Paper Circuitry Remix #untro

For the next few weeks, I will be participating in the Making Learning Connected MOOC, a collaboration between the National Writing Project and Educator Innovator.org.

For the first #clmooc make, we were asked to "shatter the parameters of our introductions" in order to "see things in a new way."

I decided to do this by remixing of a couple of images that I drew and illuminated with paper circuitry.

Yesterday, I drew a purple monster with three glowing eyes.  Today it was a green alien (a cosmic photo bomber?) with a glowing heart.

After experimenting with a couple of fun tools (Bazaart and Lunapic) I remixed the images into a new piece of art! (If you look carefully, you may notice an alien heart beating).

I love the way that the new image tells a story without words and how the aliens look like open, welcoming critters.

Paper Circuitry and Animation

I have been captivated by paper circuitry and e-textiles since last summer, when I first started learning about soft circuits.  Using conductive thread or copper tape with LEDs to create objects that light up makes me extraordinarily happy, even if it hasn't necessarily contributed to my becoming a better writer, yet.  

While I have been deepening my exploration with soft circuits in my personal life, and by teaching a few workshops here and there, I am particularly interested in thinking more deeply about ways that this interest of mine can be integrated into content area teaching.  I want to know whether paper circuitry can help me and my future students become better thinkers, writers, and communicators.

I'd like to hear from other educators about how you have used paper circuitry to help upper middle to high school students communicate ideas or tell stories. 

Today, while I was thinking about this, I had an idea that could have some promise.  Rather than leaving my circuit hidden in a notebook, I decided to use it in a digital animation.   

Here's How I Did It:
This video is an app smash of iMovie, DoInk Greenscreen, and DoInk Drawing and Animation. I started by recording footage of a drawing of two cars in the middle of a road, with blinking headlights powered by a paper circuit.  I imported this clip into the DoInk Greenscreen app.  Next, I took a photo of the drawing and used Pixlr photo editer to remove the background from one of the cars, saving it as a transparent PNG file.  I imported the PNG file into the DoInk Drawing and Animation app and created a new composition, making the photograph appear to move.  I added the text by creating another animation.  I imported these compositions as new layers within the Greenscreen app, uploaded the final video to camera roll, and added audio within iMovie.

Paper Circuitry and the Writing Process

I started with a drawing.

Inspired by Nexmap's 21st Century Notebooking idea (done in collaboration with the National Writer's Project) I am attempting to blend paper circuitry with my own writing process.  This might sound easy, but I was surprised to find it more challenging than I thought I would. I love making the circuits, and even drawing or making collages of images that are in my imagination; but, when it comes to writing down the words, I sometimes struggle.  

While a goal of integrating paper circuitry into the writing process is to provide another communication tool, it should be noted that this doesn’t necessarily mean that the writing that you desire to inspire in yourself or others will be particularly good or flow easily. If I'm being completely honest, my writing process has been labored, even though I'm doing this as my own personal challenge.  I’ve found myself procrastinating and looking for permission to take a low-stakes approach, such as creating a blackout poem, composing a haiku, or illustrating a borrowed quotation. These options seem less daunting than documenting a personal metaphor or attempting to write something profound and magical. Still, I believe that this is a process worth exploring; we all need encouragement to practice telling our stories in different ways in order to find our most authentic voice.

I allowed myself to start writing in haiku. 

I created the circuit last.

So, when I struggle to find the right words, or worry that they won't be good enough, I need only remind myself to trust the process and play.  

I started my haiku by creating a drawing that reminded me of where I grew up. With some effort, and slightly adjusted expectations, the words followed.  With a little revision, I was happy enough with the outcome to share it here.

The thing that I like most about my finished piece is the way the illuminated flowers really look like jewels.

This is the first time that I let my content drive the circuit, instead of vise versa.

As I continue my exploration of paper circuitry as a literacy tool, I am wondering how I may build upon this experience to create meaningful learning opportunities for students. I personally love making things with my hands, so I naturally gravitate toward this sort of work.  

Conversely, I am wondering what research has to say about the use of paper circuitry in the writing process. I know some audacious educators have already been practicing this process in their classrooms, but I haven't seen a lot of examples of student work. Beyond the gleeful anecdotes and gee-whiz appeal that blinking lights are sure to conjure, I am curious to know how effective notebook hacking really is as a tool for improving communication or increasing creativity. The process has value on a personal level, but I'm eager to find out what students think.

---

Forgotten Jewels

Dusty petals croon

against a blanket of sand.

Sing, desert blossom.

Programming Circuit Sticker and ATtiny85 Microcontrollers

Recently, I started playing around with a programmable micro-controller sticker, available from Chibitronics. Using the resources at Chibitronics.com, I was able to use my Arduino Uno as a programmer to change the code on the sticker!  It was almost as fun as programming a LilyPad Arduino in an e-textile, only this time I got to use my favorite medium, paper!  I'm still just playing around at this point, but I am eager to learn more.

I was also able to use my Arduino to program an ATtiny85 microcontroller (which costs significantly less than the micro-controller sticker) to make an LED blink and fade.

I used the resources at Nexmap.org and Highlowtech.org to pull this off.  It took me a few tries (and some cable wiggling), but it finally works!

They suggest using an AVR Tiny Programmer to make the programming easier.  One of the benefits of using the tiny programmer is that you can put an adapter on it (provided with the Circuit Sticker sensor pack), allowing you to quickly go between programming the sticker or an ATtiny85 without much fiddling.

I am excited about the possibilities for using these both in a bookbinding project or an illuminated writing activity!

In the photo to the left, I haven't soldered yet.

Stay tuned to see where this latest diversion takes me, or visit my other blog, Bling the Book.

Reflection on Dynamic Landscapes 2015

At the beginning of the year, I listed some goals for myself.  One was to actively practice stepping outside of my comfort zone by teaching workshops for adults, with the ultimate goal of presenting at a conference.  I am happy to report that I achieved this goal over the past two days at Dynamic Landscapes!

While this is something that I'd been wanting to do for some time, I'd been reluctant about presenting to an audience of colleagues. The thought that teachers can be some of the toughest critics was not helping; I was terrified to make myself the center of attention for an adult audience.  With the support and encouragement of other educators, I was able to overcome my fears; I am grateful to Joanne Finnegan and Doug Dunbebin for helping me make the leap.  Thanks to you both for taking this journey with me.

Although I wish that I hadn't been clutching my notes so tightly during my introduction,  my first presentation, "Radical Remixing with Creative Commons," went better than I had hoped.

I was lucky to have a supportive, curious audience of about 15 people. If I'd had more time, I would have shown more examples of places to find Creative Commons licensed media.  My presentation highlighted Flickr as a go-to resource, but there are many other resources for remixing that educators can explore.   Perhaps, I will design and share another presentation that focuses more broadly on Creative Commons resources across the web.

My second presentation, "Delving into DoInk:  Adding Animation to Green Screen Videos to Tell Your Story," was for a slightly larger audience (22 people).  Although the space was not quite large enough to accommodate that many people, all trying to record video and audio at the same time (it was quite loud), I enjoyed this workshop even more.  Unlike the first presentation, which was less interactive, this one was a two-hour hands-on session, allowing me to circulate and talk to people as they practiced and played on their own.  I prefer this type of teaching to the "stand up and yammer" model.  Teaching other teachers in this type of setting is not much different from the way I teach kids, so I felt comfortable.

As a result of this experience, and my desire to continually improve my practice, I am going to be submitting another proposal for VT Fest, coming up in November.  I am grateful to Vita Learn for their support of educators' professional growth.

Exterminate Copyright Confusion: Tools for Attributing Creative Commons Licensed Images ThingLink

Fun With Neopixels!

I've been playing around with paint and a Gemma microcontroller (to learn how to program individually addressable neopixel LEDs).

Gemma would be incredibly valuable for teaching students about eTextiles, because they are less expensive than LilyPad Arduino boards, as well as being smaller, and quite easy to program!

For this purse, I used a Gemma, a LilyPad push button, three sewable snaps, conductive thread, and 2 coin cell batteries (in a holder) to power up nine neopixels.

From start to finish the process took three days.   This was largely due to the fact that I had to strip the leather and hand punch all of the holes that I sewed conductive thread through.

Using the Adafruit Neopixel library, and the button cycler code, I was able to customize the colors to match my bag.

Here are some pictures of the purse that I just finished transforming!  (In the event that you are wondering about the process or supplies that I used to paint and seal the leather, you may want to check out Sassyfeet.com.)  If you'd like to know where I got my inspiration for creating an "electronic handbag" check out:  http://www.electronicfashion.co.uk/

Black leather purse

Random Rainbow Pattern
I used Lumiere leather paint to make my design!

Sewable Snaps Inside Purse Create a Switch

Sewable Snaps on Back of Pocket

Complete Circuit: Attach Pocket Using Snaps

Gemma Sewn to Inside of a Pocket