As part of our experimentation with Lodestar Charter School in Oakland, our team of educators and artists have been working to convert mini-exhibit prototypes to tools that people can use at home to explore the world around them. Sarah Chung has been experimenting with a couple of mirror-based tools that allow for investigations of art, science, and nature.

One of these prototypes is a mix of high and low tech tools. We made a simple kaleidoscope out of a cardboard tube (derder), some mirrored cardstock and masking tape and then attached it to the camera of a phone or tablet for some amazing results.

I took this “cardboard app” on a walk around my block here in LA and captured some amazing psychedelic images of flowers, cacti, bushes, trees and even a few human made objects.

It’s really exciting to think about the possibilities for different activities to go with this tools. Tinkerers can do some research into each biological species, learners can design guessing games for each other and people all over the world can share their creations. If you try this out, we’d love to see the results. Post your images with the hashtags #plantprism and #cardboardkaliedoscope!

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Prototyping time and R&D with Lodestar Charter School for the Plant Prism and Cardboard Kaleidoscope was made possible through the generous support of Cognizant “Making the Future” grant.

WICO@Home - Cardboard Kaleidoscope Tests