This quirky little project results in a “robot” that can draw on paper, thanks to the use of a small hobby motor. I didn’t think we’d be able to make it… until I spotted a hobby motor in my junk drawer! If you don’t have one, check with your local electronics store.

To start, secure three or four colored pencils (or thin markers) around the sides of a sturdy plastic cup with masking tape. Add wiggle eyes to give your Bot some character, or even draw on a face with a Sharpie.

Next, you’ll need to attach the hobby motor to a battery pack, and then secure all that on top of the Bot. This part was tricky, since the wires from the battery pack came off the motor unless taped tightly. The whole thing was so heavy that when we turned on the power, it often either fell down or couldn’t move far. It actually worked best if I held the battery pack lightly, my hand following along in the robot’s wake.

We did get this quick clip!

Next time I would use a much sturdier cup, and find a way to tape both motor and battery pack on the top, to see if we got better artwork. But for some novel STEM play, this was a great project!