Part 1, Final Project: Ideas Class Presentation

We were matched with the balance beam!  

Final Project, Part 1

Amy asked each group to brainstorm possible final project ideas that would benefit the children of the classrooms we've visited. The only catch to the idea however was that it had to incorporate a form of feedback and control.  Below are the three final project ideas we presented in class: 

 

1) The Sifter
Problem: In the classrooms that we visited, children were knocking materials (sand, water) out of a large rectangular box that was designed so children could easily reach their hands in and play with the curriculum presented: sand, water, rice, etc. To accommodate the children's heights, the box was relatively shallow, and children could spill water, sand, or whatever materials were inside the box on the ground. Spilling and allowing, for example, water is a safety hazard for young children who tend to be quick on their feet and unaware they are causing a mess around themselves.  The solution to this problem that my team came up with...
Solution: The Sifter! On the bottom of the water table, we could place a sifter that would cover the entire area of the table. As children play and splash water out of the table, the sifter would be lifted by a pulley made of possibly Delrin, and connected to a servo. To start off, a load sensor would take the initial readings of how much was in the water table. When as the "load" (materials in the table) readings drop (when the children splash too much water out of the tank) to an amount where the children need to clean up, the pulley would be triggered and the sifter would be raised. This way, children can be alerted and asked to remove any safety hazards on the ground before they can continue playing at the table again. The load sensor that reads the levels inside the water table would be using feedback and control to raise the sifter.


2) The Balance Beam
Problem: Teachers in the classrooms we visited raised concerns about allowing "risky play" for the children. Risky play is the concept of permitting children to take risks without actually inflicting harm on themselves. This is hard to create in a classroom setting because of many laws and regulations surrounding the children and their play environment. Many "natural play environments" spaces where children could take risks and learn as they discover nature do not exist/are minimal for children in suburban and urban areas. To recreate this type of environment...
Solution: The Balance Beam! "Risky" for children who are afraid of heights or are discovering different levels of elevation, our balance beam would use different touch sensors to monitor how far a child has walked and prompt him/her to continue with lights along the beam. Feedback and control, in this case, would be the sensors that control the LED lights, where the placement of the child would determine what lights up. Children would be encouraged to finish the beam by seeing the progress they've made (the lights beneath them). We had also thought of levels, so that the beam would become progressively harder as the child walks across.

3) The Weather Outfit Teller
Problem: Teachers usually face difficulty with communicating to a child what he/she should wear during different seasons. For example, a child may want to wear a t-shirt outside although it is snowing heavily. As the seasons change, children constantly need to be reminded what would be appropriate-wear, and so...
Solution: The Full-Mirror Size Reel! My team imagined we could have a child-size rectangular screen that use touch sensors to allow children to choose options. Perhaps, we could even have a servo turn the images as the child when she/he clicks on a button. Spring, fall, winter, and summer, the options would display on the screen and the child would be asked to select accordingly. If, say, the season the child chooses is "Fall", the child would be brought to a screen image of another child in front of him/her, and asked to the screen's child according the season chosen. In this case, which is fall, the child would be given a series of options, such as a t-shirt, a light jacket, and a heavy coat. The data inputed by the use would determine the next sequence of images, which would utilize feedback & control.

We realize that this last project idea may not be feasible, given the amount of time we have to complete it (3 weeks, including figuring out and buying materials). In addition, children learn through simple tasks and examples, and an overly complicated program with too many different options might confuse a child as she learns. 

Small Reflection (After Completion of Final Project): Looking back, I am glad we stayed with our simple photocell sensors and were given our beam project. With the limited amount of time available, the sifter would be hard to incorporate in to a child's classroom given 1) the materials available and can be brought within our $100 limit and 2) the testing environment (child's classroom) which we would need to revisit several times and 3) the planning of the overall structure and iterations (where the pulley would be placed so that it is out of the children's reach, etc)