I love Tiffany Tseng’s new DIY documentation tool, the Spin turntable. It’s a photography turntable system for capturing how DIY projects progress over time. It uses a simple turntable that is synchronized to an iOS app that simply creates 360 degree animated GIFs of projects. I highly recommend that you check it out!
I am now asking myself not just how could my elementary students utilize such a tool for documenting their own work, but also how could they make their own version of this tool with materials that they have mastered. Here’s my first stab at a proof of concept. It’s cobbled together with LEGO WeDo parts and a free GIF making app for iOS (There are many out there).
My 4th and 5th graders have years of experience with LEGO robotics and iOS tools so I think that it’s a great task to tackle independently.
It is a lesser design than the Spin of course. It’s not synchronized, so it requires the user to activate both the turntable’s motor and the GIF making app simultaneously and independently. The issue of how to share the GIF files to the users is also an issue, but I’m excited to posit the challenge to the students. I think that they would love the chance to make an animated GIF machine. Here are the initial images I shot. Any comments or words of wisdom?
Dylan Ryder 
