Today’s homework. A bigger story.
Pick a topic, meet the people behind the ideas, and try something together.
20 pioneers with prepared, book-cited stories. Explore all 315 profiles
What could you build to help someone at home?
Explore machines & making with Al-Jazari, then try the activity below.
The legacy behind the lesson
Al-Jazari designed automatic machines, including clocks and handwashing devices.
His book described 50 mechanical devices, including water clocks.
Al-Jazari designed a water clock in the shape of an elephant. A drawing of the design survives in a manuscript.
“What could you build to help someone at home?”
Draw a machine that helps
Gather: Paper, a pencil, and one small everyday problem.
- 1
Choose a task you would like to make easier, such as watering a plant.
- 2
Sketch a machine that could help. Label each part.
- 3
Add arrows showing what moves first, next, and last.
- 4
Explain your design to someone else. Ask what they would change, and draw a second version.