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lesson will be to have students make a fence around a house/area of land using whatever products they want. they will then take this and find the area and perimeter of their fence.

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Makerspaces: Building Community and 21st-Century Skills in Detroit (Opinion)

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This might help us when we create our lesson!

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Editor's note: Brightmoor Makers is a youth employment and social entrepreneurial initiative that has developed programs in woodworking, bike/industrial trike mechanics, screen-printing, and gardening/landscape design on the west side of Detroit. This group of over 40 students from Detroit Community High School, their intergenerational instructors, and community volunteers is led by Bart Eddy, co-founder and director. Here, Bart shares the value of maker spaces and some tips for creating one using Brightmoor Makers as a case study.

A maker space is a place or location where people come together to discover their innovative and creative capacities through hands-on activities. From the advanced technologies of Fab Labs, 3-D printing, laser cutters and machining to arts and crafts, the maker movement is an expression of both the do-it-yourself (DIY) culture and the necessity to fill the gap in the education system that has removed hands-on/practical learning and the arts from the curriculum. Very much a place-based endeavor, the movement for maker education appeals to professionals, tradespeople, and young people who want to work with their hands, design innovative products, and express their individuality. A common thread between all maker activities is that they promote high levels of engagement and focus through project-based and/or science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) activities.

Through a process that replicates the Apprentice, Journeyman, and Master continuum of learning a craft, the Brightmoor Makers gain proficiency in their respective fields and are able to market their products to the community. Here are some guiding principles that have evolved out of our work since starting the program in 2009:

The Value of Maker Spaces: Fashioning Identity

Beyond the joy of making things and deriving satisfaction in a job well done where the results are immediately tangible, the activity of making has a deep connection to social-emotional learning that leads to the fashioning of a participant's identity. The maker environment becomes an incubator for the development of 21 st century learning skills such as teamwork, creativity, imagination, innovation, and the one-to-one learning environment created by the relationship between the instructor and student. We like to refer to our maker space as an "innovation lab" where mistakes are encouraged and maximum engagement is expected.

Creating the Space: Know the Place

It is essential to know the particular needs of the community in order to structure a maker spaces program. To begin, we got involved in community meetings through the Brightmoor Alliance, a coalition of community-based organizations that represents local schools, businesses, neighborhood block clubs, and other associations. This led to our first activity: turning a vacant piece of land owned by the Leland Missionary Baptist Church into a memorial park for the parishioners. Through our participation in the community, we became connected with the urban gardening movement and were made aware of the extreme lack of afterschool activities and employment opportunities for youth in the area.

Abandoned houses, empty lots, and a high rate of unemployment characterize the Brightmoor neighborhood. Unlike the more traditional maker space facilities and given the neighborhood economy, we understood early on that we could not charge a membership fee for participation in the maker activities, nor could we supply high-end technologies to operate our programs. Furthermore, with the extraordinarily high rates of youth unemployment, we also concluded that we needed to provide a stipend whenever possible for our youth who, more often than not, used their small amounts of income to help with basic family needs.

Getting Started

Starting a maker space is not as complex as one might expect, particularly if you start small. When other schools or community organizations have asked how to do it, our answer has been to use the example of woodworking and suggest they find a room or space in their school or community organization, engage the students in building their own workbenches, and then begin with hand tools such as mallets, clamps, and chisels. The costs of setting up such a simple operation that will serve 10-12 students will be less than $2,000. Typically, we will send one of our instructors and youth interns to help train the staff and initiate the program. An inexpensive rider attached to the general insurance policy of the organization covers the safety issues surrounding the use of hand tools.

Self-Development and Community Transformation

We have witnessed that hands-on work has a healing force for youth that have experienced a high level of trauma in their lives, which many of our youth have. Indeed, we can testify to the fact that maker activities can serve as a powerful antidote to youth violence, disengagement, and disenchantment. This becomes especially evident as young people begin to realize that what they are doing is far more than receiving a paycheck and is intimately tied to the betterment of their community.

One of our major social entrepreneurial projects has been to create a water purification industrial trike as an emergency response vehicle to the water shut-offs in Detroit and the lead contamination of the water in Flint, MI. Our renewable energy vehicle is a collaborative effort between the gardeners (water filtration system and rain barn), the bike mechanics (trike rehab and electronic assist installation), screen printers (logo design and printing water cycler t-shirts), and the woodworkers (sides and framework for the vehicle). The water cycler project has served as an introduction to sustainable energy, brought all of our work disciplines into a collective focus, and attracted the interest of a wide range of community organizations and leaders. In turn, we have developed a speaker's bureau and gone out into the community as a team while inviting neighborhood activists and spokespersons to come into our workspace. For example, the University of Michigan Stamps School of Arts and Design will bring a group of university students to work with high school students at Detroit Community High School in a course that is called "Resilient Design." One of their projects will be to create a rain barn to collect and store water from rooftops for both purification and drip irrigation for the garden.

Engaging the Community

Programs such as the Brightmoor Makers cannot exist without the help of multiple partners, and we have been very fortunate to secure the interest of neighborhood organizations, youth employment initiatives in the City of Detroit, and Detroit Community High School, in addition to the University of Michigan.

When we first began our woodworking workshop out of an abandoned garage, we created and installed hand-carved wooden signs as a community service beautification project for the neighborhood block club association. Having done this, other community organizations contacted us and began to order signs, and thus, our entrepreneurial endeavor was born. The local block club and a councilman from the City of Detroit helped to spread the word. This led to our youth being nominated for and receiving the "Spirit of Detroit" award for community service and leadership. Additionally, we received a donation of 150 industrial trikes for rehabilitation from UAW Ford, and with students from the U of M Stamps School of Art and Design, we began the screen-printing program. Over time, we began to grow into the idea that school is community and community is the school, and with this in mind we began to prepare the Brightmoor Maker Space building as a place for community workshops while actively participating in community events and meetings.

Funding

From the outset, we have resorted to multiple sources of funding that include local foundations, city agencies, the school district and other partners, as well as crowdsourcing. This has led to the establishment of the Sunbridge International Collaborative, a 501c3 non-profit organization, which is dedicated to experiential and hands-on learning. We have also offered fee-based workshops and trainings here and abroad.

Given the population we serve, we do not charge any fees for use or occupancy of our facilities, and although we are largely dependent on grants for our operational costs, we have been able to demonstrate movement towards economic sustainability with the products that we sell back into the community. The sale of the products has provided additional income for our youth beyond a stipend and has allowed us to defray the costs of supplies and materials while teaching financial literacy.

Next Steps

In the spring of 2018, the Brightmoor Makers in collaboration with the University of Michigan Stamps School of Art and Design will open the Brightmoor Maker Space building. This building will serve as an invitation to the entire community to partake in creative, hands-on programming. We intend to do the following: expand our programming areas to incorporate more emerging means of production through digital fabrication and 3D printing; extend this work to other community groups in the city of Detroit through a series of short-term, experiential learning workshops; connect university students with local youth for specially designed workshops in artistic and functional creative living; provide intergenerational workshops for parents and grandparents; establish connections with our international network of friends who are interested in projects such as the water purification trikes and cultural exchange; and expand the Brightmoor Makers program to the next level, which will entail developing sustainable, entrepreneurial endeavors for the current Brightmoor Makers and, particularly, for the 18-24 year-olds who are looking for alternatives to traditional employment and education opportunities and to engage their skills through collaborative change-making work.
Photos taken by and used with permission of David Grossman. Quote image created on Pablo, image by David Grossman.

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Makerspaces: Building Community and 21st-Century Skills in Detroit (Opinion)

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Editor's note: Brightmoor Makers is a youth employment and social entrepreneurial initiative that has developed programs in woodworking, bike/industrial trike mechanics, screen-printing, and gardening/landscape design on the west side of Detroit. This group of over 40 students from Detroit Community High School, their intergenerational instructors, and community volunteers is led by Bart Eddy, co-founder and director.

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check out creativity powerpoint "maker education online 2022"  or maker ed readings!

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check out creativity powerpoint "maker education online 2022"  or maker ed readings!

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has many links, videos, and other great sources!

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After searching makers movement on pinterest, I saw a lot of posts about having a maker space for students in the classroom (as you can see above). This could be something we use when developing something practical at the end of our lesson. I know, I am now interested in implementing a whole maker space in my classroom for students to use during free or small group time in order to promote creativity in all of my students.

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https://www.upperelementarysnapshots.com/2017/11/five-secrets-of-project-based-learning.html

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Hey there, Matt from Digital: Divide & Conquer, and I just wanted to share why you should be pushing project based learning with your students and in your classroom. I'm sure you've seen or read plenty of articles about it, but I felt like a little first hand knowledge would go a long way with this. In fact -I'm going to let you know five of my favorite double-secret probation reasons why PBL needs to be in your classroom ASAP.

You know those love affairs you have with books...well, you get to continue them with PBL. Picture books are perfect (for almost every single grade level). No matter the topic or idea, there's a book for the topic.
Books are the "easy button" of PBL. They'll pull in your learners, give them ideas, and expand their knowledge of subjects. You use picture books for every subject, so why not continue that when there's project based learning involved.

Pop culture isn't just something I have to read about on magazine covers while waiting in line at the grocery store. Nope. Pop culture can be a driving force because nowadays EVERYTHING becomes sensationalized (this is good and bad, don't get me started). Find those pop culturally relevant moments and turn them into projects and problems for kids to solve. Some of my favorites involve zombies, food trucks, and lost islands in the Pacific that might have dinosaurs.

One of my all-time favorite PBL activities is seeing if students can design their own tiny house. The past couple of years has been a tiny home explosion on television and in cities around the world. If you want your students to understand area, perimeter, and design a house, this is it. Not to mention -you can throw in real-world pop culture from HGTV shows and even have home builders come to school.

Science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics....if there was only a way to weave them all together...wait a second...
Project based learning extends to this STEM realm because it is the constant force for problem solving. Rather than just hitting each of the identified content areas in STEM, adding PBL portions helps take it to the next level. If you're already implementing STEM go further and target more than one area of content. This could take a little time, but it's worth the effort.

Quite possibly my favorite part, the arts play such an important role in PBL because so much of it relies on students using their creativity, imagination, willingness to explore, and opportunities to take chances. I highly encourage my students to draw and design throughout all the stages of PBL (maybe more than most) but I feel it's necessary and allows students to really get into what they're working on and learning. When I say "the arts" I'm not just talking about drawing. I'm including visual design, storytelling, music, technology, and so much more. The arts are a crucial and under appreciated part of PBL.

If someone tells you that PBL is just for the talented and gifted, (take a deep breath) and feel free to laugh at them. But maybe not too much. Seriously though, if we're only giving "top" students a chance at PBL we're missing out. All kids need opportunities to show off their own differentiated sets of skills. And the chances are pretty great that many kids are craving opportunities to show that they think differently. Give them that chance.

As a special education teacher, PBL gives me unlimited abilities to engage my students with the material and concepts AND give them space to create and solve problems in ways I never even imagined. PBL is worth it.

So if you're looking to unlock double-secret probation reasons of project based learning that no one ever told you about check out some of my PBL resources to get you started. It's easier than you think.

You can find more from me at Digital: Divide & Conquer where I tackle project based learning, technology, and the space in between.

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Five Secrets of Project Based Learning (that no one ever told you)

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Hey there, Matt from Digital: Divide & Conquer, and I just wanted to share why you should be pushing project based learning with your students and in your classroom. I'm sure you've seen or read plenty of articles about it, but I felt like a little first hand knowledge would go a long way with this.

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Found this on pinterest, thought it could be useful!!

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The Elizabeth Forward School District in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, for instance, partnered with Carnegie Mellon University to build Maker spaces in both its middle and high schools. Art, computer science and technology education teachers work together to develop projects that encourage kids to think in broader terms about the disciplines they teach...

https://www.usnews.com/news/maker-cities/articles/2017-05-23/makers-movement-changes-the-educational-landscape

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In Texas, a 13-year-old boy built a robot that could rescue victims of natural disasters. In Georgia, a 15-year-old girl developed a device that alerts parents who have have left their child in the car. And in California, a 13-year-old boy created a Braille printer that would be almost six times cheaper than the currently available model.

Young people aren't just the future. They're the present, innovating and creatively solving problems in a range of fields. Students across the country, from every background, have the ability to build new products that could change lives around the world.

That's what educators at the forefront of the "Maker movement" believe. Leaders of this initiative are changing the American educational landscape by engaging kids in discovery-based learning from a young age, encouraging them to learn not just by watching, but by doing - to not only consume, but also create.

Photos: National Maker Faire Takes Washington

Maker spaces - studios and labs designed for students to pursue projects of their choosing- are popping up around the country in schools, universities and informal learning environments such as community centers and libraries. In these labs, students are challenged to develop solutions to real-world problems, from designing and prototyping to refining and marketing.

"It's bringing kids into the world of STEM," says Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies, a technology industry analysis firm based in Silicon Valley. "The way our world is developing is that more and more of the jobs... are going to have a significant type of a tech theme in one form or another, a lot of specialized thinking that goes beyond what we would call the standard, general education system."

This hands-on, do-it-yourself approach to learning emphasizes that anyone can be a Maker: Young or old, rich or poor, urban or rural. It's aimed at rejuvenating the culture of possibility and innovation that this nation was built on.

The Elizabeth Forward School District in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, for instance, partnered with Carnegie Mellon University to build Maker spaces in both its middle and high schools. Art, computer science and technology education teachers work together to develop projects that encourage kids to think in broader terms about the disciplines they teach.

For one project in the middle school's "Dream Factory," students used 3D software and printers to digitally design and build a mold for a chocolate bar, used Photoshop to create wrappers and logos and then developed a business plan for the product, using a TV studio - complete with green screen - to shoot an advertisement.

The Elizabeth district also boasts four student-run businesses, including a jigsaw puzzle company run by a third grade class, a bath bomb and soap venture operated by middle schoolers and a blanket and scarf business.

"It's been pretty amazing to actually teach entrepreneurship to kids," says Todd Keruskin, the district's assistant superintendent.

Encouraging kids to explore the design process from start to finish, Maker schools foster environments of creativity, critical thinking and confidence. The new approach seems to be working: The district has jumped in state education rankings and high school dropout rates have fallen drastically since the Dream Factory opened in 2013.

"We see kids that are collaborating on projects, with a lot more creativity, a lot more innovation," Keruskin says. "The kids really become designers, and it's been pretty amazing to see."

Some alternative-learning schools have fully embraced the Maker model, such as the NuVu Innovation School in Massachusetts, where middle and high school students aren't graded, tested or enrolled in specific courses. Instead, they complete projects based on an issue that is visible in the community, such as in government, food or urban safety.

Prototypes that emerged from the urban safety studio include a magnetic wallet to stop pickpockets, a child-tracking app and a jacket that illuminates when nighttime cyclists slow down or turn. These inventions are emblematic of the wide range of possibilities for Makers everywhere.

Colleges and universities are uniquely positioned to be major drivers of the Maker movement's growth in education. At Case Western Reserve University in Ohio, the seven-story "ThinkBox" hosts a level for each step of the Maker process, from networking and designing to prototyping and refining. Students also receive legal and business advice, and the top floor is reserved for emerging startup workspaces.

This interdisciplinary approach to education encourages collaboration between engineers and business students, artists and computer scientists, which in turn teaches students about launching a venture from the ground up.

Making doesn't just happen in formal school settings, though. Maker cities acknowledge that a significant portion of education happens outside the classroom in informal settings such as libraries, museums and community centers, and encourage these institutions to take a larger share of responsibility in coaching the next generation of creators.

San Diego Central Public Library, for instance, built a Maker space and introduced programming to involve the community and develop a culture of innovation in an underprivileged district where 70 percent of high school students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

At the library's Maker space, dubbed the "Innovation Incubator," a paraplegic designed a hand crank system so he could ride bicycles again and is working on getting the design patented.

And at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum's Maker space, parents introduce their children to the power of creating from a young age. The museum offers everything from sewing kits to woodworking tools, and also hosts professional development training for teachers on Maker practices, allowing them to bring the movement back into their own classrooms.

Though an increasing number of policymakers and educators are recognizing the advantages of Maker-focused education - Carnegie Mellon has partnered with several schools, and MIT now allows prospective students to submit portfolios of their Maker work with their applications - the movement is not without its challenges.

Building and maintaining Maker spaces - and training educators to utilize them - is expensive, and equitable access and funding remain major concerns for Maker movement leaders.

Foundations, universities, corporations and nonprofits investing in Maker-based education can serve as a significant source of funding, according to "Maker City: A Practical Guide for Reinventing Our Cities," a new book that explores the implications of the Maker movement in communities around the country.

"Schools at the very least need to petition their districts for what we call fundamental STEM labs and Maker labs," Bajarin says. "Those are popping up all over the country, even in relatively poor school districts. It might be a pooled resource, for example, a district might have two or three STEM labs and then kids can sign up and go there after school."

Another option is to utilize crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter to raise funds. Partnering with the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, seven schools in the region raised more than $109,000 to build Maker spaces.

And the traditionally glacial pace of educational reform requires that informal institutions are well-equipped to champion Making as a centerpiece of learning, one city, one district, one classroom at a time.

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Makers Movement Changes the Educational Landscape

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In Texas, a 13-year-old boy built a robot that could rescue victims of natural disasters. In Georgia, a 15-year-old girl developed a device that alerts parents who have have left their child in the car. And in California, a 13-year-old boy created a Braille printer that would be almost six times cheaper than the currently available model.

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values human passion and the capability and the ability to make and solve problems anywhere anytime

https://www.iste.org/explore/In-the-classroom/The-maker-movement-A-learning-revolution

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The impulse to create is one of the most basic human drives. As far back as the Stone Age, we were using materials in our environment to fashion tools for solving the problems we encountered. And in the millions of years since then, we have never stopped creating. In fact, the rise of civilization i…

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Makers Movement