STEAM WORKSHOPS
SCHOOLS & COMMUNITIES
I design creative, hands-on STEAM workshops and experiences for all ages, from early years, secondary school and families. Choose from established workshops or work with me to create something bespoke. Sessions can be structured, bookable, drop-in or Jamboree-style or a combination of formats and are tailored to your audience, space and setting.
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Light Art Play
A playful, hands-on exploration of light, shadow and movement. Experiment with torches, objects and motors to create light drawings and simple pattern machines through curiosity and creative play.
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Robotics
Explore design thinking and making skills to engineer moving or drawing robots using circuits and hobby motors.
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Light Boxes
Design and build your own illuminated light box using craft materials, patterns, LEDs and motors. Create individual designs to take home or combine them into a collaborative light installation.
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Learning Machines
Explore how to design, engineer, and create their own cardboard micro:bit learning machines to test and experiment with hands-on ways of learning.
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Paper Sculpting
Explore the art of paper sculpting to design and build a collaborative cityscape, reimagining a place or designing art sculptures through creativity, making and 3D construction.
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Animation
Explore hands-on animation techniques to design, create, and bring their imaginative stories to life, using storyboards, characters, and backgrounds or arty faces using everyday materials.
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Spinning Animators
Explore programming micro:bits and servos to create spinning animations, combining their creative drawing skills with hands-on technology.
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AI Animation
Creative Character Making, tinkering with nature, everyday objects, drawing, painting or kinetic sand to create imaginative creatures and characters, then use AI to bring them to life through animation.
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Conductive Games
Explore combining their design-maker skills and use micro:bits, circuits, and sound to programme to create their own electronic games.
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Sound and Light Sensor Art
Explore various artists worldwide and discover how they use micro:bit and servo motors to bring movement to their art with sound and light sensors.
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Live Art Coding
Experiment with code to create colourful, moving digital artwork in real time. Working in pairs, participants use Hydra to explore creativity, coding and visual effects through playful experimentation.
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Creative Constructions
Explore creative design thinkers and makers, utilising everyday materials and modelling techniques to invent, build, and engineer their ideas. They will collaboratively build small-scale models or expansive immersive structures, fostering an appreciation for architecture and sculpture.
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micro:bit Invention
Prepare for an exhilarating day of exploration and invention with the pocket-sized micro:bit computer, ideal for KS2 and educators! Together, participants will delve into physical computing, programming LEDs, servo motors, and sensors to construct and animate their own inventions.
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Illusion Machines
Explore programming micro:bits and servos to explore the art of illusion, experiment with, and design their own optical illusions.
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Toy Dissection & Redesign
Take apart old toys and everyday objects to discover how their electronics and mechanisms work, then redesign the parts into imaginative new creations. Experiment with LEDs, motors and simple circuits to bring your ideas to life.
Endorsements
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“Thank you on behalf of us all at Kids on Track for joining us today and introducing everyone to AI Animation. We were bowled over by you, how you ran it, the concept, and results. The children thought it was great and came running back to Red Rice telling me all about it. We very much appreciate your support for our charity and for your part in helping to make the kids’ summer just that little bit better, as well as getting them to try something new. ”
Jo Gammell, Kids On Track, Camps
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"Children using recycled materials to create an amazing adaptation of an area in their outside environment. They had to apply a range of fine motor skills and work as a team to attach and manipulate resources, to form tunnels, enclosed spaces and dens. The children loved this activity and were eager to share their efforts and achievements with their parents at the end of the day. This space was used for a few days after, where children would make changes to their original design, fixing elements when they broke and they actively used this area to enhance their child-directed learning through play. "
Miss Fisher Smith- Teacher
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We attended one of Emma's Nature Bot workshops today, and it was fantastic! My son (who is neurodivergent) was so incredibly excited! Emma was incredibly welcoming, calm and incredibly attentive towards our son. It was the first time I also felt at ease at a children's workshop, with absolutely no anxiety! My son has been happily playing with his bot and dreaming up new robots all day. We will be coming back and booking a party in the future. Thank you so much, Emma, you've made something truly special!
Toni Sullivan, Parent
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The Buzz Wire workshop with my Year 4 children was highly engaging throughout, and they responded particularly well to the practical and purposeful nature of the activity. Having a clear, real-world purpose for their coding helped to bring the learning to life and enabled the children to see how their programming skills could be applied in a meaningful context.
Primary Teacher, Miss Hathway-Smith
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Absolutely the most incredible and inspiring way to spend an afternoon with children, making magical art with Emma. My kids were completely immersed for hours. We came to the morning workshop and then came back again for the afternoon."
Kate, Parent
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“Emma is a great teacher and at the workshop I attended the children were inspired and engaged in the animation process for the entire 2 hours. The workshop was really well organised and all the participants produced really creative mini films.”
Hilldenborough Guides