Explore and experiment with mechanical motion using maker tools to create your own whimsical kinetic sculpture. This workshop will integrate engineering, art, and play as participants collaborate to bring their mechanisms to life. Designed for students in grades 5-8. Sessions run 60-75 minutes in length.

Get creative with circuitry by creating your own pet robot. Use maker tools, mechanical engineering, and your own imagination as you work together to build, test, and iterate on your own programmable critter. Designed for students in grades 5-8. Sessions run 60-75 minutes in length.

Transform a card or book into a 3D paper structure by combining basic pop-up folds and your own artwork. This workshop provides plenty of opportunities to be creative, experimental, and whimsical as we explore kinetic energy and spatial reasoning. Designed for students in grades 5-8. Sessions run 60-75 minutes in length.

The splashing of water, seemingly a quick and simple event, is studied in many labs around MIT. Inspired by the works of Berenice Abbott and Harold “Doc” Edgerton, participants will use high-speed photography and video to slow phenomena down, and discover patterns and mathematical relationships that we can use to solve real world problems. Designed for students in grades 7-12. Sessions run 75-90 minutes in length.

Image: Berenice Abbott, A Bouncing Ball in Diminishing Arcs, 1958.

NASAs newest space telescopes TESS and James Webb, are discovering new exoplanets daily. Workshop participants will step into the role of an astronomer and using physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics, decode signals to unravel these planets’ mysteries. Designed for students in grades 7-12. Sessions run 75-90 minutes in length.