tools and gain confidence, work with products to make things that they would not normally make and prepare them for a dramatically different world where resources are depleting and an alternative view on making will be required.
WHAT TO EXPECT AT OUR SESSIONS
STEAM-Punk will provide 2 hours of after school provision and work with a group of 6 students once a week for 6 weeks. During this time learners will either bring in items from home or use some of our junk and get support to repurpose them into an instrument.
They will be able to explore what is inside products through reverse engineering, be able to create models and prototypes of instruments before using our components to modify and develop an upcycled item that can make sounds.
The journey naturally encourages learners to consider ‘what else could this product be? How can I change it? and most importantly, instead of going into landfill, what can I do with it? An example could be an x box controller, learners can take it apart, see if it is repairable, and if not it could be upcycled into a thumb piano or palm stringed instrument.
COURSE OUTLINE
WEEK 1
- Bring in what you have or select from the items STEAM PUNK has
- Consider what normally happens to these items and what are the alternatives.
- Create a mood board of product outcomes
Resources required for focused research-moodboards/existing upcycled items/sketching equipment- AV recording student led
WEEK 2
- Use hand tools to take items apart.
- What tools have you used? What tools are new to you? How can we modify/upcycle these items?
- Use card and modelling equipment to create a model of your vision
- Resources- card/modelling material/ modelling clay/polymorph/ AV recording student led
WEEK 3
- Lets get making!
- Students to work on chosen item, modifications using items from van stock to support making and innovation
- Resources-standard components,strip metal, wire, scrap metal, tins, scrap wood, solder, consumables / AV recording student led
Week 4
- Students to work on chosen item, modifications using items from van stock to support making and innovation
- Resources-standard components,strip metal, wire, scrap metal, tins, scrap wood, solder, consumables/ AV recording student led
Week 5
- Students to work on chosen item, modifications using items from van stock to support making and innovation
- Resources-standard components,strip metal, wire, scrap metal, tins, scrap wood, solder, consumables/ AV recording student led
Weeks 6 – lets finalise making.
- How successful was your upcycle? Does it work as a repurposed item? Can you make music with it? Lets make music
- Resources- AV recording student led
ABOUT SEEMA MISTRY
Sim Mistry is a qualified and experienced Design Technology teacher. She has taught in secondary and special school settings where health and safety are a prerequisite.
She holds AQA certification, safeguarding level 3 and this project is backed by the Department of Digital, Media and Sport.