Build
Learners assemble the core design and see how the parts work together.
Select the pack size that matches your use case
Learners build
A hand-powered automaton that uses rotating parts to animate a scene.
Learners start by building a crank-driven frame that turns rotation into repeated motion, then attach characters or scenery that move with the mechanism.
From there, they can redesign it as a moving landscape, story scene, character moment, science model, or collaborative animated display.
Test
They try it, notice what happens, and compare the result with their goal.
Redesign
They make changes, add their own ideas, and improve the build through iteration.
Learners explore
Use cams and followers to turn spinning motion into animated movement.
Create characters, settings, and moving scenes that tell a story.
Test, change, and improve a design through multiple tries.
Ready to run with learners
Student-facing slides introduce the concepts, guide the activity, and help learners reflect on what changed. Educator materials support setup, pacing, discussion, and extensions so this can work in classrooms, libraries, homeschool groups, clubs, or makerspaces.
View Scene Machines teaching materialsStudent Slides
Introduce concepts, guide build moments, and give learners reflection prompts.
Educator Guide
Setup notes, pacing help, facilitation prompts, and extension ideas.
Flexible Facilitation
Works for classrooms, homeschool groups, libraries, clubs, and makerspaces.
What's included
Choose a pack size to see how the component quantities change for one learner, a small group, or a full class.