A Week Of Soldering

So, we had trouble getting vans organized. So instead of hauling half the supplies they needed to the club to begin building sound sculptures, I decided why not teach them a skill none had tried yet, and get some sensors and motor cables fixed and built, which we needed desperately. Plus, I still have and they will use the very same sensors they built, so soldering the sensors is part of the cycle as much as anything else.

Big Idea: teach them the useful skill of soldering

Dates: Wednesday, February 8th to Wednesday February 15th

Groups Participating: Panther teens

Attendance: Eddie, Michael, Braela, Thomas, Joshua, Lahmia, Gabe and myself for one of the three days (thanks Gabe!)

Software: None

Hardware: None

Materials: soldering stands, soldering irons, sponges, soldering wire, pegboard to work on, wire cutters / strippers, shrink wrap, wire, sensors, motor connectors

Directions: Like drilling, I made sure to show how to solder and express any safety issues first, soI had them group up around the table and had them watch me solder first as I explained.

Associated Concepts: Learn a valuable skill, trust them with a potentially dangerous activity

Best Part: I'd say the fact that they loved this activity and asked to do it more. That and no burns.

Worst Part: Learning patience in holding the wire steady over the wires. Took a couple groans of frustration here and there, but they got used to it.

Improvements: Make sure to have enough materials to go for a while. The first day, the teens ot so into it and worked so fast, we ran out of things to fix within an hour.