Getting Inventive with Makey Makey

​By, Susan Wells
Founder TechTerra Education
 
One of the tools we work with and love to use is Makey Makey. Their kits allow users to turn an everyday object, really almost anything that can conduct electricity, into a touchpad that connects to the Makey Makey board with “alligator clips” and then connects to a user’s computer through a usb cable. It is simple and really creative.

We've tried out many everyday objects including fruit, a person, aluminum foil, playdough, silverware, and the list goes on. The concept is to allow pretty much anyone to create and invent almost anything anywhere. You just need the kit and your imagination.

If you are having trouble picturing how this might work, think about this example. Let’s say you want to use your computer as a piano but you want a fun keyboard to play music instead of computer keys. So, you download your piano app. You decide to use modeling clay for your piano keys. You make modeling clay keys any shape you want, maybe you decide to make dinosaurs. Great, with your clay dinosaur keys, you clip one end of an “alligator clip” to each dinosaur. You clip the other end to the Makey Makey board. You connect your Makey Makey board to your computer with the usb cable that comes in the kit to your computer. And now, you play your piano with your dinosaur keys!

It really is fun and easy! And this is pretty much exactly what students did at Iolani School in Hawaii. Take a look at our youtube video with this talented pianist. The creative potential is unlimited.   Click on our TechTerra Education video: youtu.be/W_EZKaWD_cs​.