The Tinkering Workshop with Ryan Jenkins
Meet (and make with!) educator and author Ryan Jenkins and learn about his new book, The Tinkering Workshop.
Together, we’ll be inspired to look at familiar supplies in new and unexpected ways, think with our hands, troubleshoot tricky constructions, and sharpen our problem-solving skills. At this event, Ryan will give a short introduction to the book and lead a drop-in tinkering workshop inspired by the book. Signed copies of The Tinkering Workshop will be available for purchase at the museum store.
The Tinkering Workshop
Encourage youngsters to get creative with this activity book that illustrates the principles of science–full of fun projects! Gather some basic tools and supplies from a hardware store, garage, basement, woodshop, or recycling bin. Now get ready to tinker, explore, and engineer with screws, bendy wire, metal washers, plastic pipes, dowels, electronics, LED lights, and more! Makerspace educator Ryan Jenkins inspires kids aged 8 to 12 to look at familiar supplies in new and unexpected ways, to think with their hands, troubleshoot tricky constructions, and sharpen their problem-solving skills. Kids are invited to imagine how to use the supplies on hand with projects, such as building Flexible Forts with cardboard and screws, making Art Robots with hobby motors, constructing a Water Factory with plastic pipes, balancing Sky Trams on strings, and engineering Surprising Switches with wire and foil. As they build, they’ll learn about balance, center of gravity, comparative measuring, electricity, and more. Engaging photography jump-starts hours of curiosity and creativity. Start with a string, PVC pipe, cardboard ramp, or flexible tube—and see where it leads!
Ryan Jenkins
Ryan Jenkins is the director and lead tinkerer at Wonderful Idea Company, a collaborative studio that creates playful resources to support STEAM education and the development of 21st-century skills. He’s a leader in the field of making and tinkering education and has partnered with children’s museums, schools, universities, professional organizations, and companies around the world. Ryan started as a workshop leader and exhibit builder at the Tinkering Studio at the Exploratorium, a well-known science center in San Francisco, California. He developed summer programs at Tinkering School that blend large-scale construction with learner-centric investigations of electronics, robotics, and programming. He has contributed to MAKE magazine, Instructables, SparkFun Education, and the Tinkering Studio blog. He lives with his wife and son, and they split their time between Southern California and Germany’s Black Forest region.
