A Kitchen and Cafe

Over the past few days, our second team has been meeting and working together to construct the "Kitchen" for our CONNECTED HOUSE project.
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Originally designed by both Jade and Michael during our blueprint planning phase, the construction team now includes Jade, Hugh, Wilder, and Saully.

Original kitchen structure design by Jade

The dome is the kitchen. We could eat at a round circle table.
​I have a special seat for Shelly if she wants to join. - Jade

Original food machine design by Michael

(In the) kitchen room there's circles and hands and arms come out. They get food. You don't really have to clean. There's machines and they move by themselves. - Michael

Day 1:

Saul, Wilder, and Hugh met to reflect on existing designs and then incorporated those ideas into new sketches of their own.

The concept for the food machine in the kitchen was inspired by the book, If I Built a House by Chris Van Dusen

All three children sketched their design ideas for the “Kitchen”.
Saul focused on where the food would be made and the machine that would make it.
Hugh chose to create a “cafe” space where people will eat the food. Hugh wanted to incorporate a "bar" design in his cafe so that people could eat at counter style seating.
​Hearing Hugh explain his idea, Wilder decided to create a design similar to Hugh’s which focused on an eating space. 

Kitchen design by Saul

Cafe design by Hugh

Cafe design by Wilder

Recalling Jade’s original design sketch for the kitchen, which was dome shaped, Saul searched the materials collection and found a mesh strainer to use as a dome “roof”. Aware that he needed the roof to be raised, “We need a brick wall and a door to get in”, he first found corks to use to support the dome roof. Noticing the corks could not support the dome without falling over, “We need something stronger”, Saul searched the Tucker closet and found small square tiles to use. “These are very strong”. Saul then began to arrange the tiles in a circular shape that Hugh had traced on the cardboard base using the dome as his outline. 
“Whoa, look at Saul! He’s making it so strong!” - Wilder

As the three worked together to arrange the tiles, they agreed to create a pattern that was 2 rows deep. Working from outside to inside, they quickly realized that this was difficult and tiles continued to be knocked over while they worked. They decided it was best to take a break and try the design again the following day! 

Day 2: 

Jade joins the team!
​Saul, Wilder, and Hugh catch Jade up on their work and discuss which ideas are important to remember to include in the construction phase. 

​Wilder: How about I glue the line and then we put blocks on?
Jade: We can take turns. 

Saul: This could be the door. (notch in tracing)
Hugh: Let’s not do it all at once because it dries quickly. And we want to get it perfect because it’s permanent glue. 
Wilder: And fast because it will dry fast. 

Jade: It’s gonna be like the colosseum!
Hugh: remember the dome will have lights so we don’t need windows.

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Day 3: 

Saul, Hugh, and Wilder continue searching for materials that will best represent the additional details they plan to add to their Kitchen and Cafe spaces. ​

​Marker and pen caps seem to be the perfect support for the chairs in the cafe.
​How many will we need to create to include seating options for everyone?

Saul creates hanging lights for his kitchen space.

Saul measures width of space needed for his conveyor belt.

Saul adds "wheels" the the conveyor belt so that it can move and transport food.

Inspired by Saully's technique for creating hanging lights in the kitchen, Hugh and Wilder ask for instructions on how they can replicate the lights in their cafe. 

Saul: So you cut a piece (of wire), wrap it around the pompoms, then hook another wire around for a double sided hook to hang. You have to hook it strong.
(sharing his process with Hugh and Wilder )
Wilder: Oh, I learned a lesson! Maybe you need to bend it more? (to create a hook)
Saul: You need longer wire. Wire is the best material to hold the longest. And pompoms are so sparkly so they can shine. (for the lights)

We’re getting to do all dangerous things today! Like hot glue and the really sharp knife.
​- Hugh

Wilder uses an x-acto knife to cut out windows in the Cafe.

Hugh secures his hanging lights with hot glue.

Day 4:

Jade, Hugh, Saul, and Wilder continue creating details for the cafe space.
​They planned to include a counter to eat at, chairs for everyone, and food menus to order from. 

​Hugh: Shouldn’t the table be a nice color?
Jade: Like a nice brown wooden table?
(Jade finds a brown piece of paper as an example)
Hugh: Or maybe like this teal, right? This is a nice color. 

​Hugh: We need a teeny bumper so the food doesn't go flying off. (at the end of the conveyor belt)
Hugh: So the food comes out of a machine and goes down the conveyor belt until it hits the bumper, then it comes back with the dishes.  

Including Shelly in the construction plans of our Connected House. 

But how can Shelly even fit? She’s way too big! - Wilder

​The team agreed that the best way to include Shelly in our model home was to find a "mini figure" to represent her.
​While searching for Shelly's mini figure, the team also found mini versions of the remaining Shell family members too! 

Each shell now has a mini figure that can be used in the connected house!

Jade offers to draw Shelly's eyes

Wilder: Hugh, you're just breaking everything!
Hugh: I'm just arranging these chairs...
​you're right, I am kind of breaking everything. 

​:)

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​Hugh shared the team's progress with the rest of the class during snack time this week.

Day 5 and 6:

Final touches! 
Adding detailed food menus to the conveyor belt in the cafe and finishing the "food making and dishwashing machine robot" in the kitchen. 

Food menus are attached to the conveyor belt so people can order their food while sitting at the counter.

​Please come visit the classroom with your child during morning drop offs next week (9:00-9:15am) to check out some of this incredible work together! 

Reflection of the Work:
What are you most proud of?

Hugh: The whole cafe. I mean, look at that! And it says Connected Cafe. 

Wilder: Making it in time. (finishing the work)
Hugh: Yeah because that wasn’t that much time but we made it. 

Jade: Making the chairs because I glued the two parts together. 

Saul: Making the conveyor belt because we did it to go all the way out the window and through the kitchen.