Playful Exploration = Learning

Over Coffee® | Stories and Resources from the Intersection of Art and Science | Exploring How to Make STEAM Work For You

Learning about the world by making things and experimenting? Playfully combining art. science and technology to make some incredibly cool stuff? Crafting both educational experiences and interactive art? That's exactly what Los Angeles-based design studio Wonderful Idea Co. is all about. And so is A Tinkering World Tour, their popular online hands-on workshop, which premiered in April! Currently, Season Two of A Tinkering World Tour is in the funding stage on Indiegogo. And when Season Two starts in September, says Wonderful Idea Co. Co-Founder/Managing Director Ryan Jenkins, workshop participants get to "visit" five different countries. But they won't just be visiting. Instead, they'll be working along with local makers, artists and educators, to create some exciting projects! But no fancy materials will be needed. These creative workshops will be using materials commonly found around the house. Among Season Two's "destinations" are Italy, Nepal and Singapore. While Wonderful Idea Co. introduced their Tinkering World Tour in April, 2021, the workshop series is just one of their recent innovations. Wonderful Idea Co. creates interactive exhibits and art for museums and makerspaces. They offer professional-development workshops for educators and artists. Often, their lessons lead to an epiphany--students can learn effectively while having fun making and tinkering. In addition, their blog and "projects" page, on their website, offer a lot of exciting ideas for projects -- including a mouse-powered knitting machine! And they're also planning some exciting Automata Tinkering Global Workshops in September, in collaboration with U.K.-based Cabaret Mechanical Theatre. Ryan shared the story of Wonderful Idea Co., offered a look inside A Tinkering World Tour and shared some of his favorite resources. On this edition of Over Coffee®, we cover: How Ryan first came to realize the value of playful exploration for learning; How the Wonderful Idea Co. came into being; The story of A Tinkering World Tour; One of Ryan's favorite experiences during the first workshop series; A preview of what's going to be happening in September: Some of Ryan's favorite resources for maker projects; A closer look at two eco-friendly maker projects Wonderful Idea Co. has been creating; Ryan's vision for the future with Wonderful Idea Co.'s approach of playful exploration; A look at sustainable resources for making and tinkering; A preview of the Global Automata Workshops; One epiphany Ryan witnessed, with a student who took a hands-on making workshop; What's coming up for the Wonderful Idea Co., after October.