Welcome Maker Faire friends!
That thin metal box at school where you cram all your stuff? Lockers aren't designed for students today. In fact, the design of lockers hasn't changed since the days of your great grandparents!
But in the School of the Future things could be different. Reimagine the design of a 21st century locker you would need as a Maker. A locker you could use to keep all of your stuff for making!
Let's get started on the challenge to redesign your school locker.
How do you Collect Info for this step of the design process?
In this Collect Info step of the design process, you try to gather some information about typical lockers. Think about the existing problems with your current locker and how it would look different if it were designed for Maker-students.
Try This
- Make a list of all the things you typically keep in your school locker. Make another list of all the things you love or hate about your current school locker and why. If you've logged in to DiscoverDesign and started this project, write this list of items in the text box for your project.
- Then make a list of things you would like to keep in your maker's locker. Describe the perfect locker using words. If you've logged in to DiscoverDesign and started this project, write this list in the text box for your project.
- Search on Flickr.com for school lockers or hallways and try to find a photo or two of a locker that looks most similar to yours at school.
- Save copies of these images and post them in the slides for your project. Include a hyperlink to the Flickr photo in the caption, to credit the photographer.
How do you Brainstorm Ideas for this step of the design process?
What inpsires you?
In the Brainstorm Ideas step of the design process, you might gather some early big ideas of things that inspire you when thinking about a maker's locker.
Try This
- Lockers aren't the only storage units. Search on Flickr.com for different types of objects that are designed to hold something. How can you be inspired by ideas of other storage spaces, including those from nature?
- Search for seed pods, honeycombs, mailboxes, crates, boxes, and other types of small containers.
- Will all the lockers in your School of the Future be the same color? Search on Flickr.com for objects of colors that might inspire you.
- Save copies of these colorful images (of any objects) and post them in the slides below. Include a hyperlink to the Flickr photo in the caption, to credit the photographer.
How do you Develop Solutions for this step of the design process?
In the Develop Solutions step, your rough ideas come together with drawings or models that can show others your solutions for a redesigned locker.
Try This
- Use the locker template provided for you in Google SketchUp to create a rough model of your new locker.
- You can modify this model in any way you'd like! Your new locker doesn't need to be a tall, thin metal box.
- Think about your list of items that your locker typically holds. (You made this list in the Collect Info step.) What will the shape of your new locker be to hold all these items? What new features will it include?
- Export an image of your new locker from your Google SketchUp model. To do this:
- From this drop down list, change the export type to JPG
- Save as a JPG file and post the images in the slides below
- In Google SketchUp, go to 'File' > 'Export' > '2D graphic'
How do you create a Final Design for this step of the design process?
The final step of the design process is to create a more finished model that communicates your ideas to others.
Try This
- What color or colors will your locker be? What colors have inspired you? Add colors to the digital model of your locker.
- What materials will your locker be made of? Choose materials and details to add to your digital model.
- Include a human figure in your final locker model, so we can see how big your locker really is.
- Upload additional images of your finished locker model to the slides for your project. Write short captions explaining your ideas.
- Congratulations on solving this design challenge! Check out other Maker Faire locker design projects and leave a feedback comment for another maker.
