Fun How-To, DIY projects and activities to teach kids STEM & STEAM fundamentals and spark curiosity through play!

“This is a great addition to STEM collections, maker spaces, and elementary- through middle-school graphic-novel collections.” - Booklist

"Fine, fabulous stuff" - School Library Journal

Lurking in the corners of your garage, on the dusty shelves of hardware stores, and in your own trashcan are the tools and ingredients for creating your own adventures. Follow Celine and Tucker as they learn through play with over 50 DIY projects! Challenged to make something "other than trouble," this brother-and-sister pair use everyday objects to invent toys that readers can build. Combining comics and real-life science and engineering principles, Howtoons are designed to encourage kids to become active participants in the world around them.

"...perfectly tuned to inspire creativity as well as promote good work habits in budding inventors and mechanical engineers alike." - Kirkus Review

"Geeks aren't born, they're made... and here's the instruction manual." - Wired Magazine

About The Authors

Saul Griffith

Saul Griffith is an engineer and inventor. As founder and chief scientist at Otherlab, an independent R&D lab, he helps government agencies and Fortune 500 companies understand energy infrastructure and deep decarbonization. He’s been a principal investigator and project lead on federally-funded research projects for agencies including NASA, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-e), National Science Foundation and United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM). He was awarded the MacArthur “Genius Grant” in 2007. He completed his PhD at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2004.
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Saul is also founder and chief scientist at Rewiring America, a nonprofit dedicated to widespread electrification as a means of fighting climate change, creating jobs, making our air cleaning, and saving the future for our children.

Saul received his Ph.D. at MIT in the junction between materials science and information theory. Prior to MIT, he studied in Sydney, Australia and at UC Berkeley in metallurgical engineering. Since graduating in 2004, he has founded and co-founded numerous technology companies based in the Bay Area. These include Treau (now Gradient), Sunfolding, Roam Robotics, Fablight, Wattzon, Canvas Construction, Makani Power (acquired by Google), Instructables.com (acquired by Autodesk), Squid Labs, Howtoons, Optiopia, Potenco, and Stow Energy.

Saul, born in Australia, is a father of two, and a consistent champion of STEAM education (including the A for ART!).

Ingrid Dragotta

Ingrid Dragotta is a designer on Howtoons.

Nick Dragotta

Nick Dragotta is the artist and co-creator, along with writer Jonathan Hickman, of the breakout hit series East of West. Dragotta and Hickman made name for their creative team previously on Fantastic Four at Marvel Comics, where Dragotta also worked on the landmark run of X-Statix with Peter Milligan and many other of the top Marvel characters such as Captain America, Spider-Man, the X-Men and others.