Out of the Black Box (OBB)

# an arts, crafts, and computation workshop series

Neta Bomani and Bomani McClendon

Micro-Grant Recipient

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Tutorials Accessibility

Out of the Black Box (OBB) is an ongoing workshop series developed by Neta Bomani and Bomani McClendon, and aimed at the introduction of electronic circuit making to school-aged children. The program teaches students about the logic of computation through artmaking. Projects include making sculptures with conductive clay, drawing with robots, and printing letters with voice-recording modules. OBB introduces elementary school children to STEAM topics in a fun, accessible, and collaborative environment with an added emphasis on engaging Black and Latinx students.

Traditionally, OBB has operated within face-to-face learning environments. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed an urgent need for online resources. With their COSA micro-grant, Bomani and McClendon focused their attention on taking the OBB program online, by creating digital lesson plans to enable educators with digital tools and introduce more students to STEAM topics.