Dalton News

Dalton Toy Engineering: A Maker-Santa's Workshop

'Tis the season of toy-makers hard at work, but it's not the sounds of traditional tapping elven hammers, chisels and handsaws on Santa's workbench. Instead, it is the laser cutter's sizzle, the grind of a computer-guided mill and the whirr of a powerful servo motor and gears, among other high-tech sounds and gadgets. It's not the North Pole and Santa's workshop, it's Dalton's tiny Engineering Lab on the 5th floor at 89th Street. On late Thursday afternoons, after many have gone home, Dalton maker-elves meet to artistically tinker and utilize specialized tools and parts to produce clever toy prototypes for autistic children.
Toy Engineering students are learning the ins and outs of toy design; from safety standards and the history of toy-making to the nuances of modern design. This interdisciplinary course infuses art with engineering and vice-versa to produce toy prototypes, with the ultimate goal of guiding students to create toys for autistic students at the Young Scholars Kenderton Charter School in Philadelphia. Each Dalton toy-maker is matched with a respective autistic child and focuses the toy design on that child's particular needs or sensitivities. 
 
The semester-long course premiered in Fall 2015 and is co-taught by Adjunct Professor at ITP, Designer, Artist, and Maker Ben Light, Dalton Engineering teacher MichaelSloan Warren, and Dalton Art teacher Mira Gelley. 
Back

Additional Photos

(Grades K-3) 53 East 91st Street
New York, NY 10128
General: (212) 423-5200 | Admissions: (212) 423-5463
General: info@dalton.org | Admissions: fpadmissions@dalton.org

(Gr. 4 Dalton East & PE Center) 200 East 87th Street
New York, NY 10128
General: (212) 423-5200 | Admissions: (212) 423-5262
General: info@dalton.org | Admissions: admissionsmshs@dalton.org

(Grade 5-12) 108 East 89th Street
New York, NY 10128
General: (212) 423-5200 | Admissions: (212) 423-5262
General: info@dalton.org | Admissions: admissionsmshs@dalton.org