Cath Hassell of ech20, former plumber (if you ever be a former plumber !), designer, teacher and general innovator in all things water and energy related created Frankie the Flamingo and his faithful side kick Clarence (the carb who doesn’t like poo on his head). In a language that is accessible to five to eight year olds Frankie and Clarence solve mysteries, they also learn scientific facts and figure out that engineering is cool !
DTC teamed up with Cath and her team to sponsor the latest instalment of the detective series. The latest resource book is located in Zambia, the site of our EU project with Habitat for Humanity.
Frankie the flamingo, Clarence the crab, lisa, lexi, Ciara and Tamica the lolling leopards together with Hawa the hippo and Rory the rhino travel to Zambia where they meet all of their African cousins. Together they figure out how to make cool stuff like compost, tippy taps and drip irrigation. Along the way they also solve the mystery of the leopard that changed their spots.
Using a interactive story together with practical workshops kids are introduced to the mystery of engineering !
If you are a teacher, engineer, student etc. and would like to explore these resources email one of our DTC team.
Think it, build it, test it is the mantra developed by Cath and her team. Using the Frankie resources six to ten year olds are tasked with building and testing some of the technologies embedded within the story books.
To do that they use an inquisitive and irrepressible flamingo (Frankie) and her faithful side kick Clarence – the crab who doesn’t like poo on his head. And you! The Engineers.
If you would like to engage with Cath and DTC to organise a workshop with your school in Ireland please contact us directly
