I don’t think I’m alone when I admit to feeling nostalgic over old tech. When I think about making mixtapes or recording the Top 40 off the radio on a Sunday, I can’t help but smile.

Sure, the tech left a lot to be desired and being able to stream any song I like via my phone is certainly more flexible and easier, but it doesn’t evoke the same feelings or emotions.

Imagine my delight, then, when I recently heard that the Nokia 3310 was going to relaunched. The original was the second mobile phone I ever owned and for that reason alone, I love the thought of owning one again. I reckon my original would probably still have worked if I still had it - durable little bricks that they were.

In times of ever-decreasing school budgets, could we do better at recycling or repurposing old, possibly broken tech?

It got me thinking, though: in times of ever-decreasing school budgets, could we do better at recycling or repurposing old, possibly broken tech?

Try taking apart old computers with children to learn about how hardware works and what’s going on inside.

Old devices have their uses

Earlier this year, one of our laptops was rendered useless; instead of getting rid of it, I asked our IT technician to put it to one side, so that I could dismantle it with my digital makers’ club at some point.

I need to do a little reading around it myself and will be learning along with the children. I’m thinking it could make a great computing display when we’re done with it.

Look at what can be used in role-play areas. Any pieces of hardware that are safe to handle but don’t work any more could be put to good use in early years foundation stage or key stage 1 role-play areas.

Who knows what they could do with some old pieces of hardware to interweave into their role plays?

Of course, this is no substitute for using tech that works, but it could enhance their understanding of it.

I’ll never forget finding out that my nephew, who was 3 at the time, had been observed role playing at nursery with a friend that the internet was down and Netflix wasn’t working. Who knows what they could do with some old pieces of hardware to interweave into their role plays?

If you come across any old floppy disks in school - I know I have - use them to show children why the “save” symbol looks like it does.

It’s easy to forget that for most children nowadays, floppy disks are meaningless, but they need to know what the symbol means when they use a computer.

Depending on how old the old tech is, you can also use it as a springboard into a lesson on history or how technology has changed over time.

When I told children that I could remember the day we got dial-up internet at home (I was 17), and explained what it was like, they were stunned. Even relatively recent tech can tell a story about our past. So have fun with it before you go ahead and throw it out.

Claire Lotriet is a teacher at Henwick Primary School in London. She tweets @OhLottie and blogs at clairelotriet.com