Did you know there was a camp this summer for 13-17 year old students that taught creative writing skills by having participants imagine a character and then bring it to life through animatronics? I was recently invited to attend the showcase event for the Animatronics Bird Camp in Marceline on July 10 and wanted to share a recap of this amazing experience.
Supported by the Walt Disney Hometown Museum, Missouri Writing Project, and created by the Garner Holt Foundation, the goal of the “Songbird Camp” was to provide students with the opportunity to learn the process of writing for character development, combined with hands-on building and programming of their animatronic character. Students started with writing workshops focused on character development and script writing. Once the character story was written, participants switched to hands-on building of an animatronic bird character. This included assembly, wiring, programming and decorating! The result is similar to the characters you might see at a Disney theme park! For the geeks in the room, the animatronic part involves a 6 function, 2 mode Arduino powered controller that records servo motion and audio.
Along with the kit, students participate in a series of hands-on workshops in writing specific to character creation and scripting. Then they move to animatronics (servos and controls, etc.), wiring and assembly and creating a “show” where they record their script and then animate their bird to match. Their final show gives them the opportunity to introduce their characters and talk about their experiences.
Special thanks to Marsha Tyson, Senior Program Project Coordinator, Wipro Grant for Science and Math Education Fellows for the invite and Jillian Brown, Education Services Manager, Garner Holt Education Through Imagination for the background on the program!
