Our latest project, Think Outside the Box, has been lots of fun and we’re super-excited to share it with you!
For the past few years we have been keen to introduce an Escape Room-in-a-box activity. So, we were very happy last year when we had the opportunity to work with Vision Libraries to turn this dream into a reality, after they received funding from Libraries Connected and the Arts Council.
Initial Research & Planning
We began the project by conducting a survey of children and parents to find out which types of books they preferred. The actual books were quite varied but the general consensus was that children liked books with funny characters, including solving mysteries and with happy endings.
A vast array of books were highlighted as favourites by the children. When we combined favourite books with both the styles they liked and data about books frequently borrowed from the libraries, we decided to theme the box loosely around Dr Seuss. We felt that the majority of children and adults would find this familiar. Inspired by The Lorax, we thought a wacky inventor would be great as the main character, with the aim of planting more trees. And so The Amazing Tree Machine was born!
Developing the Box
As the first task required people opening a lock on the box, an initial activity was required that families could work on to discover the combination for the lock. We called this the ‘While you Wait’ activity which also doubled-up as something to do while waiting for the next box to be checked and reset by library staff.
Luckily, we had a few ideas we were able to scale-down after developing our Minecraft-themed Escape Room last year. We came up with a range of tech and non-tech puzzles, so there was something for everyone! These included using a UV torch to reveal clues, rotating servos which, once triggered, would rotate to reveal numbers for codes, completing circuits in the correct pattern to trigger events and collecting items which, when placed correctly, would switch on LEDs to indicate progress.
After planning the range of activities that could work well, and fit(!), in a box, we expanded on the story and set to work on developing an initial prototype box; controlled by micro:bits. The best way to make use of the space was to have a lift-out tray containing more electronics with puzzles to solve that are initially hidden!
Why did we use a micro:bit?
You may be wondering why we chose to use micro:bits for this project rather than a Raspberry Pi or ESP32. These would certainly be more economical on price and space, however in the future we would like to break down some of the activities to enable children to recreate aspects of the box within their own escape rooms, and micro:bits are a lot more accessible for this purpose. Additionally, when children ask how the box works it’s really nice to see recognition on their faces when we explain there’s a micro:bit inside, because many children have used or seen micro:bits in school.
Testing and Initial Feedback
The staff and volunteers working in the library also joined us in making observations, which enabled us to make changes in the development of the final five boxes. Many changes were simple fixes, such as having certain parts available later so there were less distractions at the beginning, for example we initially had a set of keys and wires available at the start that were not required until later, these acted as red herrings but confused some of the families initially. We now keep these hidden until required.
We made some improvements and undertook a second round of testing, during which, we explored alternative workflows, made adjustments to puzzles and collected more observations and feedback.
We also discovered that one of the locks we had bought wasn’t very durable, in the hands of children, so we have replaced this. There were a couple of power issues when it came to playing a “congratulations” message at the end which we were able to resolve with an alternative MP3 module. Finally, it was observed that the delay was too long on some elements that automatically spin, we have now revised the timings.
Final Boxes
After taking on-board the feedback collected at the four testing sessions, we have now developed the final five boxes. These had a test-run at the libraries during February half term, which was very well received by the families taking part. Although we didn’t collect feedback formally on this occasion, many of the participants were eager to share positive feedback verbally with staff.
Following the testing, there were a couple of final tweaks we needed to make before the final handover of all five boxes to the library. There were some elements that complete a circuit within the lid which sometimes don’t make contact reliably, so we’ve improved that to ensure better conductivity in the base. The final activity requires users to press a button to make cogs spin, but as the button only becomes live at a set point, this isn’t always obvious so we added an LED indicator to help recognise this. We fixed a few other bugs to ensure reliability and reduce unnecessary pauses; now the boxes are ready for their new home with Redbridge Libraries!
Future Development
We have lots of ideas for future developments, building on this project. We have very much enjoyed the problem solving that has run alongside the development of the boxes, and we think children would really enjoy making challenges like these for their friends. If you’re interested in bringing this to life in your school you can get in touch here or book a workshop here.
We’d like to extend a huge thank you to Libraries Connected and Arts Council for supporting this project! Not forgetting Redbridge Libraries for acquiring the funding and involving us in this project, it really is a fabulous team at Redbridge and we love working with them!