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Five Ways to Incorporate Tech Into Project Based Learning

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Five Ways to Incorporate Tech Into Project Based Learning

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In a nutshell, PBL is essentially instruction where students acquire new skills or new knowledge when a single issue or question is investigated. In the end, students produce a product to show what they've learned. And, because of the nature of technology and its ability to promote research, collaboration, and presentations, it's no accident that PBL has become more prevalent as technology has begun to take hold in education.

So how can technology take an active part in PBL? Technology makes PBL much more accessible for both the student and the teacher in that many of the tasks that PBL demands, such as the aforementioned tasks of collaboration, research, and presentation, are much easier to produce with an iPad or Chromebook. The following are suggestions on how to use iPads or Chromebooks when conducting PBL.

1. Create Interest: One of the essential parts of PBL is creating interest in a topic for the student. Sure, you can facilitate a discussion or pass out reading material to students about the topic, but why would you do that when you've got a perfectly good set of iPads or Chromebooks at your disposal? Why not peak students interest using a YouTube video about the event? Show a brief few minute video that would entice the students to want to know more or ask questions.

2. Collaboration: Collaboration is also a key element of PBL because part of PBL involves the students learning how to effectively collaborate together. And again, what makes technology so great is that it make collaboration easy. A small group can easily work on a project together putting together a Google Drawing or Google Slides. Perhaps they want to create a brochure using Google Docs where collaboration is easy. Students can collaborate creating a presentation using the Explain Everything app.

3. Task Managers: Since collaboration is a key to PBL, assigning tasks to their group members can play a key part in group work. Students can use task managers such as Google Keep or Evernote to separate work assignments and create deadlines when certain aspects of the project need to be completed. If they've got access to iPads, the Reminders app lends itself perfectly to creating deadlines and to do's.

4. Sharing Their Progress: Teachers can check on their students progress using different tech tools. Using Seesaw (app and online), teachers can ask groups to post their daily progress in a class journal which could then be turned into an accessible website. Students could be asked to fill out a daily Google Form about their progress. They can also use Blogger to create a blog about how their project is going, posting daily on their progress.

5. Creating a Product: Ultimately, students are going to create a product showing what they've learned about a particular topic. In doing so, part of what makes PBL so great is that the teacher can give the students a choice on how they want to show off their findings. An iPad or Chromebook lend themselves perfectly to student choice. They can use their technology to create a podcast, a video, or a multimedia presentation. They can use a tool such as Explain Everything (online or app) or present using Google Slides Q&A. Using Google Slides Q&A, students can elicit questions and answer them as they go or at the end of their presentation. They can use their tablets to create brochures, comic strips using presentation apps such as Apple's Keynote or Googles Slides. Students can create short books about their topic using Book Creator (app or online).

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Five Ways to Incorporate Tech Into Project Based Learning

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In a nutshell, PBL is essentially instruction where students acquire new skills or new knowledge when a single issue or question is investigated. In the end, students produce a product to show what they've learned.

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OK Go - This Too Shall Pass - Rube Goldberg Machine - Official Video - YouTube

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OK Go - This Too Shall Pass - Rube Goldberg Machine - Official Video - YouTube

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OK Go - This Too Shall Pass - Rube Goldberg Machine - Official Video

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The Ultimate STEM Guide for Kids: 239 Cool Sites

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The Ultimate STEM Guide for Kids: 239 Cool Sites

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by DS Examiner

I could go on and on about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. How job openings are predicted to soar to over one million by 2020. How the U.S. government is freaking out that students aren't prepared.

But I won't. Because, frankly, this guide to STEM opportunities is for you:

You're going to take the first step on Mars.

You're going to plant farms on skyscrapers.

You're going to discover a cure for cancer.

Nuclear fusion. Virtual reality. Clean water for all. With the world facing 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering, your interest in math and science is set to pay off-big time.

You'll be the one using your problem-solving skills to find answers to impossible challenges.

You'll be the scientist leading an exploration of the Mariana Trench or the engineer building a next-generation robot.

You'll be the graduate finding a great job and earning a hefty salary.

It's your life. Know that amazing things are possible.

STEM Fun for Kids Grades K-12

Cool STEM Websites

Ask Dr. Universe: Washington State University's Ask Dr. Universe allows kids to explore various STEM topics and get answers to common questions. Have a question not covered on the site? Submit it on their "Ask" page!

Code.org: No one is too young (or old, I might add) to code. Learn how to build an iPhone game, write your first computer program, draw in JavaScript and much more.

Engineering, Go for It! (eGFI): Discover the nuts and bolts of engineering. This website contains advice on careers, entertaining info on all kinds of fields and links to the eGFI magazine.

EPA Students: Searching for news on the environment, homework resources, info on contests or ideas for an environment-based school project? Check out this website run by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Exploratorium: One of my favorites. The website of the San Francisco-based Exploratorium is jam-packed with interactive activities, videos, apps, links and more.

Extreme Science: Extremely interesting. Here you'll find wild and weird facts about nature, resources for science projects and info on all kinds of world records.

How Stuff Works: I visit this website every day. It has hundreds upon thousands of articles that explain the wonders of science (and almost everything else on the planet).

Museum of Science + Industry Chicago Online Science: Apps and activities and videos, oh my! Play games, watch baby chicks hatching, create virtual chemical reactions or use forensic science to analyze different types of candy.

NASA Education for Students: Career information, image galleries, NASA Television, features and articles ... whatever you'd like to know about aerospace, you're sure to find it here.

NASA Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA): SEMAA was developed to increase the participation of historically underserved K-12 youth in STEM fields. School activities and summer sessions are held throughout the nation.

NOVA: The website for PBS's popular science show is overflowing with videos and articles. Explore the wonders of evolution, nature, physics, math-practically any STEM subject that rings your bell.

Science Buddies: Get stuck on science. This website has over 1,000 ideas for science fair projects, project guides, project kits and detailed profiles of STEM careers.

Science Channel: Question everything. Along with a rundown on the Science Channel's TV programs, this website has plenty of videos, quizzes, games and the latest science news.

STEM-Works: In addition to articles and job information, STEM-Works has stocked their site with interesting activities. Test your skills in the reptile quiz. Rescue an athlete in the Bionic Games. Or, simply follow the path of great whites with the Global Shark Tracker.

TechRocket: A year-round online learning destination for kids and teens. Use the promo code "MIDSFREE" to get a free first month!

Tynker: A computing platform that allows children to develop programming skills through fun, creative courses. Join the millions of kids from around the country learning to code with Tynker!

STEM Challenges and Contests

Siemen's We Can Change the World Challenge: You have the power to save the planet. In Siemen's K-12 environmental sustainability competition, teams from across the country compete to improve their own communities. Lots of prizes.

Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision: ExploraVision is a K-12 science competition with a difference. Teams of two to four students work with a teacher to simulate the challenges of real research and development.

STEM Awards

The Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes: This annual prize honors 25 outstanding young leaders (age 8 to 18) who have made a significant positive difference to people and/or the environment. The top 10 winners receive a $5,000 cash award to support their education.

The NEED Project's Annual Youth Awards Program for Energy Achievement: NEED's annual award was established to recognize K-12 students who achieve excellence in energy education in their schools or communities.

President's Environmental Youth Awards: The PEYA program celebrates K-12 students, school classes, summer camps or youth organizations that are promoting environmental stewardship. Every year, one outstanding project from each region is selected for national recognition.

STEM Career Resources

Bureau of Labor Statistics K-12: The U.S. Department of Labor has been busy. Here you'll find charts, maps and many other resources on careers and the U.S. economy.

WeUseMath.org: Ever wondered (as I frequently did) when you're going to use math in real life? This website on math careers has more than a few answers.

Government STEM Initiatives

Educate to Innovate: Launched in 2009, Educate to Innovate aims to move U.S. students from the middle to the top of the heap in science and math achievement. It's spawned a number of federal efforts and philanthropic initiatives (see below).

STEM AmeriCorps: This multi-year initiative is focused on placing AmeriCorps members in STEM non-profits (such as FIRST) to work in underserved communities.

White House Science Fair: At this science fair, the President serves as the host! Students are honored for innovative projects, designs and experiments while the White House streams the event live.

Women in STEM: In collaboration with the White House Council on Women and Girls, the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has instigated a number of efforts to increase the participation of girls in STEM subjects.

Philanthropic STEM Initiatives

Change the Equation: Led by CEOs, this nonprofit seeks to mobilize the business community to improve the quality of STEM education across the U.S.

Connect a Million Minds (CAMM): Sponsored by Time Warner Cable, CAMM is a five-year, $100 million philanthropic initiative that aims to inspire students to develop STEM skills.

US2020.org: The ultimate aim of this nonprofit is to mobilize one million STEM mentors annually by 2020.

Youth Inspired Challenge (YIC): Created by the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC), YIC is designed to expand the impact of STEM learning outside the classroom.

STEM Fun for Elementary School Kids

Cool STEM Websites

PBS Kids

Cyberchase: Help Jackie, Matt and Inez use math to protect the digital universe from evil. Don't worry: Cyberchase has lots of math games, videos and activities to aid you in your quest.

Design Squad Nation: Design anything (!) your mind might imagine. Through Design Squad challenges, videos and tutorials, you'll discover all there is to know about engineering principles.

The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!: Pre-K STEM games, activities and videos galore. The adventurous Cat in the Hat is even ready to lead you on an exotic math safari adventure

The Greens: Wondering what you can do to protect the planet? The Greens have some great ideas, including games, activity guides and their very own carbon calculator.

Lifeboat to Mars: Explore the world of biology with this free online game. In one simulation (Microland) you control hungry microbes. In another (Ecoland), you have to balance out the space station's ecosystem.

Zoom: Hot science and cool ideas. You'll find all kinds of activities and experiments on Zoom's website, including things like lemon juice rockets, crazy straw bridges and bubble cities.

Science Games and Apps

Math Games and Apps

STEM Contests

Junior FIRST® LEGO® League: Are you a LEGO® fiend? Then this is the contest for you. You'll use LEGO® bricks to design and build a moving model; then, you'll assemble a Show Me poster to showcase your solution. For kids age 6 to 9.

NSBE KidZone Elementary Science Olympiad: Collect a team and test your science skills in 18 different events at the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) National Convention. Open to grades three to five. Those in kindergarten through second grade compete in a non-competitive league.

Perennial Math Tournaments: A virtual math tournament (via videoconferencing) for both teams and individuals. Open to grades three to eight.

STEM Camps

Audubon Nature Camps: Audobon offers a ton of Nature Camps throughout the country. Beginning in April, they start taking applications for Wild Birds Pathways to Nature.

Camp Invention: Daydreams become discoveries at this summer day camp. Created by the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Camp Invention presents essential STEM concepts through creative hands-on activities.

Camp KAOS: To infinity and beyond! These cool flight and space adventure-themed camps take place at the Smithsonian-affiliated Kansas Cosmophere and Space Center (KAOS) in Hutchinson, Kansas.

Destination Science Camp: Spend a week this summer creating robots, building a digital music system, training an electric-powered chameleon or even preparing for a mission to the moon! Held at 130 locations in six states.

Digital Media Academy Adventures Camp: Digital Media's award-winning camps cover everything from cartoon creation to computer programming to advanced robotics with LEGO® EV3. For kids age 8 to 12.

Engineering for Kids: Engineering for Kids is an education company for kids age 4 to 14. It offers a variety of STEM programs, including in-school field trips, birthday parties, workshops and camps.

Engineering Summer Camps: Interested in building the world's future? The Engineering Education Service Center has put together a state-by-state list of engineering summer camps.

iD Tech Camps: The sky's the limit at iD Tech's day and overnight camps. Make your own video game, program your own app or even code in Java.

KinderCare® Summer Camps: From the wacky wet science of water to the basics of surviving in the wilderness, KinderCare offers a variety of programs for pre-K through school-age kids.

Science Explorers: Sharks and submarines, potions and slime, castles and catapults .. whatever you love, these science summer camps have just the activity for you. Offered in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

Snapology: Snapology partners with schools around the country to offer STEAM programs, contests, and camps. The programs are interactive, which allows kids to learn through hands-on instruction and play. Programs are offered in a number of different formats, including after school, on weekends, and over the summer.

Vision Tech Camps: Vision Tech offers camps for kids ages 7-17 in the San Francisco Bay Area. Camp topics include robotics, programming, minecraft, and more.

Youth Digital Summer Camps: Design 3-D models for Minecraft, create your own video game or even direct a 3-D animation! These camps focused on digital technology are held in various southern cities. For kids age 8 to 16.

STEM Career Resources

Career Aisle: Elementary: Dreaming about what you want to be when you grow up? These videos about jobs in science, technology, engineering and math can help you decide.

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

STEM Fun for Middle School Kids

Cool STEM Websites

The Big Brain Theory - Discovery Channel: Competitors on this TV show have just 30 minutes to come up with a solution to an (seemingly) impossible engineering challenge.

Bill Nye the Science Guy: Bill's entertaining television episodes cover everything from comets to the science of music. Have some fun with his home demos.

Chi Alpha Mu: Otherwise known as the National Junior Mathematics Club, Chi Alpha Mu is the younger sibling of Mu Alpha Theta. Check out its list of contests and summer grants.

Environmental Health Student Portal: Interested in learning more about chemicals, air quality and water pollution? This website has videos, games and experiments to help you along.

Kids Ahead: A STEM bonanza. Kids Ahead is packed with all kinds of resources, including scavenger hunts, videos, articles, links to local activities and fun events and info on cool jobs, that inspire and excite.

MathMovesU: Hone your math skills with online games, virtual thrill rides and national competitions! MathMovesU also offers a variety of scholarships and sponsorships.

MythBusters - Discovery Channel: The folks at MythBusters use experiments to bust rumors, myths and urban legends. (During their Cannonball Chemistry experiment, they accidentally drove a cannonball through the side of a house.)

Sally Ride Science: Founded by America's first female astronaut, Sally Ride Science hosts a number of student programs, including science festivals and overnight camps.

Science Bob: Bob is a science teacher who loves to experiment (often on Jimmy Kimmel). His website has videos, links and plenty of ideas for build-your-own experiments and science fair projects.

SciJinks: It's all about the weather. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) and NASA put together this educational website to teach kids about meteorology and earth science. Check out their games section.

Scratch: Designed for kids age 8 to 16, Scratch is a place where you can program your own interactive stories, games and animations. A project of the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab.

TechRocket: A great learning tool for kids interested in programming, graphic design, and more! Use the promo code "MIDSFREE" to get a free first month!

STEM Games and Apps

STEM Camps

Science and Technology Contests

Math Contests

AMC 8: Test your math skills in this 25-question, 40-minute multiple choice contest (held every November).

MATHCOUNTS Competition Series: MATHCOUNTS holds a series of "bee-style" contests in over 500 local chapters. Top teams advance to the state competition and then to the National Competition in May.

MATHCOUNTS Math Video Challenge: Create your very own math video with your friends and classmates and be in the running to win a college scholarship!

Perennial Math Tournaments: A virtual math tournament (via videoconferencing) for both teams and individuals. Open to grades three to eight.

Rocket City Math League (RCML): Sponsored by Mu Alpha Theta, RCML is a year-long, four-round math competition. Trophies are mailed to top-ranked middle school and high school students at the end of the year.

U.S.A. Mathematical Talent Search (USAMTS): Pit your problem-solving skills against some of the toughest conundrums out there. Because of the level of difficulty, USAMTS allows students a full month or more to work out solutions.

STEM Career Resources

Career Aisle: Middle School: Wondering what the future might hold? Explore some of the options available to you in science, technology, engineering and math. Lots of videos.

Kids.gov Jobs: Get the skinny on every job under the sun. Wondering what marine biologists do? Want to watch a video on becoming a veterinarian? You're in the right place.

iON Future: If website browsing isn't your style, you can always play this free STEM career exploration game. It's geared toward middle school and early high school students.

NASA Look to the Future: Careers in Space: You don't have to be an astronaut to work in the space program. NASA has a list of other professions, including robotics engineer, computer scientist and oceanographer, for you to consider.

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

STEM Fun for High School Kids

Cool STEM Websites

Arrick Robotics: This the prettiest website in the world, but if you're looking for robotics resources, this is the place to be. Includes lists of competitions and contests, groups and clubs, games and simulation.

Codeacademy: Learn to code interactively (and for free). Codeacademy offers coding classes in major programming languages like Python, PHP, jQuery, JavaScript and Ruby.

DiscoverE: Thinking about engineering? DiscoverE has a selection of resources on careers, preparing for college and research schools. You might also want to check out their list of videos, trips, websites and hands-on activities.

Mu Alpha Theta: Also known as the National High School and Two-Year College Mathematics Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta has over 100,000 student members. It organizes a national math convention, offers special awards and provides competitions.

Student Science: A central spot for science news, blogs, resources and information about Intel competitions. Sample article titles include "Native 'snot'" and "A library with no books."

TechRocket: Neat tool for exploring programming languages, 2D and 3D game design, and more. Use the promo code "MIDSFREE" to get a free first month!

STEM Games and Apps

STEM Camps

Science and Technology Contests

Math Contests

STEM Grants and Opportunities

InvenTeam: InventTeams are made up of students, teachers and mentors who receive grants of up to $10,000 to devise technological solutions to real-world problems (you can choose your own problem).

iSTEM Scholars Program: Live in California and looking at a STEM-related profession? You might want to consider this after-school and summer program. You'll go on field trips, receive individual tutoring and be prepped for national tests.

Planet Connect Student Grants: Have a passion for protecting wildlife and native habitats? Planet Connect offers high school students grants of $1,000 to implement local projects and participate in wildlife or natural resource internships.

STEM Career Resources

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

STEM Fun for Girls

Cool STEM Websites

STEM Awards

NSTA Angela Award: The National Science Teachers Association awards a $1,000 US EE Savings Bond to one female student in fifth through eighth grade who is involved in or has a strong connection to science.

STEM Camps

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

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The Ultimate STEM Guide for Kids: 239 Cool Sites

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by DS Examiner I could go on and on about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. How job openings are predicted to soar to over one million by 2020. How the U.S. government is freaking out that students aren't prepared. But I won't.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Ultimate STEM Guide for Kids: 239 Cool Sites

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The Ultimate STEM Guide for Kids: 239 Cool Sites

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
by DS Examiner

I could go on and on about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. How job openings are predicted to soar to over one million by 2020. How the U.S. government is freaking out that students aren't prepared.

But I won't. Because, frankly, this guide to STEM opportunities is for you:

You're going to take the first step on Mars.

You're going to plant farms on skyscrapers.

You're going to discover a cure for cancer.

Nuclear fusion. Virtual reality. Clean water for all. With the world facing 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering, your interest in math and science is set to pay off-big time.

You'll be the one using your problem-solving skills to find answers to impossible challenges.

You'll be the scientist leading an exploration of the Mariana Trench or the engineer building a next-generation robot.

You'll be the graduate finding a great job and earning a hefty salary.

It's your life. Know that amazing things are possible.

STEM Fun for Kids Grades K-12

Cool STEM Websites

Ask Dr. Universe: Washington State University's Ask Dr. Universe allows kids to explore various STEM topics and get answers to common questions. Have a question not covered on the site? Submit it on their "Ask" page!

Code.org: No one is too young (or old, I might add) to code. Learn how to build an iPhone game, write your first computer program, draw in JavaScript and much more.

Engineering, Go for It! (eGFI): Discover the nuts and bolts of engineering. This website contains advice on careers, entertaining info on all kinds of fields and links to the eGFI magazine.

EPA Students: Searching for news on the environment, homework resources, info on contests or ideas for an environment-based school project? Check out this website run by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Exploratorium: One of my favorites. The website of the San Francisco-based Exploratorium is jam-packed with interactive activities, videos, apps, links and more.

Extreme Science: Extremely interesting. Here you'll find wild and weird facts about nature, resources for science projects and info on all kinds of world records.

How Stuff Works: I visit this website every day. It has hundreds upon thousands of articles that explain the wonders of science (and almost everything else on the planet).

Museum of Science + Industry Chicago Online Science: Apps and activities and videos, oh my! Play games, watch baby chicks hatching, create virtual chemical reactions or use forensic science to analyze different types of candy.

NASA Education for Students: Career information, image galleries, NASA Television, features and articles ... whatever you'd like to know about aerospace, you're sure to find it here.

NASA Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA): SEMAA was developed to increase the participation of historically underserved K-12 youth in STEM fields. School activities and summer sessions are held throughout the nation.

NOVA: The website for PBS's popular science show is overflowing with videos and articles. Explore the wonders of evolution, nature, physics, math-practically any STEM subject that rings your bell.

Science Buddies: Get stuck on science. This website has over 1,000 ideas for science fair projects, project guides, project kits and detailed profiles of STEM careers.

Science Channel: Question everything. Along with a rundown on the Science Channel's TV programs, this website has plenty of videos, quizzes, games and the latest science news.

STEM-Works: In addition to articles and job information, STEM-Works has stocked their site with interesting activities. Test your skills in the reptile quiz. Rescue an athlete in the Bionic Games. Or, simply follow the path of great whites with the Global Shark Tracker.

TechRocket: A year-round online learning destination for kids and teens. Use the promo code "MIDSFREE" to get a free first month!

Tynker: A computing platform that allows children to develop programming skills through fun, creative courses. Join the millions of kids from around the country learning to code with Tynker!

STEM Challenges and Contests

Siemen's We Can Change the World Challenge: You have the power to save the planet. In Siemen's K-12 environmental sustainability competition, teams from across the country compete to improve their own communities. Lots of prizes.

Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision: ExploraVision is a K-12 science competition with a difference. Teams of two to four students work with a teacher to simulate the challenges of real research and development.

STEM Awards

The Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes: This annual prize honors 25 outstanding young leaders (age 8 to 18) who have made a significant positive difference to people and/or the environment. The top 10 winners receive a $5,000 cash award to support their education.

The NEED Project's Annual Youth Awards Program for Energy Achievement: NEED's annual award was established to recognize K-12 students who achieve excellence in energy education in their schools or communities.

President's Environmental Youth Awards: The PEYA program celebrates K-12 students, school classes, summer camps or youth organizations that are promoting environmental stewardship. Every year, one outstanding project from each region is selected for national recognition.

STEM Career Resources

Bureau of Labor Statistics K-12: The U.S. Department of Labor has been busy. Here you'll find charts, maps and many other resources on careers and the U.S. economy.

WeUseMath.org: Ever wondered (as I frequently did) when you're going to use math in real life? This website on math careers has more than a few answers.

Government STEM Initiatives

Educate to Innovate: Launched in 2009, Educate to Innovate aims to move U.S. students from the middle to the top of the heap in science and math achievement. It's spawned a number of federal efforts and philanthropic initiatives (see below).

STEM AmeriCorps: This multi-year initiative is focused on placing AmeriCorps members in STEM non-profits (such as FIRST) to work in underserved communities.

White House Science Fair: At this science fair, the President serves as the host! Students are honored for innovative projects, designs and experiments while the White House streams the event live.

Women in STEM: In collaboration with the White House Council on Women and Girls, the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has instigated a number of efforts to increase the participation of girls in STEM subjects.

Philanthropic STEM Initiatives

Change the Equation: Led by CEOs, this nonprofit seeks to mobilize the business community to improve the quality of STEM education across the U.S.

Connect a Million Minds (CAMM): Sponsored by Time Warner Cable, CAMM is a five-year, $100 million philanthropic initiative that aims to inspire students to develop STEM skills.

US2020.org: The ultimate aim of this nonprofit is to mobilize one million STEM mentors annually by 2020.

Youth Inspired Challenge (YIC): Created by the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC), YIC is designed to expand the impact of STEM learning outside the classroom.

STEM Fun for Elementary School Kids

Cool STEM Websites

PBS Kids

Cyberchase: Help Jackie, Matt and Inez use math to protect the digital universe from evil. Don't worry: Cyberchase has lots of math games, videos and activities to aid you in your quest.

Design Squad Nation: Design anything (!) your mind might imagine. Through Design Squad challenges, videos and tutorials, you'll discover all there is to know about engineering principles.

The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!: Pre-K STEM games, activities and videos galore. The adventurous Cat in the Hat is even ready to lead you on an exotic math safari adventure

The Greens: Wondering what you can do to protect the planet? The Greens have some great ideas, including games, activity guides and their very own carbon calculator.

Lifeboat to Mars: Explore the world of biology with this free online game. In one simulation (Microland) you control hungry microbes. In another (Ecoland), you have to balance out the space station's ecosystem.

Zoom: Hot science and cool ideas. You'll find all kinds of activities and experiments on Zoom's website, including things like lemon juice rockets, crazy straw bridges and bubble cities.

Science Games and Apps

Math Games and Apps

STEM Contests

Junior FIRST® LEGO® League: Are you a LEGO® fiend? Then this is the contest for you. You'll use LEGO® bricks to design and build a moving model; then, you'll assemble a Show Me poster to showcase your solution. For kids age 6 to 9.

NSBE KidZone Elementary Science Olympiad: Collect a team and test your science skills in 18 different events at the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) National Convention. Open to grades three to five. Those in kindergarten through second grade compete in a non-competitive league.

Perennial Math Tournaments: A virtual math tournament (via videoconferencing) for both teams and individuals. Open to grades three to eight.

STEM Camps

Audubon Nature Camps: Audobon offers a ton of Nature Camps throughout the country. Beginning in April, they start taking applications for Wild Birds Pathways to Nature.

Camp Invention: Daydreams become discoveries at this summer day camp. Created by the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Camp Invention presents essential STEM concepts through creative hands-on activities.

Camp KAOS: To infinity and beyond! These cool flight and space adventure-themed camps take place at the Smithsonian-affiliated Kansas Cosmophere and Space Center (KAOS) in Hutchinson, Kansas.

Destination Science Camp: Spend a week this summer creating robots, building a digital music system, training an electric-powered chameleon or even preparing for a mission to the moon! Held at 130 locations in six states.

Digital Media Academy Adventures Camp: Digital Media's award-winning camps cover everything from cartoon creation to computer programming to advanced robotics with LEGO® EV3. For kids age 8 to 12.

Engineering for Kids: Engineering for Kids is an education company for kids age 4 to 14. It offers a variety of STEM programs, including in-school field trips, birthday parties, workshops and camps.

Engineering Summer Camps: Interested in building the world's future? The Engineering Education Service Center has put together a state-by-state list of engineering summer camps.

iD Tech Camps: The sky's the limit at iD Tech's day and overnight camps. Make your own video game, program your own app or even code in Java.

KinderCare® Summer Camps: From the wacky wet science of water to the basics of surviving in the wilderness, KinderCare offers a variety of programs for pre-K through school-age kids.

Science Explorers: Sharks and submarines, potions and slime, castles and catapults .. whatever you love, these science summer camps have just the activity for you. Offered in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

Snapology: Snapology partners with schools around the country to offer STEAM programs, contests, and camps. The programs are interactive, which allows kids to learn through hands-on instruction and play. Programs are offered in a number of different formats, including after school, on weekends, and over the summer.

Vision Tech Camps: Vision Tech offers camps for kids ages 7-17 in the San Francisco Bay Area. Camp topics include robotics, programming, minecraft, and more.

Youth Digital Summer Camps: Design 3-D models for Minecraft, create your own video game or even direct a 3-D animation! These camps focused on digital technology are held in various southern cities. For kids age 8 to 16.

STEM Career Resources

Career Aisle: Elementary: Dreaming about what you want to be when you grow up? These videos about jobs in science, technology, engineering and math can help you decide.

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

STEM Fun for Middle School Kids

Cool STEM Websites

The Big Brain Theory - Discovery Channel: Competitors on this TV show have just 30 minutes to come up with a solution to an (seemingly) impossible engineering challenge.

Bill Nye the Science Guy: Bill's entertaining television episodes cover everything from comets to the science of music. Have some fun with his home demos.

Chi Alpha Mu: Otherwise known as the National Junior Mathematics Club, Chi Alpha Mu is the younger sibling of Mu Alpha Theta. Check out its list of contests and summer grants.

Environmental Health Student Portal: Interested in learning more about chemicals, air quality and water pollution? This website has videos, games and experiments to help you along.

Kids Ahead: A STEM bonanza. Kids Ahead is packed with all kinds of resources, including scavenger hunts, videos, articles, links to local activities and fun events and info on cool jobs, that inspire and excite.

MathMovesU: Hone your math skills with online games, virtual thrill rides and national competitions! MathMovesU also offers a variety of scholarships and sponsorships.

MythBusters - Discovery Channel: The folks at MythBusters use experiments to bust rumors, myths and urban legends. (During their Cannonball Chemistry experiment, they accidentally drove a cannonball through the side of a house.)

Sally Ride Science: Founded by America's first female astronaut, Sally Ride Science hosts a number of student programs, including science festivals and overnight camps.

Science Bob: Bob is a science teacher who loves to experiment (often on Jimmy Kimmel). His website has videos, links and plenty of ideas for build-your-own experiments and science fair projects.

SciJinks: It's all about the weather. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) and NASA put together this educational website to teach kids about meteorology and earth science. Check out their games section.

Scratch: Designed for kids age 8 to 16, Scratch is a place where you can program your own interactive stories, games and animations. A project of the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab.

TechRocket: A great learning tool for kids interested in programming, graphic design, and more! Use the promo code "MIDSFREE" to get a free first month!

STEM Games and Apps

STEM Camps

Science and Technology Contests

Math Contests

AMC 8: Test your math skills in this 25-question, 40-minute multiple choice contest (held every November).

MATHCOUNTS Competition Series: MATHCOUNTS holds a series of "bee-style" contests in over 500 local chapters. Top teams advance to the state competition and then to the National Competition in May.

MATHCOUNTS Math Video Challenge: Create your very own math video with your friends and classmates and be in the running to win a college scholarship!

Perennial Math Tournaments: A virtual math tournament (via videoconferencing) for both teams and individuals. Open to grades three to eight.

Rocket City Math League (RCML): Sponsored by Mu Alpha Theta, RCML is a year-long, four-round math competition. Trophies are mailed to top-ranked middle school and high school students at the end of the year.

U.S.A. Mathematical Talent Search (USAMTS): Pit your problem-solving skills against some of the toughest conundrums out there. Because of the level of difficulty, USAMTS allows students a full month or more to work out solutions.

STEM Career Resources

Career Aisle: Middle School: Wondering what the future might hold? Explore some of the options available to you in science, technology, engineering and math. Lots of videos.

Kids.gov Jobs: Get the skinny on every job under the sun. Wondering what marine biologists do? Want to watch a video on becoming a veterinarian? You're in the right place.

iON Future: If website browsing isn't your style, you can always play this free STEM career exploration game. It's geared toward middle school and early high school students.

NASA Look to the Future: Careers in Space: You don't have to be an astronaut to work in the space program. NASA has a list of other professions, including robotics engineer, computer scientist and oceanographer, for you to consider.

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

STEM Fun for High School Kids

Cool STEM Websites

Arrick Robotics: This the prettiest website in the world, but if you're looking for robotics resources, this is the place to be. Includes lists of competitions and contests, groups and clubs, games and simulation.

Codeacademy: Learn to code interactively (and for free). Codeacademy offers coding classes in major programming languages like Python, PHP, jQuery, JavaScript and Ruby.

DiscoverE: Thinking about engineering? DiscoverE has a selection of resources on careers, preparing for college and research schools. You might also want to check out their list of videos, trips, websites and hands-on activities.

Mu Alpha Theta: Also known as the National High School and Two-Year College Mathematics Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta has over 100,000 student members. It organizes a national math convention, offers special awards and provides competitions.

Student Science: A central spot for science news, blogs, resources and information about Intel competitions. Sample article titles include "Native 'snot'" and "A library with no books."

TechRocket: Neat tool for exploring programming languages, 2D and 3D game design, and more. Use the promo code "MIDSFREE" to get a free first month!

STEM Games and Apps

STEM Camps

Science and Technology Contests

Math Contests

STEM Grants and Opportunities

InvenTeam: InventTeams are made up of students, teachers and mentors who receive grants of up to $10,000 to devise technological solutions to real-world problems (you can choose your own problem).

iSTEM Scholars Program: Live in California and looking at a STEM-related profession? You might want to consider this after-school and summer program. You'll go on field trips, receive individual tutoring and be prepped for national tests.

Planet Connect Student Grants: Have a passion for protecting wildlife and native habitats? Planet Connect offers high school students grants of $1,000 to implement local projects and participate in wildlife or natural resource internships.

STEM Career Resources

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

STEM Fun for Girls

Cool STEM Websites

STEM Awards

NSTA Angela Award: The National Science Teachers Association awards a $1,000 US EE Savings Bond to one female student in fifth through eighth grade who is involved in or has a strong connection to science.

STEM Camps

Note: There are plenty of state and regional organizations that didn't make it onto my list. If you're interested in local camps, scholarships and after-school activities, I also recommend checking with your teachers and school.

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The Ultimate STEM Guide for Kids: 239 Cool Sites

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by DS Examiner I could go on and on about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. How job openings are predicted to soar to over one million by 2020. How the U.S. government is freaking out that students aren't prepared. But I won't.

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The safety of our students and staff in Liberty Public Schools is our priority. This page is intended as a one stop shop when it comes to providing our stakeholders with information regarding the COVID-19 disease.

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‘Makerspaces’ for science instruction also proving helpful for English learners | EdSource

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‘Makerspaces’ for science instruction also proving helpful for English learners | EdSource

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Credit: PAT MAIO / EDSOURCE TODAY

Educators are finding that the new "makerspace" movement - a strategy to teach K-12 students science, math and technology through hands-on activities - is providing the added benefit of helping English learners become more proficient in the language.

In makerspaces, students gather a few times a week in a separate classroom, library or museum for a group project using such technologies and materials as 3D printing, robotics, microprocessors, textiles, wood and wires to construct robots and other electronic gadgets. The teaching technique has been around since the early 2000s, and educators have applauded the idea for helping teach science, especially at a time when California and other states are phasing in the Next Generation Science Standards, which emphasize practical application of science over rote learning.

But now experts are also seeing makerspaces as a valuable tool for helping improve English, as children talk through their work in teams and keep journals to record their progress.

"This is our first full year of having a makerspace here. It's an effective use of time," said Ken Garcia, principal at Wilson Elementary School in Sanger, an agricultural town southeast of Fresno and one of the newer places where the maker movement has expanded.

Dale Dougherty, an author and publisher who launched Make Magazine in 2005and organized the first Maker Faire in 2006 in San Mateo, said makerspaces effectively build confidence with English learners so that they can become more successful academically overall.

"Generally, 'making' can engage English learner kids who don't do well, or fit well in the traditional academic setting, and are just behind," Dougherty observed. "A makerspace gives them the confidence to do things. My involvement in 'making' and education isn't to say we'll get more kids in Ivy League schools. But rather kids are bored, disengaged and defeated by a school system, and we can make good learners out of them."

He said that although English learners have no problem communicating with each other, they do have problems communicating with the teacher in a traditional classroom. "It's hard to demonstrate proficiency when they think of themselves as poor learners and the system designates them as such," Dougherty said.

At Wilson, about 49 percent of its 452 students in the 2015-16 school year were classified as English learners, and 95 percent as Latino, according to the latest available demographic information from DataQuest and the school. Many of the students are children of migrant farmworkers whose parents sometimes are forced to pull them out of school when employment opportunities arise elsewhere across California's Central Valley.

The school's 4th- and 5th-graders meet three mornings a week in an otherwise unused classroom as part of their regular science coursework. They use hammers, pliers and other tools to build projects, using such things as Styrofoam, wire, paper and screws.

In addition to learning science, Garcia said the makerspace has given English learners "a new way of engaging in English" as teachers encourage them to use complete sentences in talking through their collaborations and recording their observations in their journals.

"This is our first full year of having a makerspace here. It's an effective use of time," said Ken Garcia, Wilson Elementary's principal.

"I learned English by being in it, not just reading a worksheet or book," said 24-year-old Elizabeth Garcia, a teaching assistant at Wilson who is studying to become a biochemist at nearby Reedley College. "Here the students have an opportunity to learn English and not feel pressured in the classroom. A makerspace environment forces kids to interact."

Last week, a 4th grade class at Wilson completed work building a small animal robot - or "bot" - made of wood, wires, batteries and gears that had painted paper masks resembling coyotes, lions, pigs, rabbits and turtles. A bot is a rudimentary device that runs automated tasks powered by a battery. The devices made by students here shake, walk small distances and have blinking lights to simulate eyes.

"I love it," said Tania Braxton, a 4th grade teacher. "It's a lot different than teaching from a textbook. It allows students to explore and helps them to explain things through speaking and listening."

English learners agreed.

"I get to voice my opinion a lot more than before," 4th-grader Maelena Perez said in English.

"It's a lot of fun," said classmate Ariel Porras.

Journals are a key part of instruction. In one exercise, as students recorded their work, they were encouraged to refer to a word list posted on a classroom wall to ensure spelling accuracy.

"Expressing their ideas in notebooks is important. It's not just about tinkering," said Jerry Valadez, president of Community Science Workshop Network, which runs the Wilson makerspace and others in Fresno, Watsonville, Greenfield and Salinas. Of the English learner students, he added, "The makerspaces help these underserved kids believe that they can be scientists or an engineer. It allows them to walk with a little more confidence."

Valadez also is working with Fresno State University to set up a teacher-training program next summer for teachers to learn how to establish a makerspace at their schools. Valadez said he intends to hold the training at his science, art and music academy, SAM Academy for short, located a few blocks from Wilson Elementary.

He said that makerspaces are an effective way to reach out to English learners. "It's a way for them to verbalize the language instead of trying to learn English out of a textbook," said Valadez, who notes that the majority of his SAM Academy students are Latinos looking for ways to improve their language skills after school.

The makerspace movement has caught the attention of other higher education institutions, in part because of its benefits for English learners.

At Sonoma State University, one of the California State University system's 23 campuses, educators have begun developing the country's first " maker certificate" online program to help teachers in California form makerspace learning centers in their local schools. The university has been offering a 50-hour certificate program for the past two years, but now wants to expand it statewide by turning it into an online course.

Sonoma State is also in preliminary talks with three other CSU schools - Bakersfield, Monterey Bay and San Diego - to create partnerships for the program, according to Carlos Ayala, Sonoma State's dean of education. His school offers its maker certificate program in partnership with the local Sonoma County Office of Education, an arrangement that Ayala said he wants other CSU campuses to replicate.

"My long-term goal is to get this in teacher preparation programs in the CSU system across the state," Ayala said.

"Any time students come together and share knowledge, that creates an opportunity for learning English," he added. "That is a place where you will start seeing potential research come out in the future. It's pretty powerful."

Jessica Parker, a community manager with the Oakland-based Maker Education Initiative, which helps school districts form makerspaces, agreed.

"We are seeing 'maker' educators show up in droves to meet up with others," said Parker, who pointed to a doubling in one year of educators attending an annual maker educator convening conference in May.

She said makerspaces are a critical component in working with English learners. "I'm seeing them being established throughout the central and southern parts of California with that idea in mind," she said.

Last fall, San Diego State University began offering the first-ever master's level, three-unit course for creating makerspaces, according to Donna Ross, an education professor with the university's Center for Research in Mathematics and Science Education.

"For English learners, a makerspace starts them with the hands-on piece and adds language as they need it. It's a more natural way to learn the language," she said. "You can memorize a lot of vocabulary (in a regular classroom), but if you need to explain what you're doing, you'll learn English better."

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'Makerspaces' for science instruction also proving helpful for English learners

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Credit: PAT MAIO / EDSOURCE TODAY Educators are finding that the new "makerspace" movement - a strategy to teach K-12 students science, math and technology through hands-on activities - is providing the added benefit of helping English learners become more proficient in the language.

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Top Ten Makerspace Favorites of 2016 | Tech Learning

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Top Ten Makerspace Favorites of 2016 | Tech Learning

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With the success of last year's post on the Top Ten Makerspace Favorites of 2015, we are excited to announce this year's list. We have spent the year scouring maker products to build this list. Prior to writing this post, we invited our PLN to contribute to a Padlet that highlighted some of their favorites. Based on the responses to that Padlet, we noticed an important shift in Maker Education. Once driven by STEM and makerspace in a box types of kits, we are seeing much more of an emphasis on open-ended exploration and stocking makerspaces with materials that foster that. We strongly believe that makerspaces should be unique learning environments that encourages tinkering, play, and open-ended exploration for all. Our list for 2016 reflects that same philosophy.

With so many amazing makerspace products now flooding the market, it was an incredibly difficult task to narrow our favorites down to just 10. All of the items on our list are aligned to the Worlds of Making 'MAKER' Framework, which serves as a guide for choosing the right products for your makerspace.

This list of ours includes our favorite items from this year, but it is still important that you use the Framework to uncover what materials, supplies and resources work best for your unique makerspaces. Although makerspaces are possible on any budget and amazing maker activities can be done with just cardboard or recyclable items, there is value to moving beyond just those things, as pointed out in this article by the great Sylvia Martinez. Our hope is that you get some ideas of products for your makerspace that can help you do this. So, without further ado, we present to you our Top Ten Makerspace Favorites of 2016!

Ok, so we realize this first one is a bit of a surprise because up until now, we have not supported makerspace in a box (or on a cart) types of kits. This one however, is special because it aligns perfectly to the 'MAKER' Framework in that it not only allows for mobility, but also in that it fosters open-ended exploration and has a low-barrier of entry. The cart comes with almost 15,000 different components that can support just about any maker project a child's imagination could dream up. With this cart, students will learn science and engineering concepts through experimentation, grow their understanding and evolve projects through the design & engineering process. For those who are looking for a less expensive option, the bulk components are available for individual purchase.

Sticklets offer opportunities for endless creativity, problem-solving, critical thinking, play and fun! More and more we see makerspaces that are mobile. Children don't need to be tethered to a physical makerspace, and oftentimes we see the making spill outside. Sticklets are flexible, silicone connectors that allow for open-ended construction in a makerspace, in a classroom, hallway, gymnasium, or even outside! Sticklets can be the perfect solution for connecting your makerspace with nature. They are flexible, durable and water-resistant. There are no limits with how they can be used! Check out this video to see Stickets in action!

Our future architects and engineers will love Keva Planks! Because of their low-barrier of entry, students can get started making and creating right away! Don't be fooled by the simplicity of these stackable planks, the sky is the limit! Many makerspaces have Legos and Legos are great, but Keva Planks are in no way limited by step-by-step directions or plans, but instead encourage children (and adults!) to design and invent their own structures. Watch this video to see Keva Planks in action.

The concept behind Piper is simple: Build, Learn and Create. With Piper, kids can build a working computer using a real engineering blueprint, rather than through step-by-step directions. Throughout the process they can learn engineering, programming and design thinking through Piper as well as through advancing through a Minecraft story. Piper also allows children to create anything with their computer that you can with a regular computer. Watch this video to see Piper in action.

We strongly believe that students having a voice in planning and creating a makerspace is critical. This can be something as simple as asking students what they want to make. Very frequently we hear children saying that they want to make video games and many have dreams of becoming video game designers in the future. But many are stumped by how to get started or how to get there. Enter Bloxels. Bloxels is an easy to use, hands-on platform that allows ALL children to build, collaborate and tell stories through video game creation. With easy-to-use physical and digital tools, the imaginative gaming worlds of young gamers come to life in a cool retro arcade style. They decide what the game looks like and configure how it is played. They tell the story of the characters and design their looks. They create the obstacles and the power-ups. And then not only can they play, but they can then share your game with fellow gamers for both game play and content remixing. Be sure to check out the Bloxels YouTube channel.

Having a digital component to your makerspace allows for further mobility of your space by allowing making and creating to continue outside of just your makerspace and oftentimes even outside of the hours of the school day. Part puzzle game and part eccentric inventor's laboratory, Contraption Maker is a powerful & easy to use Maker Lab allows children to build whatever they can think of. It also fosters collaboration by allowing children to build together with friends online, and to share your creations with the world in our Workshop. The goal of contraption maker is to get kids designing, creating, tinkering, and pushing the limits of their imaginations. Want to see more? View the Contraption Maker trailer here.

Rigamajig is a large-scale building kit for children conceived for hands-on free play and learning. Play, even with our youngest learners today, is so often program-driven or teacher-driven. The free play that Rigamajig fosters is priceless and invaluable. KaBOOM! is the sole distributor of Rigamajig and is actually a non-profit organization. Money raised by Rigamajig purchases goes toward our mission of all ensuring all kids, especially those living in poverty in America, get the active play needed to thrive and grow into successful adults. Watch this video, to see Rigamajig in action.
8- Hearlihy Architecture/Engineering/Building Supplies- Hearlihy (Google+), @PitscoEd
This next pick isn't just one product, but a series of products. Many makerspaces are looking for ways to incorporate tools in a safe and economical way. These tools offered by Hearlihy offer that solution. The metal bars on the Lumberjack Cutter below, for example, block access to the blade to ensure safety during use. Students can use these tools to cut real wood and use that wood to assemble any structure they imagine. The tools and materials include:
Timber Cutter Lumberjack Cutter Nail Setter
mCookie 102 Basic Kit is a do it yourself, easily connectable, modular electronics kit which features Microduino's mCookie Series modules. Perfect for beginners and educators looking to learn or teach electronics and programming. Students can use the Arduino IDE Software to create their programs. For beginners to programming, coding can also be done with with Scratch and Mixly is a drag and drop programming alternative to text-based coding. Despite being a kit, which are oftentimes limiting in nature, this one allows for open-exploration and play, related to coding, programming, and electronics.

Strawbees is an award-winning prototyping toy for makers of all ages. It is a kit based on simple units called Strawbees that stimulate the imagination by letting you connect straws to each other to design, build and engineer designs. With Strawbees you can always modify things as you go, add straws, cut straws, or add new connections to get a sturdier, more flexible or bigger structure. Nothing is destroyed, only modified. They think playing and having fun is the best way to learn about the world. Strawbees also has a 'Become an Inventor' app, which along with the Strawbees kit, is a great tool to explore mechanics, engineering and design through play and to stimulate the imagination and inspire storytelling.

We are already on the lookout for our Top 10 Favorites for 2017! Submit your product or favorites all throughout 2017!
Cross posted at http://worlds-of-learning.com/ Laura Fleming has been a classroom teacher and media specialist in grades K-8 and currently is a Library Media Specialist for grades 9-12. She is a well known writer, speaker and consultant on next-generation teaching methods and tools, and the author of the best-selling Worlds of Learning: Best Practices for Establishing a Makerspace for Your School

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With the success of last year's post on the Top Ten Makerspace Favorites of 2015, we are excited to announce this year's list. We have spent the year scouring maker products to build this list. Prior to writing this post, we invited our PLN to contribute to a Padlet that highlighted some of their favorites.

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Five Ways to Ensure Real Learning Happens in Maker-Enhanced Projects | MindShift | KQED News

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Five Ways to Ensure Real Learning Happens in Maker-Enhanced Projects | MindShift | KQED News

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1. Make Projects Explicitly Connected to Standards
"If you are going to do maker-enhanced project-based learning, it has to have explicit connections to standards," Stone told a room full of teachers at the reMAKE Education conference hosted by the Sonoma County Office of Education. "Otherwise you're going to have a hard time justifying the time investment."

While this may seem obvious, it's especially relevant around maker-education. While many educators are excited about the potential for making to spark deeper engagement with learning in the classroom, often school makerspaces are separate from classroom activities. Some would argue that distance is good, allowing making to remain a self-directed tinkering exercise, but others argue that without clear connections to the curriculum, making in schools may be seen as tangential.

A hands-on making component to a classroom project could be a great enhancement, but Stone said it must be part of a clear plan driving toward learning outcomes. To engineer this type of learning experience, backwards planning is key.
2. Balance Clear Expectations with Open-Ended Problems
One reason experienced project-based learning teachers like the approach is that it encourages students to discover new concepts and to make meaning out of them on their own, with support from the teacher. And there's a lot of research showing when students learn this way, they remember more and better than when someone merely tells them the information. So the strength of a project depends heavily on the initial driving question developed by the teacher.

"That's by far the most challenging part," Stone said. "We want the question to perfectly balance open-ended components, but with enough constraints that it's pushing them towards learning targets." Stone knows the project is well designed if two weeks into it the students are asking for the content he wanted to teach them. Through their exploration they came to a point where they need those pieces of content to answer their questions.

Stone also said it's crucial to design the project rubric around that driving question. "We want to make sure that we're assessing what it is we really want," Stone said, so the teacher should constantly be referring back to the driving question as the main filter. The rubric should be clear about the expectations and how students can demonstrate they completed them and in an advanced way.
3. Assess Process Alongside Content
This is a big tenet at the STEM School Chattanooga and a core part of what the school's founder, Tony Donen, says makes it a STEM school in the first place. Students are always being assessed on process skills like collaboration, critical thinking, communication and innovation alongside the specific content goals.

Stone says the rubric itself should have the process-oriented goals alongside the content goals so students understand they are of equal importance. Those two things side by side are the "why" behind the project, which means the actual final product is irrelevant and could be different for each group. If students are interested in the driving question, discovering the content as they need it, and demonstrating growth in process skills, what they ultimately make is far less important, Stone said.

Making it clear that process is as important as "getting it" is also important for the kids in any class who tend to understand quickly, but don't always do a good job of documenting why they know. Stone said he's given groups that made incredible final products low scores for not demonstrating process skills along the way.
4. Anticipate the Skills and Design Scaffolds
"Everyone is capable of solving the problem," Stone said. Teachers have to start with that perspective and then think about how they can help make up ground for the kids who started behind. With experience, teachers can begin to anticipate the moments when students might stumble.

As Stone grew in his practice as a project-based learning teacher, he began to see how crucial this step is for successful execution of a project. In addition to thinking through the driving question and the learning standards students would need to answer that question, the teacher also thinks ahead about the likely gaps in skills students are going to have both in content and process.

For example, if the project is going to require factoring binomials, the teacher might anticipate that some kids won't know how to follow a two-step equation. And collaboration is one of the most difficult process skills, especially for less mature learners, so the teacher might also anticipate that parts of collaboration won't be intuitive to student groups.

"We make sure that while we're identifying those things, in the planning phase, we're identifying exactly what activity we're going to use when that happens," Stone said. For collaboration, a teacher might use open-ended questioning to help coach students through their stumbles. For content issues, Stone thinks about scaffolds, or wedges as he calls them, in a few different ways.

Whole class activities: This is brand-new content for everyone.

Station activities: This is content everyone needs to acquire, but not at the exact same time. "It allows the teacher to identify which piece of content is going to be the most difficult, and that's where she can spend the most time coaching up," Stone said. The other stations might be novel and require time, but may not be as cognitively challenging.

Workshops: This is an option for small groups of students who either feel they could need a review or the teacher sees they need a little more help.

Focus groups: Mandated time with the teacher because there are some prerequisite skills that a student needs, without which the project won't be accessible.

As teachers plan their projects -- weeks before students even see it -- they are thinking about these categories of scaffolds and where in the project they foresee needing to use them. "When teachers can think in that way ahead of time and plan for those necessary scaffolds within those confines, we find it really helpful," Stone said.
5. Transfer Accountability to Students
This becomes easier to do after a few projects and as students get older, but works especially well around skills like collaboration. At the STEM School Chattanooga, students make contracts with one another about how each member of a group is expected to participate, and students set the consequences for failure to do so. In the first project they might make very light consequences, but then one kid gets stuck doing all the work and decides to put more teeth into the consequences next time.

"We let them give each other detention; they could reduce their final grades," Stone said. He found it liberating as a teacher because when a student didn't meet the terms of the contract and received a consequence, she couldn't complain because she had helped to design it and agreed to it at the beginning. Often, Stone said, the student-designed consequences were far more brilliant than anything he would have ever come up with.

When Stone coaches educators in project-based learning, he stresses that the point of the methodology is to put students in a position where they are solving authentic problems, not to check a box. Putting students in these kinds of situations creates opportunities for accidental learning, as does making, which is partly why making-enhanced project-based learning can be so powerful. The key thing for educators to remember is that both of these pedagogical strategies, which can go hand in hand, should be in the service of providing deep learning opportunities.

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Five Ways to Ensure Real Learning Happens in Maker-Enhanced Projects

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1. Make Projects Explicitly Connected to Standards "If you are going to do maker-enhanced project-based learning, it has to have explicit connections to standards," Stone told a room full of teachers at the reMAKE Education conference hosted by the Sonoma County Office of Education. "Otherwise you're going to have a hard time justifying the time investment."

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Workshops of the World: Makerspaces spring up across the Commonwealth – Keystone Edge

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Workshops of the World: Makerspaces spring up across the Commonwealth – Keystone Edge

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In a 1,500-square-foot garage in Pittsburgh, a group of Back to the Future enthusiasts toil away on a Power Wheels car base, transforming it into a mini Delorean time machine.

Meanwhile across the Commonwealth, in a storefront on a vibrant commercial corridor in West Philadelphia, kids diligently hone their soldering and programming skills while building their own retro Gameboys.

And in Altoona, a college student makes the leap from building a business out of his dorm room to developing shoes on an industrial 3-D printer.

The places that facilitate all this action? They're called makerspaces, and they're popping up all over Pennsylvania, from Erie to Lancaster to the Lehigh Valley. It's part of a national movement attracting not just a small, passionate group of "makers," but also the big guns including the White House , which has hosted Maker Faires and welcomed the first ever gathering of movement leaders this past August.

Put simply, makerspaces provide a collection of tools - some high-tech (3-D printers and laser cutters) and some low-tech (hand saws and soldering irons) - and room for people to make things. But talk to anyone involved with this trend, and it's clear that gadgets are only the beginning: These hubs are as much about stewarding a culture of making as they are about building cool stuff.

We help people understand that they have the power and the choice to create and bring their ideas to fruition. Nina Barbuto, Assemble

"Just because you have a 3-D printer, doesn't mean you're a makerspace," explains Nina Barbuto, director and founder of , a Pittsburgh arts- and technology-focused shop. Barbuto describes her organization as a "third space" - a place different from home or work where people can gather and share information, like a community center or coffee shop.

The most successful makerspaces attract a broad cross-section of people with different skills and levels of proficiency. Individuals can connect with experts they wouldn't encounter in daily life. Young and old, engineers and artists, professionals and tradespeople - these institutions give them a forum to work together, learn from one another and create physical artifacts.

"You meet people who are working in the real world - [they] share their mistakes and practical knowledge," says Chad Elish of HackPittsburgh , the programming- and fabrication-focused spot where the Delorean was built. "Just being in the space gives you access to these people."

Some makerspaces start out as a collective of like-minded individuals seeking a shared workshop. That's how The Make Space in State College began. When , an entrepreneurship organization affiliated with , gave up their small office a few blocks off campus, a group of makers took it over and outfitted it with donated tools ranging from hammers and drills to a 3-D printer. The leadership welcomes anyone to stop by and use the space when they're open; members get a key and 24/7 access.

Memberships are one way to pay rent, purchase equipment and restock supplies. Some makerspaces keep dues low to attract members, while requiring volunteer hours (similar to a co-op model). Others forgo memberships altogether and rely primarily on grants, private contracts and program fees to keep them afloat. (As makerspaces grow, many choose to incorporate as nonprofit organizations so they can become grant eligible.) Others offer fabrication services to the general public to bolster revenue.

"Every space is different, and everyone makes it work for their location," explains HackPittsburgh's Elish.

Inclusiveness is often a major tenet, but some organizations still struggle to put that ideology into practice. For the most part, maker culture is still male-dominated, and unlike the vocational classes rapidly disappearing from public schools, makerspaces are frequently seen as targeted towards people of a higher socio-economic level.

One way to overcome this is through outreach. Many spaces host open project nights: The general public can work on personal projects using the in-house tools. For kids and adults alike, the act of making something tangible can be empowering, and that feeling spurs newcomers to return.

The Hacktory , a West Philadelphia makerspace that's been successful in attracting women, chose to adopt a social code of conduct - it appears on their website - spelling out that their policy of inclusivity.

"We knew it was a huge strength of ours that we were very diverse from a gender perspective," says Georgia Guthrie, The Hacktory's executive director. "I wanted to ensure that nothing threatened that."

Many makerspaces also put concerted effort into reflecting and supporting the culture of their local community. For Assemble, that means connecting with their neighborhood, Garfield, where the median income is $22,000 per year. According to Barbuto, they bring artists, technologists, scientists and other experts to their workspace and gallery, and invite youth and adults in the neighborhood to attend monthly shows, take classes and build confidence through making. The goal is to help people rethink what's possible by giving them access to new tools and new role models.

"We try to change people's idea of what being a scientist or artist is," says Barbuto. "We help people understand that they have the power and the choice to create and bring their ideas to fruition."

The Hacktory, meanwhile, focuses on creative uses of technology.

"It's not going to be a place where people go to hone their business idea into a physical thing," says Guthrie. "It's more exploratory than end-game related."

I can't even count how many projects in the greater western Pennsylvania area have been contributed by people from TechShop. Bill Gearhart

That resonates with parents who are looking for their children to have enriching experiences while learning useful skills. The organization is adding more family offerings due to demand.

"The parents who are seeking out our programs are dying for as much as we can provide [their kids] in terms of mechanical, spacial skills," she adds.

On the other hand, at TechShop Pittsburgh , a privately held for-profit makerspace, entrepreneurs are working towards taking their ideas to market. With $3.5 million worth of equipment in their Bakery Square facility, the organization caters to makers of all stripes who need access to specialized, high-tech tools. TechShop General Manager Bill Gearhart says that in addition to home hobbyists and artists, startup companies are prototyping and fulfilling Kickstarter projects; full-on production companies are also members.

"Having all those people in the same space really fosters innovation," he says. "I can't even count how many projects in the greater western Pennsylvania area have been contributed by people from TechShop."

You don't come to Assemble to get a PhD. Once kids get the maker bug, we suggest other places for them to grow. Nina Barbuto, Assemble

Attracting more young people to the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) is a hot national topic these days, and makerspaces are well-positioned to boost those efforts. The Hacktory runs an after-school program and summer camp where kids explore basic electronics, simple machines, digital fabrication and programming. TechShop and HackPittsburgh have both collaborated with the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh to bring more kids into the maker fold. Catalyst Space in Altoona has started a STEM program geared towards teens ages 13 through 15.

At Assemble, they shepherd young people into the maker world and then connect them with local organizations that can help them further develop their skills.

"We try to be the on-ramp of making," explains Barbuto. "You don't come to Assemble to get a PhD. Once kids get the maker bug, we suggest other places for them to grow."

Catching the "maker bug" can also be productive for adults in today's increasingly tech-driven economy. HackPittsburgh's Elish says companies are starting to understand that having a passion and the right skills can be as valuable as a degree.

"I see it with one of our guys here," he says. "He has a high school diploma, and he's developed this great skill set here, which landed him a well-paying job as a programmer."

Schools are also beginning to realize the value of the skills students acquire in hands-on environments.

"It looks at education not as the 'park and bark' model," explains Michael Darfler, Makerspace Director at Friends Central School , a Quaker K-12 school in Wynnewood, PA. "There's this pool of knowledge, and different learning modes can be addressed."

He adds that these spaces often become a resource for teachers as well as students.

Institutions like libraries, museums and art centers are also using makerspaces to connect with patrons. operates out of the Free Library of Philadelphia system and offers free drop-in sessions where attendees can experiment with materials and technology. , a makerspace launched by Penn State Abington and the Abington Art Center in Jenkintown, PA, opened this spring and has successfully built new audiences and re-engaged the center's existing patrons.

Still, Justin Merrell, founder of Catalyst Space, says makerspaces need to do a better job demonstrating their value to the general public.

"It is a very foreign concept to most," he says. "A lot more needs to be done...to educate the community as a whole about the maker movement."

It remains to be seen how makerspaces will evolve as companies, large institutions and policymakers catch on to their value. But one thing seems clear: Pennsylvania's vibrant maker movement has a role to play.
SAMANTHA WITTCHEN is a designer, writer, harpist and co-founder of iSpring, a sustainability strategy and analytics firm working in Philadelphia and the Lehigh Valley. You can follow her efforts to make the world a better place and become a harp rockstar on Twitter at @samwittchen.

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Workshops of the World: Makerspaces spring up across the Commonwealth

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In a 1,500-square-foot garage in Pittsburgh, a group of Back to the Future enthusiasts toil away on a Power Wheels car base, transforming it into a mini Delorean time machine. Meanwhile across the Commonwealth, in a storefront on a vibrant commercial corridor in West Philadelphia, kids diligently hone their soldering and programming skills while building their own retro Gameboys.

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A Virtual Tour of Our School's Makerspace

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A Virtual Tour of Our School's Makerspace

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I've shared lots of small details of our makerspace so far in our first year, including examples of World Language projects, examples of primary grades projects, space design details that have proven important and surprising and unexpected needs. I've even shared lots of details about other makerspaces I've visited.

But I've never shared what our makerspace looks like in its entirety. So here we go!

We have three rooms (although two of the rooms are separated by a divider wall that is almost never closed): the woodworking room and then the large combined digital and main rooms. The floor plan below shows the layout, including the views of the panorama photos further down in this post. For example, in the purple spot labeled "Photo #1," I took that photo standing at the corner of the arc, and the panorama spans the full arc.

Photo 1. This picture starts in the digital room. Most students enter the door in the far north wall, at the edge of the digital space and just out of sight to the left in this picture. You can see out the windows into our school courtyard to the left, and the greenscreen corner on the right. The white door on the left side leads into our tiny DIY soundbooth-plywood, carpet and audio foam.

At first, several of our students (apparently having never seen an actual computer tower before) thought that each computer in the digital space had its own 3D printer. Others were confused why the computer didn't turn on when they pressed the monitor button. Nope, those colorful towers are the actual computers.

Looking past the carpet into the far room, you can see the main room where most of our tinkering and testing takes place.

Photo 2. The next picture starts about halfway through our digital room, past the computers and near our teacher workspace. Those shelves on the left house some mostly "teacher use" tools like a button maker and our ancient Accucut. Above those shelves hangs awesome artwork created by an eighth grader during Adventure Days and our to-do grid, where we post and organize all our tasks that need to get done.

The shelves on the right are my colleague's and my personal shelves, as well as where we keep things like digital cameras and rechargeable batteries. (See photo inset in lower right-hand corner above for an example of why we keep rechargeable batteries secure.)

The table in the center is the "finished lasercuts and 3D prints awaiting pickup" table. We're working on developing a better system for returning such projects to students in an organized way.

Photo 3. I took the third picture standing between the two rooms. There are a few seventh and eighth graders at work on various projects in the main room, my colleague working on some BreakoutEDU boxes at our teacher workspace and two seventh graders on the far right filming a greenscreen video.

Right in the middle is the folded-up divider wall that we can use to separate those two rooms if needed.

Photo 4. This is now solidly inside our main room with its vinyl floor, ceiling-mounted electrical outlets, rolling tables designed and built by a teacher colleague and the glorious Wall Of Joy (more details about this in Photo 5). This picture was taken the day prior to Photo 3, but similarly shows one of our oldest students at work on an open-ended project where students could decide whether and how to use our makerspace to move toward their learning goals.

The far right leads back into the digital room, and the far left leads into the separate woodworking room. Along the wall into the woodworking room are our wall file for cereal-box cardboard, 3D printers, time timer, soldering stations and a few other tools. Under the windows on the right is our projects-in-progress storage space.

Photo 5. More about the Wall Of Joy shown above. We recently reorganized and color-coded the Wall Of Joy. When students were looking for or putting away items, we used to need to say things like "the scissors belong over there on the left, near the sewing machine. No, not that far. Down a little bit." Now, we can simply say "yellow section!" Even only a few days into this reorganization, searching is easier. There's also now no question of which items students may not access without asking.

We use a combination of standard organizational systems (i.e., bins and shelving, louvered panels and hooks) and hacks like the drying rack we use to store alligator clips and the shoe rack we use to put away hot glue guns without needing to let them cool first. The "cardboard specialties" section includes things like pre-laser cut cardboard shapes and gears and 3D-printed cardboard rivets.

On the far right in this image, you can also see our clean-up nook. We've found velcro tape exceptionally handy! Our upright brooms, hand brooms, hand vacuum and magnetic sweeper are all mounted on the wall.

Photo 6. Finally, this is our woodworking room at the far south end of the makerspace (yes, I tidied it up a bit for the picture!). Here we have our laser cutter on the far left, and then our woodworking equipment. Our drill press gets the most use by children, and our miter saw gets the most use by adults.

The furniture was all made in-house. One of our wonderful facilities colleagues designed the A-frame materials rack near the laser cutter and the two work tables in the center (that I helped build during two exhausting days last fall). Those work tables also serve as materials racks for non-cardboard laser cutting materials like craft plywood, acrylic and resin sheets.

The same colleague also designed the miter saw table under the windows and middle school students helped build it during Adventure Days last year.

Photos 7-10. The following pictures were all taken from the same location to highlight the flexibility of our space. Since our tables roll as well as nest together tightly in the corner, we can use them differently depending on the project and the developmental needs of the students doing the project.

Photo 7. With our youngest pre-kindergarteners, I limit the scope of materials and set up "materials tables" that they can access freely. I also like to bring over the seating cubes from the digital space for the tiny kids to use as work tables.

In the picture above, you can see the two materials tables near the Wall Of Joy, and then the seating cubes in the foreground, with a pre-kindergarten class hard at work on their bat ears.

Photo 8. The image above shows a first-grade class-students who are a little older, a little taller and have better fine-motor skills than those in Photo 7. I also generally limit the scope of their materials and tools with "materials tables," but with a wider variety of options. This class is building board games to practice their French vocabulary - a project we expected to require constant return trips to the materials tables to try new things.

With lots of moving around expected, we did not set out the rolling stools for this class. The image on the left is the same view as the others in this part of the series. The image on a right is just a little bonus. The next day, we set up two extra game-play tables for kiddos who finished.

Photo 9. This third-grade Spanish class is decorating their Dia de los Muertos skulls with felt-tipped markers and Model Magic accents they created on a previous visit. Because this is a project that definitely would not require kids to be moving around a lot, we brought out the rolling stools. So far, I start letting kids make their own choices about rolling stools in about fourth or fifth grade, depending on the situation.

Photo 10. This final picture shows the entire fifth-grade class-all 50 of them! They've been studying water quality and the impact of road runoff on our local streams, and they came into our makerspace to build, test and iterate upon their filter designs.

With so many students, we set up only a few tables for their main materials and one table for a group that needed electricity since a hot-plate was part of their design. The rest of the students took sheets of cardboard to use as drop cloths and worked on the floor. In fifth grade, students can access materials and tools on the wall independently.

Our whole school community is pretty proud of how our space has turned out, after years of preparation, construction and now iteration as we continue to learn. We know we have lots of improvements to make-our homemade tables have some major tweaks needed, and our processes for students submitting files for laser cutting or 3D printing could be streamlined.

Our makerspace and its integration into the life of our school is an excellent example to our students of a project under constant iteration and improvement, just like the learning experiences we drive them towards.

For more, see:
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Lindsey Own teaches science at The Evergreen School in Shoreline, WA. Follow Lindsey on Twitter, @LindseyOwn.

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A Virtual Tour of Our School's Makerspace

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I've shared lots of small details of our makerspace so far in our first year, including examples of World Language projects, examples of primary grades projects, space design details that have proven important and surprising and unexpected needs. I've even shared lots of details about other makerspaces I've visited.

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In the last few years, Makerspaces have become a popular venue for people to explore and create. A Makerspace is a space with various tools and materials, with the purpose for individuals to tinker, explore, and create. In schools, Makerspaces have increased in popularity, housing a variety of materials from low-tech arts and crafts to high-tech software and electronics for students to experiment with and build their own designs.

Many conferences and workshops feature a Makerspace area, giving educators ideas to take back to their schools. Social media is filled with fantastic examples of Makerspaces, numerous websites and organizations are devoted to it, and books have been published on how to build your own Makerspace.

Why build a Makerspace in your school? Student creativity, building stronger neural pathways in the brain through kinesthetic learning opportunities, is the reason to build a Makerspace. It is about play, students tinkering to discover, children experimenting to learn, and students building what they dream.

Building a Makerspace is worth it when the students grow and learn within it.

In an age of accountability and standardization, these elements have been steadily removed from schools and classrooms. A Makerspace has the potential to put it all back in place. Even so, making a Makerspace come to life in a school is not an easy task. It takes vision, buy-in, materials and space, and a plan for implementation. More than that, building a Makerspace in a school takes time. And, we did it!

Building The Team

While I knew the potential of building a Makerspace in our school, I knew that I had to build a collective vision for one. I could not just find a space, order materials, and expect a Makerspace to happen. It was going to take a team to make this happen. Therefore, I created a team of teachers, bringing them together with the sole purpose to discover a new way to envision an open space we had in our building. It is with this team that we developed our vision and put all the plans into motion.

We began our work simply discussing the space we had in the building, our Learning Lab. We recently gutted our old computer lab, putting in flexible furniture for a variety of uses. In essence, I asked, "What would you like to see from this space?" From there, we began to dream together. I created a Google Classroom for us to share resources, websites, and articles about different ways schools have used their spaces. And then, our Makerspace began to form.

Promoting The Vision

A Makerspace is really cool, but why have one? Why put it together? The vision for the Makerspace must be clear, keeping students at the forefront, not the space or materials. While a Makerspace cannot function well without materials, that is not why this space is created.

The team determined we needed a clear vision that we could share with all teachers, students, and the community so that there was purpose behind what we were creating. During one of our meetings, we wrote down words and phrases, imagining what we wanted to create. Our vision was formed using the words we brainstormed:

The Learning Lab will present STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) opportunities for students to work collaboratively, experiment, tinker, and explore through the process of inquiry and problem-solving, while using their creative abilities to ask questions and develop their own solutions.

Gettin The Materials and Space

With our vision in place, we began to think about how to make it all happen. After face-to-face discussion and sharing through Google Classroom, we decided to create four main stations of materials to match our vision- the Arts Station, the Builders Station, the Games & Puzzles Station, and the Tech n' Engineering Exploration Station.

The team made lists of materials for each station, brainstorming different challenges and ideas that students may want to create. We looked at grants and other funding opportunities through the school district, ordering a few materials, shopping at the Dollar Store for others, and asking for donations from anyone. Together, we cleaned out cabinets and found most of the materials right in our classrooms already! They just needed to be discovered for use in different ways.

With the space fairly empty, we went to work, organizing the materials into tubs, rearranging furniture, making station signs, and creating "rules of engagement" procedures for use. The space was coming together very quickly, and we were peaking the interest of many as well!

Encouraging The Buy-In

The team had a vision for the space. Materials were now in the Learning Lab Makerspace. Now it was time to build buy-in. We planned a time for the staff to come to the Makerspace to play.

We flipped basic information for the staff, sending them a video a few days in advance, sharing what a Makerspace is, what stations ours will have, and what our next steps would be. During our staff collaboration meeting, we quickly introduced each station, showing a short video to spark interest, and then let the staff play, choosing where they would like to start, much like we would want for our students with choice and interest driving decisions.

During this play, there were pads of paper at each station, giving the staff the opportunity to write their thoughts, ideas, and concerns in an open forum. This feedback would be used to continue to develop the space, building opportunities for our students to use this space as much as possible while still following the curricular guidelines that have been set forth by our district curriculum. Even more than that, this time to play, share, and reflect builds the buy-in we want for our staff to use this space with their students, even taking the vision and concepts into their own classrooms.

Planning The Implementation

This is where we are right now. We are now ready to roll this out to our students, using the feedback from the staff so that we can ensure our students have opportunities to create, explore, and tinker in our new Makerspace. Our students are excited, their curiosity is at a fever-pitch, and they truly cannot wait to dig in.

Building a Makerspace is worth it when the students grow and learn within it. I cannot wait to see this space evolve with the students, changing as needed based on their interests. Furthermore, I am elated to know there will be amazing projects, collaborative learning, and fun happening here.
We did it! Let the fun begin! Feature image courtesy of Flickr, phil41dean.

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In the last few years, Makerspaces have become a popular venue for people to explore and create. A Makerspace is a space with various tools and materials, with the purpose for individuals to tinker, explore, and create.

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A Vertical Build - How We Constructed Our Makerspace Lego Wall

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A Vertical Build - How We Constructed Our Makerspace Lego Wall

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We built a Makerspace in our elementary school! And it has been such a transformative space for our students. I wrote a Fractus post on our journey earlier this year, and since then, the space has been buzzing with excitement.

Most days, the Makerspace is open in the morning as students arrive to school, and I simply monitor the making, creating, tinkering with the many materials and technology available during the time we have together. Teachers have been taking their classes into the space, not only for free exploration and making, but also for design challenges aligned to standards.

We held a Family Makerspace Night, bringing families into our Makerspace to see what the space is all about, making and creating together as a family.

After that evening, donations have come in from families and the community. Our Makerspace was featured in our local newspaper and presented to our school board, and we even built a Google site to share our story, highlighting student work.

It has been a very successful few months for our Makerspace! And while change is not always easy, we have supported each other and our students through this new way of thinking about learning and making. We have begun to recognize the importance of students figuring out solutions on their own, not being fed content all day, but becoming a part of the content filling their minds.

We built a Makerspace in our elementary school. And it has been transformative!

Yet, the beauty of a Makerspace is that the space is never "done". This space should grow with our students, always pulling in new materials and technology so that our students can continually be pushed in their making abilities. The Learning Lab Makerspace team is continually finding ways to integrate the space into our daily instruction. Even more than that, we are always looking for new materials and technology for our students to explore.

So, in order to model the importance of continually changing and adapting to our students' needs, we began with a dream of mine - building a Lego wall.

Legos are a timeless classic for creativity, building, and fun. Kids of all ages enjoy this magnificent toy. For many, Legos come with a set of instructions and a product to build. Other times, kids have free reign on their creativity in order to build something new and different.

In our school's Makerspace, Legos are a staple in our building station. Kids can create whatever they wish with Legos and even integrate those Legos with other materials for their project. With the inspiration of others online and on TV, we decided to put our Legos on the wall. Putting Legos on the wall not only is something new and different for our kids to experience, but it is also a space saver. Students can build on the wall, creating interesting artwork, simply creating anything new with Legos.

We made a HUGE Lego wall! And here is how we did it.

With the inspiration of Diana Redina's Renovated Learning site and amazing how-to blog post, we began with the vision of where to build our own Lego wall. First, we needed to measure how much space and how large we wanted to create our wall. Since we are an elementary school, I wanted to make sure even our youngest students could enjoy the full expanse of the wall. We kept the wall about a foot from the ground for our youngest students. Then, even our oldest students could enjoy all areas of the wall as well. Our wall is a little over 8 feet in length, and 5 feet in height. Our wall is wider, rather than taller, ensuring many students could be working at the wall at one particular time.

Once we had the concept of where we would build our Lego wall and how large we were going to make it, we had to order our materials.

Our materials are:

With my vision and the handyman skills of our maintenance director, we used the half-inch floor grade plywood and bolted it to the wall, of course making sure it was level. Beginning with our first sheet of wood, we placed the Lego plates on the board with either liquid nails or a strong construction adhesive. A small gap in between each Lego plate was needed in order to ensure Legos would connect between the plates. So, as plates were placed on the wall, the classic Lego pieces were used to make sure spacing was just right.

Once the first sheet of wood was nearly full, we measured and cut another sheet of wood, filling in the rest of the space according to the number of Lego plates we planned to use. After bolting those additional pieces to the wall, the rest of the Lego plates were put into place, again using the Lego pieces to ensure proper spacing in between each plate.

Once all the plates were in place, a small wood trim was nailed around the board to frame the Lego wall, finishing the wall nicely. After about 24 to 36 hours of drying the Lego wall was ready to use.

And it is just that simple.

The students' first encounter with the Lego wall has been interesting to watch, as many of them did not know what to start creating as their minds were swirling around the concept of building vertically. However, with a few days under our belt, more ideas have been discussed, starting the creation of pictures and words.

Our Makerspace will continue to evolve with our students. It is an exciting adventure to see it unfold!
Feature image courtesy of Flickr, qrevolution.

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A Vertical Build - How We Constructed Our Makerspace Lego Wall

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We built a Makerspace in our elementary school! And it has been such a transformative space for our students. I wrote a Fractus post on our journey earlier this year, and since then, the space has been buzzing with excitement.

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9 Goals of a Successful School Makerspace

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9 Goals of a Successful School Makerspace

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To celebrate our first #FractusReads, we are are giving away a free copy of the brilliant Worlds of Making. To enter, simply Tweet or share this post on Facebook or Google+ using the hashtag #FractusReads. It's that easy!

For the first book in our #FractusReads series, we wanted to start with a book that not only comes highly recommended, but one that has also made its way to 'Best Seller' in STEM Education reading. Laura Fleming's practical and inspiring guide, Worlds of Making: Best Practices for Establishing a Makerspace for Your School is a must-read for any educator looking to improve or initiate a school makerspace.

While the book covers many important aspects of setting up a makerspace, from school culture to practical ideas and tips, today we want to focus on some of the learning goals Laura highlights. While it can be easy to get caught up in the gadgets and materials for making, Laura states that the overall objective should be to drive the Four Cs: creativity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration.

Schools are already filled with creativity. The challenge is effectively cultivating and harnessing it to its fullest. Laying a foundation for innovation will allow everyone to take full advantage of what a well-planned makerspace can provide. A simple makerspace that sparks the hearts and minds of students will invariably succeed whereas a fully adorned makerspace that lacks that spirit is certain to fail.

Broken down into nine very achievable targets, each of the below goals can help fence in and narrow maker activities to ensure that more than just play is happening in the space. While of course play should be encouraged, and is a hugely important ingredient to making, these nine goals will help you put together a school makerspace that is not only fun and enjoyable, but one that is deeply productive and meaningful.

School Makerspace Student Goals

1. Use a wide range of idea creation techniques - such as brainstorming

2. Create new and worthwhile ideas - both incremental and radical concepts

3. Elaborate, refine, analyze and evaluate their own ideas in order to improve and maximize creative efforts

4. Develop, implement, and communicate new ideas to others effectively

5. Be open and responsive to new and diverse perspectives; incorporate group input and feedback into the work

6. Demonstrate originality and inventiveness in work and understand the real-world limits to adopting new ideas

7. View failure as an opportunity to learn; understand that creativity and innovation are a long-term, cyclical process of small successes and frequent mistakes

8. Implement innovations

9. Act on creative ideas to make a tangible and useful contribution to the field in which the innovation will occur

What are the successes you are having with setting up a school makerspace? What kind of challenges have you encountered? Let us know your experiences in the comments below. And don't forget to share the post for your chance to win a free copy of Worlds of Making.
Feature image courtesy of Flickr, Waag Society.
Keep Reading and Learning

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9 Goals of a Successful School Makerspace

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To celebrate our first #FractusReads, we are are giving away a free copy of the brilliant Worlds of Making. To enter, simply Tweet or share this post on Facebook or Google+ using the hashtag #FractusReads. It's that easy!

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How to Start a Makerspace When You're Broke | Renovated Learning

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How to Start a Makerspace When You're Broke | Renovated Learning

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You CAN start a makerspace even if you're broke

In my recent post on AASL Knowledge Quest, I decided to revisit and revamp a popular article that I wrote for the ISTE Librarians Network Scanner about starting a makerspace on a budget. Since writing that article in November 2014, I've talked to many more educators and continued to work on adding to and improving our makerspace. I felt like it was a good time to take a look at the issue again, as I'm still hearing people saying that they can't start a makerspace because they don't have a budget for one. Seriously, I'm hearing this everyday. I know that for many of us, our budgets are non-existent, and our teacher salaries leave us broke. But even if your budget is zero dollars, you can absolutely still start a makerspace.

Check out the sneak peek below, then click over to Knowledge Quest to read the whole article.

What many people don't realize is that the idea that you need a lot of money to start a Makerspace is a myth. All you need is to have vision, ingenuity, and resourcefulness. A lack of funds is no excuse for keeping your students from experiencing the empowerment that comes with bringing the Maker Education Movement into your program. It may take more effort and elbow grease, but you can start a makerspace even with a zero balance in your budget.

The idea that you need a lot of money to start a #Makerspace is a myth Click To Tweet

Go check out the article over on Knowledge Quest, and learn some valuable strategies for starting (and growing) your makerspace no matter where your budget is at.

Diana Rendina, MLIS, is the media specialist at Tampa Preparatory School, an independent 6-12 in Tampa, FL. Previously, she was the media specialist at Stewart Middle Magnet School for seven years, where she founded their library makerspace. She is the creator of the blog RenovatedLearning.com & is also a monthly contributor to AASL Knowledge Quest. Diana is the winner of the 2016 ISTE Outstanding Young Educator Award, the 2015 ISTE Librarians Network Secondary Award, the 2015 AASL Frances Henne Award & the 2015 SLJ Build Something Bold Award. She is an international speaker on the Maker Movement and has presented at conferences including AASL, FETC & ISTE. Diana co-authored Challenge-Based Learning in the School Library Makerspace with Colleen and Aaron Graves and is also the author Reimagining Library Spaces: Transform Your Space on Any Budget.

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How to Start a Makerspace When You're Broke

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You CAN start a makerspace even if you're broke In my recent post on AASL Knowledge Quest, I decided to revisit and revamp a popular article that I wrote for the ISTE Librarians Network Scanner about starting a makerspace on a budget.

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6 Essential Tips for Designing Your Makerspace’s Layout

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6 Essential Tips for Designing Your Makerspace’s Layout

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When planning a makerspace, most think about designing for creativity. It's important to think about the types of projects that will be completed in the space, how many people will use the space at any given time, and the equipment on your must-have versus nice-to-have lists.

However, there are also a few considerations that often go overlooked.
Space Utilization - Design, Fabrication, or Both?
It's important to consider where lab users will be designing versus making. Will everything take place in the same space or will you have a separate design studio down the hall? Will your design computers be laptops or desktops?

A separate design space should be close to the makerspace in order to minimize lengthy trips back and forth. If that is not possible, consider laptops that users can bring with them into the lab to make design changes quickly.

For educators, it's also important to consider if you will be teaching in the design lab, the makerspace, or both. If you plan to lecture in the makerspace, consider the schedules of other classes that may use the space to minimize or avoid trying to lecture over the noise of the equipment.
Key Takeaway: How you plan to use the space will determine your spatial flow. Dirty vs. Clean
Most makerspaces have two different types of equipment - dirty (makes a lot of dust and debris) and relatively clean. "Dirty" equipment often includes drill presses, table saws, other manual tools, and CNC lathes, mills, and routers. "Clean" equipment includes 3D printers, 3D scanners, laser cutters, vinyl cutters, vacuum formers, injection molders, and computers.

In an ideal situation, a makerspace has a designated dirty space and a designated clean space that are separated at the very least with a collapsible wall. Without separation, you risk dust and debris infiltrating expensive equipment such as laser tubes in laser systems or electronics bays of 3D printers.

If separation is not possible, it's important to consider different types of equipment. For example, a smaller enclosed CNC machine may be a better option than a large format table CNC router because most of the dust is contained within the machine.
Key Takeaway: Separate dirty from clean equipment if possible. If not, consider alternative equipment options. Noise Control
Another reason to separate spaces is for noise control. This is especially common in labs that also feature designated computer design space and teaching space all within one lab. CNC systems will likely be the noisiest systems in the space. Many large format CNC systems have three separate noise generating components - the spindle, the vacuum table, and the dust collector. Find out how loud the system will be as a whole before purchasing.

If noise is a big concern, an enclosed system may be the answer. An enclosed machine will help keep noise levels down while lab users are concentrating on their designs.

It's also important to consider the location of a lab within your building. If there are classrooms or workspaces nearby, consider their locations when choosing the layout of your space. In these cases, it's usually recommended to place louder machines against exterior walls if possible.
Key Takeaway: It's easy to minimize noise disruptions with a little planning in advance. Power and Electrical Requirements
One of the most common mistakes to make when planning a makerspace is assuming all equipment will run off of standard 120V electricity.

For instance, some large format routers require 3 Phase power for a high frequency spindle and vacuum table pump. Many dust collectors require 240V. These power requirements, along with any other facility requirements, will typically be listed on equipment datasheets, so make sure you read these datasheets in detail.

If specialized power is required, contact an electrician to find out what it will cost to have that power installed. It's important to finalize your lab layout as you work with an electrician because once specialized power is installed, it is difficult and expensive to rearrange it.

Makerspaces that don't allow for anything beyond standard 120V everywhere will need to be careful when selecting equipment to ensure there aren't any surprises when the equipment arrives.
Key Takeaway: Read equipment datasheets in detail to understand power requirements. Finalize your lab layout after working with an electrician. Furniture
Often workbenches and storage solutions don't get the attention they deserve. Furniture isn't as exciting as equipment, but it is a critical part of the overall usability of the space.

Furniture is not a place to skimp by building it yourself or using extra furniture from around the facility. This often results in a space filled with furniture that isn't appropriate. Users may end up working hunched over because tables are too short or an expensive piece of equipment may be set on top of workbench that is not rated for its weight.

Storage is another big concern. Keeping your lab space clean and organized not only makes it easier to work in, but also makes it safer. Know what you'll need to store, how big it is, and how much of it you'll need to have on hand at any given time.

Another common mistake when it comes to furniture is basing the decision on aesthetics over functionality. Everyone wants their space to look modern and attractive, but your decision criteria should be weighted towards durability.

To pick the correct furniture, think about the type of work that will be completed in the space. Will your users be using hand tools on your workbenches? Will they be soldering electronics? Will these activities take place while standing or seated? How will these workbenches hold up to these types of activities in the long run? Some tables and workbenches may start out looking great, but if they are not designed for this type of work, they'll lose their luster and, more importantly, usability very quickly.

The best way to get a feel for your furniture needs is by visiting another space in your area that is using similar equipment to what you plan to put in your shop. While you are there, note the equipment and furniture and talk to the manager of this space about what they chose and why.
Key Takeaway: Consider furniture with the right storage options and durability to fit your needs. Designing for Mobility
Mobility is a popular trend in makerspaces, and understandably so.

Check to see if the furniture you are considering has a mobile option. Often casters can be added to workbenches to make the majority of furniture reconfigurable. The ability to push tables together for large groups and pull tables apart for working alone gives a makerspace additional flexibility, so that it can meet the needs of a variety of different types of users.

Mobility doesn't just apply to furniture - equipment can be made mobile as well. For example, many 3D printers and laser systems can include a mobile cart option, allowing for even more flexibility within a makerspace.
Key Takeaway: Mobile furniture and equipment offers an entirely new level of customization.

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6 Essential Tips for Designing Your Makerspace's Layout | Make:

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When planning a makerspace, most think about designing for creativity. It's important to think about the types of projects that will be completed in the space, how many people will use the space at any given time, and the equipment on your must-have versus nice-to-have lists.

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Building A Tinkering Mindset In Young Students Through Making | MindShift | KQED News

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Building A Tinkering Mindset In Young Students Through Making | MindShift | KQED News

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Young kids who are playing don't worry about making mistakes. They're just playing, and the idea that they could make a mistake-that there's a wrong way to play-doesn't enter into their consciousness. It's this freedom that enables the creation of elaborate pretend games and castles built from playground bits. Replicating a sense of play in the classroom is vital to creating a tinkering mindset for children.

One of the most powerful things you can do to set the philosophical tone in your makerspace is to hammer home the idea that taking risks, trying new things, and making mistakes are not only acceptable actions-they're desirable actions. That's what you're hoping for! But telling a group of little kids that it's okay to make mistakes is not an effective way to deliver your message. The droning voice of the teachers in the Peanuts cartoons springs to mind! To get kids to internalize your message and truly take it to heart, you have to show them in a wide variety of ways what you really mean.

Here are some ideas for getting across the idea that taking risks, trying new things, and making mistakes are desirable outcomes.
READ STORIES ABOUT MISTAKES
There are lots of good children's books about mistake making. My absolute favorite is Barney Saltzberg's Beautiful Oops. This short book features mistakes repackaged as something awesome! For example, a torn piece of paper becomes the smile on an alligator. Young children respond to the simplicity of the "mistakes" and the delightful revelation of the reworked mistake into something beautiful and surprising. This book is a wonderful jumping-off point for a bigger discussion about how to handle mistakes and how mistakes can lead us in new, inspiring directions.

I read this story to each of my classes at the beginning of every year, and kids ask to hear it again and again. A few weeks after I read it to a kindergarten class one year, we were working on a challenge in which students were using graphic design tools to draw on a photograph of their faces. One student carefully tried to trace his eye so he could use the paint bucket to fill the shape. He hadn't quite managed to draw a closed shape around his eye, though, so the paint spilled all over the photograph completely covering his face. Watching from across the room, I braced myself. Sometimes students are distraught when things like this happen. Would there be tears?

This student straightened up in his chair and blurted out, "I made a beautiful oops! I know how to turn my whole page white!" The other kindergartners jumped out of their seats to come have a look at this marvelous discovery. They all wanted to know exactly how he did it so they could go try it out.

Of course, students do not always react to their mistakes this way. However, I have found that deliberately creating a climate where risk taking and mistake making are valued makes a notable difference in the way students handle mistakes.

Frequently reading stories about risk taking, failure, recovery from failure, and mistake making goes a long way toward assuring students that you actually believe in the learning that comes when students make and recover from errors. Check the list of excellent story ideas in chapter 8 for more suggestions.

ACTUALLY MAKE MISTAKES IN FRONT OF KIDS
Modeling that it really is okay to make mistakes is vital. Fortunately for most of us working in a budding makerspace with young tinkerers, there are many opportunities to publicly fail in front of students. There is so much to know and things change so quickly. Technology's unpredictability benefits us in this instance! When I'm teaching a lesson and my projector malfunctions, the demonstration program I wrote does not even begin to do what I had hoped it would, or my robot goes backward instead of forward, I take it as an opportunity to model resilience and grit. I let students see me flustered and then (hopefully) recovering. I invite them to help me diagnose what went wrong, which they LOVE.

Taking public risks and making public mistakes not only helps normalize mistake making, it inspires enthusiasm for collectively problem-solving and collaborating. All of this is a desirable part of the philosophical underpinnings of a tinkering mindset.

If you are the kind of educator who rarely makes a mistake, you can
strategically plan to make errors for students to catch. These preplanned mistakes can still help students see you as a real person who actually makes mistakes and recovers from them.
USE VISUAL REMINDERS
Posting quotations about or pictures of mistakes can go a long way toward reminding kids that you're serious about the value of mistakes. I have James Joyce's quote "Mistakes are the portals to discovery" displayed in huge letters on my classroom walls, and at the beginning of each year we have a discussion about exactly what the students think that quote means. At each workstation in my room I have a little sign stating, "Don't be afraid of making a mistake. Mistakes are normal and we learn from them."

At an art fair, I purchased a colorful print emblazoned with the phrase "Mistakes Make." It seems like the artist accidentally got the words in the wrong order. Kids think it's hilarious! I have a picture of my face posted in a prominent place in my classroom encircled by the words, "Ms. Baggett: Proud Mistake Maker Since 1966." I have a series of posters I made of silhouettes of heads with famous people's quotes about mistakes. The visual materials in my room affirm that I mean what I say about the value of making mistakes.

I start my year by having the kids do a scavenger hunt to become familiar with the room. One of the items they are supposed to search for is something that lets you know it's okay to make a mistake. One year, as the kids were searching for all the items, I heard one girl say, "There are so many things in this room that let you know it's okay to make a mistake, but I can't find the specific one for the stupid scavenger hunt!"
HIGHLIGHT BOTH EPIC FAILS AND SPECTACULAR DISCOVERIES
To further develop the idea that risk taking and mistake making can lead to something positive, I created an Epic Fails and Spectacular Discoveries bulletin board in my room. I wanted to create a place for students to share their highest highs and their lowest lows, the idea being that the more kids talk openly and honestly about their successes and failures, the more normalized the idea that we all have highs and lows when we're problem-solving becomes.

Students who want to participate can fill out a slip of paper (or ask me to fill it out if they're still learning to write) that asks
them what their epic fail or spectacular discovery was, how they happened upon it, and what about it made it an epic fail or spectacular discovery. Then they post their slips on a bulletin board so that other students can read them. Kids love reading what other kids have to say, and I often have to encourage them to go back to working on their projects instead of spending all their time reading the board.

One year after I finished introducing this idea to my students for the first time, a little hand shot up with a question. "But Ms. Baggett," the boy said, puzzled, "how do you tell the difference between an epic fail and a spectacular discovery?"

I adore this question! It gets at the fundamental nature of process -based, inquiry learning. Failure and discovery are so closely linked, so connected and interrelated, that it is very hard to distinguish between them, especially when failure leads directly to discovery and vice versa.

EMPHASIZE THAT A MISTAKE IS NOT THE END

I have all sorts of old projects lying around my room. Students love to look at them, but they also find them intimidating because most of the projects are physical objects in a final state. They look perfect and finished. Students have a hard time envisioning the steps that led up to the final object's creation: all they see is the incredibly cool final iteration.

To help students understand the messy process of creation, I ask students to track their progress during any project (much more about this in chapter 6). Tracking a project's progress helps illuminate the many mistakes along the way. Students looking at old projects can look up the reflection and documentation fellow students did on a given challenge to get a fuller picture of what happened along the way. It's fun to see how many challenges a student has to overcome to complete a project. Students have the chance to internalize the idea that continuing to work even when a seemingly insurmountable obstacle presents itself is vital to learning and growing.
TALK ABOUT THE PROCESS
Kids enjoy sharing what is happening with their work on a project, and it's great for other students to hear their peers talking about all the different challenges and successes they've experienced. Peer-to-peer sharing also opens the door for collaboration and collective problem-solving when a student is unsure of how to move past an obstacle.

I regularly invite students to teach their classmates. Students address their peers, explaining and demonstrating their mistakes
and discoveries. It is not unusual for them to have so much to say that I must gently help them wrap things up. Talking about the messy process of making is thrilling to students, who although they cannot always recognize why this appeals to them, appreciate the focus on their learning process instead of their final product.
Alice Baggett has been a teacher for over two decades. She holds a BA in archaeology from Oberlin College and an MA in education from Florida International University. This book is aimed at educators of primary school students who want to teach STEM and other subjects in a hands-on, minds-on way that engages and delights.

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Building A Tinkering Mindset In Young Students Through Making

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Young kids who are playing don't worry about making mistakes. They're just playing, and the idea that they could make a mistake-that there's a wrong way to play-doesn't enter into their consciousness. It's this freedom that enables the creation of elaborate pretend games and castles built from playground bits.

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What Constitutes ‘MAKING’? | Tech Learning

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What Constitutes ‘MAKING’? | Tech Learning

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One of the questions I am asked most frequently by educators, in terms of makerspaces, is for lesson plans, project ideas or templates that I have that they can use in their makerspace. (In fact, my publisher wanted me to write a book of those, but I turned that down.) The answer I give to educators is two-fold. First off, I cannot possibly suggest anything for anyone's makerspace until they properly plan and uncover themes that work best for their space.

*More on proper planning here, here, in my book and my course. The second part of my answer, and perhaps even more important than the first, addresses the question that is the title of this blog post:
What Constitutes Making?
In regards to the Maker Movement, there are those who feel that everything counts as 'making', but many educators wonder about what kinds of activities or projects are most appropriate for a school makerspace. I too have wondered these things time and time again. In a recent piece on the Maker Ed blog, they wrote about the FabLearn 2016 conference, and how that conference kicked off with a hypothetical scenario:
It's the year 2026, the Maker Movement has failed, why?
The spirit of the Maker Movement is one that is inclusive and not meant to be polarizing in any way, which is a wonderful thing. I do have major concerns though that this spirit is what is going to have dire consequences on K-12 makerspaces and could be what contributes to making the above hypothetical scenario, a reality. Including everything that is made under the umbrella of 'making, is what has contributed to many school makerspaces being swallowed up by the ' STEM Monster', and to many school makerspaces turning into teacher-driven spaces, and therefore, just another classroom.

I do believe there is room in school makerspaces for all types of making, but I am starting to see many school makerspaces that are limited to students just playing board games, or just completing arts and crafts or STEM projects, in which students always follow step-by-step directions or use a kit. These same makerspaces also are often the same spaces in which project ideas are thought of and created by just teachers and oftentimes tend to include things like teacher-driven STEM challenges. These are often the same spaces that require students or classes to participate in certain activities or challenges or even grade them on what they do. These are often the same spaces that dictate what making/design process a student should be using.

In my opinion, many school makerspaces are makerspaces by name only and would more appropriately be called STEM labs or a craft club. With that being said, there could be room for all of these things in a school makerspace. When I ask myself the question, What Constitutes Making, I always fall back on my definition of a makerspace to guide my thinking and decision making.

A makerspace is a metaphor for a unique learning environment that encourages tinkering, play, and open-ended exploration for all.

There are many who have their own definition of what a makerspace is, and the fact that making is deeply personal to those involved in this Movement is, in fact, part of what makes this Movement so unique and special. For me though, what constitutes making is that students have the opportunity for open-ended exploration. This does not mean that board games, STEM kits, arts and crafts or teacher-driven challenges couldn't be present in our makerspace...they could. For the most part though, they aren't a part of our space. Our makerspace is almost entirely student-driven and I work hard at ' creating the conditions to inspire' them to WANT to make, as opposed to forcing them into making or even what they should make.

For some reason, doing teacher-driven, teacher-selected 'challenges' has become directly associated with makerspaces, much like STEM has. In my makerspace, I do believe that it is our 'challenges' that pull certain students in, so I do see the motivating factors that a challenge represents. The only 'challenges' we have in our makerspace though are challenges that foster the open-ended exploration that myself, and my students, hold so sacred. The challenges we have in our makerspace include:

Make Something That Does Something (the brilliant slogan of littleBits)

Make Me Something...Anything (inspired by educator, Barton Keeler)

What Else Can This Be?

In addition, I often use a creative tool called SCAMPER to encourage my students to stretch their thinking and making skills. I often use this model to challenge my students to generate new ideas or think about how to improve on existing ones. The SCAMPER tool is a mnemonic devices that means:

Substitute: Replace a part of something or of a process. What can be used instead?

Combine: Blend or bring together two or more unrelated materials in a new way. How can you combine materials to make something more useful or more interesting?

Adapt: Borrow, emulate, adapt, or amend an existing idea or thing.

Modify: How can you switch up the shape, size, color, or texture of something? How can you expand, augment, or intensify?

Put to another use: Can you use something for something else, or for more than one thing? Can you use it in a new way?

Eliminate: Streamline, Simplify, or minimize. What can you remove or improve upon to enhance a creation?

Rearrange or (Reverse): Can parts of something be interchanged, inverted, or transposed? Can the sequence be switched up? Could you make a plan beginning with the desired outcome and design the steps leading up to it in reverse order? Can you reverse engineer something?

I have hesitated to write this blog post for a long time because the topic is one that many people have strong feelings about one way or another. I have decided to write this post based on the fact that it addresses one of the most common issues I get asked questions about by educators all across the country. All I can do is offer my opinion and perspective on the topic and leave it up to individuals to decide how they feel, which I fully respect. Perhaps my post will either confirm or cause you to rethink what you feel constitutes making. Either way, our students are sure to benefit, because collectively, we all continue to play a part in pushing this Movement forward.
Cross posted at http://worlds-of-learning.com/ Laura Fleming has been a classroom teacher and media specialist in grades K-8 and currently is a Library Media Specialist for grades 9-12. She is a well known writer, speaker and consultant on next-generation teaching methods and tools, and the author of the best-selling Worlds of Learning: Best Practices for Establishing a Makerspace for Your School

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One of the questions I am asked most frequently by educators, in terms of makerspaces, is for lesson plans, project ideas or templates that I have that they can use in their makerspace. (In fact, my publisher wanted me to write a book of those, but I turned that down.)

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Advocating for Makerspaces in Libraries | Knowledge Quest

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Advocating for Makerspaces in Libraries | Knowledge Quest

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Since I first started my Makerspace at Stewart Middle Magnet School in January 2014, I have received a lot of positive feedback. I've given talks, presented at conferences, and shared about our experiences through my blog and through social media. Some of the questions I am most frequently asked are: Why should makerspaces be in the library? Why not just convert a classroom into a STEM lab?

In a similar vein, I often hear from librarians who are struggling to get their administration/teachers/community to understand the rationale for having a Makerspace in their library. Aren't those kids just playing? Shouldn't libraries be quiet and clean? How does this tie in with the curriculum?

How we react to these types of questions are crucial in our advocacy for our spaces. Here's some ways to respond.

Why should makerspaces be in the library?

This has a lot to do with the philosophy behind libraries. While it might vary from one person to the next, most would agree that one of the main missions of the library has always been to make resources and materials accessible to all, regardless of socioeconomic status, intelligence, status (gifted, special education, etc), gender, etc. Traditionally, these resources were print materials like books, periodicals and reference materials. In the past twenty years or so, this has expanded to include access to digital resources and tools, like internet connected computers, eBooks, databases, web tools, etc. I feel that this is now evolving again to include tools for creation. Makerspaces are resources and materials that our students need access to, both for class research and for exploration. It makes perfect sense for these tools and materials to be made accessible to students in and through the library.

Why not just convert a classroom into a STEM lab?

If you've got a classroom available to turn into a tricked out STEM lab, go for it. But don't do that instead of creating a library makerspace, do it in addition to a library makerspace. The problem with creating a closed off space is that it severely limits student access. Not every student will have a teacher who will take them to the STEM lab. Many students who are in lower level classes might never get access. And even if administration sets up a schedule where every student gets to visit the STEM lab, their visits will be time limited and likely focused on a specific task, rather than allowing the student to explore individually. On the other hand, every student has access to the library. Visiting the library is not contingent on a student being in an advanced science elective or having stellar grades. By having a makerspace in the library, EVERY student at school can have the opportunity to use it and learn and grow. They can visit on their own schedule and they can explore projects and concepts that are of interest to them.

Aren't those kids just playing?

There is a great deal of research available now that children and young adults can learn through play. What often looks like "just play" to adults is actually a reflection of much deeper learning. Two students building a house out of LEGOs together are learning collaboration and teamwork. A student designing and redesigning his project to get it just right is learning about the design process, innovation and critical thinking. A student sharing the story behind the K'nex space station she built is expressing storytelling and creativity. All of these skills will help them in their academic classes and throughout their lives. It's far more than "just" play.

See these books for research on play:

Shouldn't libraries be quiet and clean?

These aren't your grandmother's libraries and that's okay. Libraries are evolving. They must evolve, or risk becoming irrelevant. There should be quiet spaces available in your library for students who need that for their learning style. But many students today learn best in kinesthetic, noisy and messy environments. Lectures and worksheets just don't do it for them. They want to get their hands dirty, dig into a project, figure things out for themselves. If we want our students to learn to be innovative and creative, this type of environment is essential. It's okay to have noise and mess in the library - it means that your students are actually using the library and maybe even learning something while they're there.

How does this tie in with the curriculum?

There's all sorts of ways in which makerspaces can tie in with curriculum. There can be passive maker stations related to a concept that's being taught, such as designing fractals to tie in with math. Librarians can develop collaborative, hands-on lessons with science teachers and other subject areas that utilize makerspace resources. And makerspaces do much more for students than tie into standards. Through making, students are learning vital 21st century skills like innovation, creativity, collaboration and critical thinking. These skills can help increase their success in all classes.

As with any debate and discussion, make sure to always frame your responses in a positive, student-center light. Our main goal should always be to create a dynamic learning environment where students can thrive. You may or may not completely win over the naysayers, but it's pretty hard to argue with someone who is passionate about seeing their students succeed.

Categories: Blog Topics, Makerspaces/Learning Commons

Tags: advocacy, makered, makerspaces

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Advocating for Makerspaces in Libraries | Knowledge Quest

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Since I first started my Makerspace at Stewart Middle Magnet School in January 2014, I have received a lot of positive feedback. I've given talks, presented at conferences, and shared about our experiences through my blog and through social media.... Read More ›

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The K-12 Blueprint: Produced by Clarity Innovations

Clarity Innovations matches the most promising technology with the evolving needs of education. By merging creativity, technology, and pedagogy, we create powerful learning experiences.

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Our nation's continued economic prosperity is closely linked with student success in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Use these resources to explore the critical role STEM education plays in driving innovation, and how schools and districts can expand the capacity and diversity of tomorrow's STEM workforce.

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ISTE | The maker movement: A learning revolution

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ISTE | The maker movement: A learning revolution

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Supporting the Teacher Maker Movement | Edutopia

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Supporting the Teacher Maker Movement | Edutopia

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Dear Principals:

We have all heard about The Maker Movement and the innovation and excitement that students generate as a result of participating in a Maker-based unit. But what if teachers could be encouraged to participate in their own Maker Movements? What might that look like?

In the Maker Movement, students are asked to innovate, create, and problem solve. They are asked to design, write, present, and eventually to produce a product. For a teacher, their "maker movement" is in curriculum design, and their product is an original unit. After all, in order for us to encourage valuable innovation of our students, teachers need the freedom to be innovative as well. Teachers need to be a part of curriculum creation. After all, enthusiasm for learning is trickle down.

When Teachers "Make" What They Teach

The reality, unfortunately, is that teachers are rarely encouraged to actually "make" anything that they teach. By denying teachers their chance to develop their own creativity in curriculum, we deny them the power of modeling enthusiasm for their content and the process of delivering that content. We also inadvertently cause a stagnation of imagination and critical thinking in the very troops closest to the students themselves and those tasked with bringing out those very traits in our clientele.

Sure, there are those teachers who only want to present the textbook or scripted curriculum, but, ask yourself, are you based your professional development decisions or support based on this group alone? Does their existence mean that you shouldn't support the talent from those who want to be producing more? The fact is, we need to differentiate how we support teachers who want to contribute more to our school sites.

After all, those talented creators are out there, and they can do more than simply work the die cut machine in the lounge. Look around your own staff. There are people out there secretly yearning to design their own standard-based units. They are itching for the opportunity to be creative. There are also those who simply don't know where to begin. To be innovative, they need leadership and encouragement. To broaden their definition of teaching, they need advice and support.

That's where you, the principal, come in.

The fact is that a great, innovative, juicy, kid-engaging, standards-based, the students-will-never-forget-it unit cannot be pulled off without support from the administration. Case in point, I could never have accomplished creating my own project based learning units (many of which I have written about in the past), or seen the consequential growth in my students, had it not been for my principal's support of these methods.

Eight Ways to Support Teachers

So what can principals do to support the teachers who want to develop curriculum?

It takes a village, as they say, to implement true, rigorous units. It can't happen without eager, innovative teachers and it can't happen without supportive principals. So here are a few things you can do to encourage these methods within your own staff:

#1. Identify those teachers who are interested in curriculum design, and ensure that they have your seal of approval to try. Some teachers might even meet resistance within their own department if they aren't "lock step" with curriculum decisions. Make sure department chairs know that you are on board and encouraging this level of standards-based innovation.

#2. Be open to advocacy projects that focus on school site topics. The easiest units to start with begin in your own school site. I once had my class try to save a tree from an upcoming construction project (we lost the battle, but at least the head architect came into the classroom, showed us blueprints, and was transparent with the class about the rationale behind losing the tree). Another class launched a campaign to change the annoying school bell.

After studying Executive Summary as a writing genre, graphing the results from different formats of surveys, researching the kinds of technology used in our school's servers, and petitioning the principal, it worked. As a result, the kids felt like heroes to all those students who hated the sound of the old bell (not that the new one was much better, but that wasn't the point). Find humor in the things that kids want to see changed and encourage their professional-level attempts to try to better their school environment.

#3. Be present for the process. Be an authentic audience if they need you. If they need someone to sit on a panel and evaluate presentations or read a handful of essays to give feedback on their pitches, give up a little time to connect academically with those kids. It keeps you more present in their minds and you get to touch base with and be more in tune with student accomplishments.

#4. Have teachers communicate every step of the way. Make sure they can feel comfortable sharing what's working and what's not.

#5. Create a standards-based matrix that teachers can check off to help them keep their unit focused on the academics even while they design for their hearts. By providing the matrix yourself, you've taken something off of their plate and given yourself a tool to provide evidence of the learning from a data-driven standpoint.

#6. Ask if teachers who are experimenting will open up their classrooms for other teachers to come and observe what's going on. The only way to spread a movement is to see it in action from those who are doing the teaching.

#7. Provide collaboration time. Don't have the money to give more already? Then donate faculty-meeting time. Better yet, have an administrator substitute in a classroom to allow two teachers to meet during their preparation time. (Oh, and that includes you. It wouldn't hurt to get your own tushie or your assistant principal's into the classrooms as subs on occasion.) There are ways to give teachers the time they need to feel supported and be excited again.

#8. Encourage teachers to show their own personalities and design around their own interests. The best way to get a teacher on board is to allow them to be themselves in the school community. There's a garden to design. There's a movie to produce. There's a piece of land to protect. There's a concert to plan. All of these interests can become teacher-created curriculum units if you encourage it and give teachers the support to create them.

I'll end on an idea I've said in the past, that enjoying the job we all do trickles down to students and ultimately their achievement as well. Allow and encourage teachers to design something that will spark their excitement again to teach and allow yourself your own participation in the classroom's learning process. Do those things and you will be hitting the most effective teaching standard of them all for you both: enjoying the job.

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Supporting the Teacher Maker Movement | Edutopia

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Dear Principals: We have all heard about The Maker Movement and the innovation and excitement that students generate as a result of participating in a Maker-based unit. But what if teachers could be encouraged to participate in their own Maker Movements? What might that look like?

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Why Making Is Essential to Learning | Edutopia

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Why Making Is Essential to Learning | Edutopia

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More recently, maker education is being used as a way to connect do-it-yourself informal learning to classrooms. Driven by new technologies such as 3D printing, robotics, and kid-friendly coding, making is emerging as an effective way to introduce students to STEM, particularly women and minorities. By incorporating elements of making into the classroom, educators can bridge the gap between what students are passionate about and what they're learning in school.

The Science of Hands-On Learning

At the heart of making is the idea that all students are creators. Instead of just memorizing material for a test, students are encouraged to use what they know to design and build projects, whether it's hacking everyday objects to make music or using a 3D printer to build a mechanical prosthetic hand for a child.

Hands-on learning plays a key role in maker education. A typical makerspace looks more like a workshop than a classroom, with tools, art supplies, and computer parts filling the room. Textbooks, if present, are more likely to be used as references -- a tool to help students design and build their projects -- unlike traditional classrooms where memorizing the textbook itself may be the goal.

At Albemarle County Public Schools, making fosters student autonomy, ignites student interest, and empowers students to embrace their own learning. "One of the things that we've discovered is that maker education with kids gets them engaged, gets them passionate about the work, gives them opportunities to pursue things that they're interested in," says Superintendent Pam Moran. "And as a result, it really raises the level of work that kids are doing, and it starts to make sense. School makes sense."

Research shows that hands-on learning is an effective way to teach students science. A 2009 study found that eighth-grade students who were involved in hands-on science projects demonstrated a deeper understanding of concepts than students who were taught with traditional methods such as textbook readings, lectures, and tests (Riskowski et al., 2009).

Why is hands-on learning effective? We can look to neuroscience for insight. Students who participate in science experiments, instead of just observing them, have a deeper conceptual understanding of science. Through brain imaging, researchers found that physical experience activates the sensorimotor region of students' brains, which helps reinforce what they're learning (Kontra et al., 2015). If students use their hands as well as their minds, they're essentially learning twice.

Maker Mindset: Teaching Students to Ask Questions and Embrace Mistakes

Maker education is more than just tools and technology. Dale Dougherty, the creator of Maker Faire, sees making as a way to develop one's full potential: "Fostering the maker mindset through education is a fundamentally human project -- to support the growth and development of another person not just physically, but mentally and emotionally" (Dougherty, 2013).

Making encourages students to pose their own questions and pursue answers in an organic way. In contrast to a "single correct answer" approach, making is a mindset, a way to approach problem-solving through experimentation and play. Mistakes are a part of learning, since they show that students are pushing the boundaries of their capabilities. Every mistake made is an opportunity to incorporate feedback into a new design, a way to solve challenges previously unforeseen. To quote Claude Lévi-Strauss, "The scientist is not a person who gives the right answers, he's one who asks the right questions."

In a culture of high-stakes testing, students can be too focused on finding the right answers, when they should also be thinking about the right questions.

Questioning can be a powerful form of learning. Research shows that students learn more deeply when they can apply classroom-gathered knowledge to real-world problems. Asking questions provides context that helps reinforce student learning, and it helps students transfer their learning to new kinds of situations, including ones outside of the classroom (Barron & Darling-Hammond, 2008).

A Powerful Force for Inclusion

One of maker education's more exciting trends is its ability to attract students who may be underrepresented in STEM fields. Despite being 57 percent of the undergraduate student population, women make up only 19 percent of engineering students. Black and Hispanic students, who make up 29 percent of undergraduates, constitute only 15 percent of engineering students (NSF, 2015).

Why are women and minorities underrepresented in STEM? One possible reason is the style of teaching typically used; a 2014 study compared college-level biology courses taught in a traditional lecture format with an active-learning format (providing more student guidance and interaction) and found that when active learning was used, average exam scores increased, with black and first-generation students benefitting the most (Eddy & Hogan, 2014). In other words, active learning can be a powerful tool to help make STEM more inclusive.

With its focus on creativity, art, play, and do-it-yourself projects, making has the potential to appeal to a wide range of interests. A 2014 report found that girls who participate in maker programs develop stronger interest and skills in computer science and engineering (Wittemyer et al., 2014). By engaging in making, girls can gain the skills, knowledge, confidence, and self-efficacy necessary for a successful career in STEM.

True learning is a continuous cycle of curiosity, investigation, experimentation, research, and reflection, all of which are key features in making. While maker education is often defined in terms of 3D printers and Arduino boards, it's really the culture around making, rather than the act of making, that makes it essential to learning.

Notes

Barron, B. & Darling-Hammond, L. (2008). Teaching for Meaningful Learning: A Review of Research on Inquiry-Based and Cooperative Learning (PDF) Book Excerpt. George Lucas Educational Foundation.

Dougherty, D. (2013). "The Maker Mindset." In M. Honey & D.E. Kanter (Eds.) (2013), Design, make, play: Growing the next generation of STEM innovators (pp.7-11). New York: Routledge.

Eddy, S.L. & Hogan, K.A. (2014). "Getting under the hood: how and for whom does increasing course structure work?" CBE-Life Sciences Education, 13(3), pp.453-468.

Halverson, E.R. & Sheridan, K. (2014). "The maker movement in education." Harvard Educational Review, 84(4), pp.495-504.

Kontra, C., Lyons, D.J., Fischer, S.M., & Beilock, S.L. (2015). "Physical experience enhances science learning." Psychological science, 26(6), pp.737-749.

Martinez, S. & Stager, G. (2014). The maker movement: A learning revolution. Arlington, VA: International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).

National Science Foundation (2015). Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering: 2015. Arlington, VA: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics.

Riskowski, J.L., Todd, C.D., Wee, B., Dark, M., & Harbor, J. (2009). "Exploring the effectiveness of an interdisciplinary water resources engineering module in an eighth grade science course" (PDF). International Journal of Engineering Education, 25(1), p.181.

Wittemyer, R., McAllister, B., Faulkner, S., McClard, A., & Gill K. (2014). MakeHers: Engaging Girls and Women in Technology Through Making, Creating, and Inventing (PDF). Intel.

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Why Making Is Essential to Learning | Edutopia

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More recently, maker education is being used as a way to connect do-it-yourself informal learning to classrooms. Driven by new technologies such as 3D printing, robotics, and kid-friendly coding, making is emerging as an effective way to introduce students to STEM, particularly women and minorities.

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8 Design Steps for an Academic Makerspace -- THE Journal

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8 Design Steps for an Academic Makerspace -- THE Journal

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Hands-on Learning

8 Design Steps for an Academic Makerspace

If you build it, will they come? That is the question many schools have about finding room on campus for a "makerspace."

The just-released 6th annual New Media Consortium Horizon Report K-12 Edition listed makerspaces as an emerging technology in the year-or-less adoption timeframe. "Makerspaces are increasingly being looked to as a method for engaging learners in creative, higher-order problem-solving through hands-on design, construction, and iteration," the report noted.

That sounds great, but what is the definition of a makerspace, and how do you launch one? As Dale Dougherty, one of the founders of the maker movement, has said, a makerspace might share aspects of shop class, an art studio, science labs and home economics. It could focus on electronics, robotics, woodworking, sewing, laser cutting, programming or any combination of those.

Before enthusiastic school technology leaders start drawing up blueprints for their makerspaces, there's lots of planning that needs to take place, said Russ Jarowski, director of technology at Miss Hall's School, a private school for girls in Pittsfield, MA, who has been involved in the development of several makerspaces over the last 10 years, including at University of Maryland-Baltimore County. It won't help to build out a space if students don't show up and if parents don't support it, he said. "Also, unless its purpose is aligned with school culture and values, it will not succeed," he warned.

Speaking at the annual ISTE Conference in Philadelphia June 29, Jarowski detailed eight steps to work through in the creation of a successful child-centered academic makerspace.

1. Purpose: First, make sure it is clear to you and the school why you are building a makerspace: It should be for the promotion of hands-on learning and collaboration, Jarowski said.

It also should be interdisciplinary, so hopefully teachers from multiple academic disciplines will get involved. Give them a lot of time to work and experiment.

You must make decisions about its scope. Is it part of a class? An after-school activity? Will it encourage entrepreneurship among students as they build prototypes?

Jarowski recommended drafting a written plan, charter or manifesto. "Develop your elevator pitch that you can deliver in 30 seconds," he said, to explain what the makerspace is to the board, administrators and potential donors.

2. People: Think through who will use and support the makerspace. Who is going to keep up the equipment?

"You need to identify the stakeholders," Jarowski said. "Parents are important because they can bring expertise they can share. He noted that in Western Massachusetts, where his school is located, there are several plastics manufacturing plants. He took students to a plastics manufacturer and showed them what a high-end 3D printer can do.

"You don't have to be a technology expert because there are communities online that will help you," he said. But you do have to realize that when you buy 3D printers, they will break and get clogged extruders and you have to have someone willing to work to fix the equipment.

"Involve students in every step of the planning," he suggested.

3. Curriculum: What makes it an academic makerspace rather than an adult space, Jarowski said, is that it motivates children to discover new skills and knowledge. Students can read research papers and perform interviews on the topic they are addressing. They can write upstatus reports about what problem they want to solve.

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makerspaces in schools tips for k-12 makerspace

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8 Design Steps for an Academic Makerspace -- THE Journal

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Hands-on Learning If you build it, will they come? That is the question many schools have about finding room on campus for a "makerspace." The just-released 6th annual New Media Consortium Horizon Report K-12 Edition listed makerspaces as an emerging technology in the year-or-less adoption timeframe.

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Starting a Makerspace? Your Beginner's Guide - Smith FilesSmith Files

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Starting a Makerspace? Your Beginner's Guide - Smith FilesSmith Files

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If your facility is interested in launching a Makerspace, we have a few tips and suggestions to help guide yours through the process. What makes the maker movement exciting is that making is about celebrating creativity by learning how to do new things through hands-on, human interaction and experimental play.

According to the Makerspace Playbook, makers believe "if you can imagine it, you can make it." While makers aren't typically in it for the money, the movement is neither definitively for profit nor anti-commercial. But one thing everyone can agree on is that makers have a hands-on DIY attitude built on a foundation of curiosity and creativity.

What makers need is a place to turn their ideas into actual stuff: A Makerspace, where individuals or students can gather to "create, invent, tinker, explore and discover using a variety of materials," according to Renovated Learning.

While the Makerspace is easy to define, it's a little trickier to describe because they can take on a wide variety of different forms- they may be hosted in public libraries or at a non-profit corporation, while others may live at universities or elementary schools.

What to Consider When Starting A Makerspace

The thought of starting a Makerspace can be daunting. You've read about Makerspaces and have seen examples of their potential to be a fantastic learning resource for your school and community, but now, you want to create your own, so where do you start?

Starting a Makerspace is a process involving multiple factors-finding the right space, getting students and faculty involved, as well identifying leaders and mentors to take charge. In this blog, we identify and address the most important tips to consider when starting a Makerspace.

1) Get up to speed on the latest Makerspace trends and guidelines

It's wise to kick off your school Makerspace journey by learning all you can about the current state of the Maker Movement. By doing this, you can better determine what the ideal space for hosting your Makerspace would be and what materials and tools you may want to acquire that would best suit your budget and students' needs. Along with doing research, there are countless Making clubs and organizations out there that provide guidelines, resources and networking opportunities to help new Makers get started.

Along with the greater Making community, Maker Media, a global media platform that publishes Make Magazine and produces the Maker Faire, has already generated a considerably large body of content, specifically to new help new Makers with a DIY mindset get the ball rolling.

2) Find the right space:

Every Makerspace is unique in the sense that each has unique design elements, resources, and tools that reflect the community it serves. When choosing a location for a school or community center Makerspace, it's not necessary to dedicate its use to just one particular group or class.

Instead, it's best to approach the process of choosing a Makerspace location from a multipurpose perspective. That is, "multiple teachers and multiple classes could use the space: a physics class might use the space for a unit, an after-school robotics team might build there." When starting a Makerspace, you should ask yourself, who will be using this space? What type of area would best suit their needs? What is the purpose of this space?

The Makerspace Playbook imagines a variety of uses for school Makerspaces:

* Classroom for physics and robotics class
* Specially designed elective classes
* An interdisciplinary tool and materials resource used by many different teachers and classes
* Fellow teachers going there on their own in their prep periods to build teaching materials and demos
* Community/neighborhood after-hours access.
* A "Maker Club" meetup space

The truth is, you can set up a Makerspace almost anywhere, even temporarily after school in the library or cafeteria. Many schools are re-purposing existing spaces that are neglected or underused by the community. Re-purposing an existing space is a low-cost way to open the door to exciting new learning opportunities for students.

For example an outdated computer lab with clunky desktop computers could be transformed into a Makerspace by replacing old computers with tablets or laptops along with different making tools and fabrication materials. Recently, Ryan Park Elementary School of Indiana did just that and enjoyed results that surpassed their initial expectations. With a new and fully stocked Makerspace realized, both students and faculty are taking full advantage.
Designing a new School Makerspace or 21st Century Learning Environment?
3) Get the right tools and materials

After you've locked down the perfect space, the next step is outfitting it with the tools, equipment, and materials your students need to start making and completing their projects.

One thing that the Makerspace Playbook makes clear right-off-the-bat is that, when it comes to the ideal tools and materials for a Makerspace, there is no perfect list.

A Makerspace doesn't necessarily have to be complex in nature or feature expensive high-tech gadgets like 3D printers or tablets. Legos, blocks, duct tape and cardboard will suffice. More important than tools or equipment is an adherence to the overall ethos of Making, which embraces experimentation and creative learning.

Alluding to the uniqueness of Makerspaces, the playbook notes that "equipment lists are as individual as the space and its members." While there are plenty of suggestions out there provided by the Making community, ultimately, it's up to you to find the right tools and materials for students and faculty.

Regardless the defined purpose of your Makerspace, it's best to start off by acquiring tools and materials for general use, rather than task-specific use such as metalworking or woodworking.

As the Makerspace Playbook notes, "there's nothing lonelier than a big expensive tool lying unused because nobody knows how to use it." Set your Makerspace in motion by starting with straightforward and affordable tools ahead of advanced and costly ones.

To brainstorm and come up with more ideas, consider taking a look at the High School Makerspace Tools and Materials Guide, created by Makerspace.com. Inside, you'll find lists of recommended and suggested tools for all different types of Makerspace specializations including Electronics, Textiles, 3D Printing, Computers and General Purpose applications.

4) Provide Training and Support

Makerspace education is redefining both the way students learn and the way teachers instruct. For students to get the most out of the experience, a new kind of teacher is required. That being said, Making celebrates hands-on and learn-as-you-go education, so specialized training isn't necessarily needed to guide instruction in a Makerspace classroom.
The Makerspace Playbook sheds light on this:
Nobody who uses the space needs to be an expert, not even the teacher. The most important thing is to have a passion for and a curiosity about making in many different forms. Once you establish safety and basic competency, members can teach themselves what they need to know. We find that projects that a member is passionate about are one of the best motivators for learning.

Makerspace learning presents an opportunity to run classrooms differently. One useful way to think about a Makerspace instruction is to think of it as a sort of project management role. Makerspace projects are typically larger in scale and require teams to work together to accomplish a mutually agreed upon goal. In the design industry, Project Managers supervise teams and oversee a project's "plans, risks, schedules, budget and conflicts" (Makerspace, 17).

Additionally, Project Managers "provide feedback on the quality of work done by their team." An instructor's purpose in a school makerspace is less about leading students or explicitly telling them what to do, and more about assisting them in their endeavors and aiming their efforts towards the general goal of innovation.

When choosing your school Makerspace furniture, keep in mind the overall importance of community and collaboration in Making culture.

The design of your space should reflect an inclusive attitude and welcome everyone - including students with a broad range of abilities, backgrounds, skill levels, learning styles, ages, and characteristics.

Makerspaces foster innovation, so it is important that "individuals of all backgrounds and abilities can actively contribute to the [creative] design process," according to a recent research article published by the University of Washington. The study advocates for a "participatory design where individuals of diverse backgrounds bring their unique experiences and perspectives to the design process."

Tables, chairs, and other furniture in Makerspaces is typically mobile and readily moveable, "creating a flexible and accessible environment," according to the research article. It's a good idea to offer a variety of options regarding seating and tables- vary table heights and workspace surfaces to accommodate a broad range of physical student needs.

Smith System offers many tables and chairs with adjustable heights and optional casters that can be easily locked or unlocked. Along with desks, tables and chairs, it's important to have easily accessible storage for projects and supplies. From laptops to Legos, Smith System offers storage solutions perfect for School Makerspace supplies and materials.

Here are some of our mobile furnishings and storage solutions recommended for School Makerspaces:

Plato Mobile Stack Chair: In a school Makerspace, classroom configurations are likely to change quickly throughout the day. The Plato Mobile Stack Chair features durable casters that allow for easy and quick mobility. With a wide seat pan and lumbar support incorporated into the design, these chairs are ergonomic, offer optimum comfort and minimal back pressure.

Interchange Squiggle Tables: These tables have a curvilinear shape and can be grouped together to create collaborative pods. Also, they are a fantastic alternative to large rectangular tables and can save space.

Cascade Mega Cabinet: Students in a Makerspace will inevitably need a place to store their projects between class periods. Along with that, instructors need somewhere to store class materials and tools while not in use. Smith System's line of Cascade Cabinets run from small to large and are available with either tote trays or shelves. They can be fitted with an array of different options to suit the vision of your school Makerspace.

Everything Cart: Smith System's Everything Cart is designed for maximum versatility. Offering two shelves divided into six bins each. From markers and Legos to soldering irons and 3D printing materials, the Everything Cart can hold just about anything you might need for your makerspace. With dual-wheeled casters that won't shimmy like single wheels, the cart can easily be moved to wherever the action is in your Makerspace.

Double Oval Café Table (with power): With a design borrowed from the tables in coffee shops, the Oval Double Café Table is intended to promote casual, unforced interaction among students in social learning situations.

Along with a suitable design for Makerspace learning, our Oval Café Table offers the option of integrated power and USB connectivity, conveniently located. If you plan on outfitting your Makerspace with laptops, this table may be particularly useful as a way of preventing students from crowding around wall-based outlets to power up.

Large Planner Table: This large rectangular table provides ample space for nearly any Makerspace project. To encourage creative thinking and innovation, it is beneficial to have enough room to spread out project materials and work comfortably. Along with having enough space to work, durability is essential when it comes to Makerspace furniture.

The Large Planner Table combines maximum strength, stability, and durability to handle even the most demanding projects.

Starting a Makerspace: It's All About the Experience

The beauty of Making and creating your Makerspace is that there is no definitively right or wrong way to approach it. Making culture emphasizes the importance of the creative experience. Our hope is that this blog post provided some guidance to those interested in starting a Makerspace.

While starting a Makerspace may seem like a daunting task, you can rest easy knowing that Making culture encourages you to approach it in your way, be creative, take risks, and not be afraid to fail throughout the process. By trying different things, you can narrow down what does and doesn't work regarding design elements, instruction styles, tools, and materials. Through this process of experimentation, you'll be able to refine your Makerspace from every angle until it becomes the successful innovation generating machine it's supposed to be.

Works Cited

Graves, Colleen. "Starting a Makerspace from Scratch." Edutopia. 16 July 2016. Web. 08 Mar. 2016.

Hughes, Matthew. "Starting a Makerspace on a Budget? Here's The Equipment You'll Need." MakeUseOf. 18 June 2015. Web. 08 Mar. 2016.

"High School Makerspace Tools & Materials." Makerspace.com. Apr. 2012. Web. 8 Mar. 2016.

"Makerspace Playbook School Edition." Makerspace.com. Mar. 2013. Web. 8 Mar. 2016.

Thomas, Parker. "6 Things to Consider Before Starting a Makerspace (EdSurge News)." EdSurge. 10 Oct. 2014. Web. 08 Mar. 2016.

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Starting a Makerspace? Your Beginner's Guide - Smith System Blog

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If your facility is interested in launching a Makerspace, we have a few tips and suggestions to help guide yours through the process. What makes the maker movement exciting is that making is about celebrating creativity by learning how to do new things through hands-on, human interaction and experimental play.

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ISTE | Create a school makerspace in 3 simple steps

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ISTE | Create a school makerspace in 3 simple steps

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As maker education gains steam, many educators are looking for ways to incorporate making and tinkering into their schools and classrooms - often on a shoestring budget.

"Kids are saying they want to learn more about technology and science, but they also want to experience it creatively and use it personally," said Dale Dougherty, founder of Make Media, which produces Maker Faire and Make Magazine.

"One of the ways we can do that is create more makerspaces for kids. Let's build more makerspaces inside schools, libraries and even community centers."

But what makes a makerspace? Dougherty and other maker movement advocates have identified three common elements of successful makerspaces:

They promote learning through play and experimentation.

They're cross-disciplinary, with elements of art, science and craftsmanship.

They offer tools and materials that encourage students to create rather than consume.

Makerspaces can be elaborate learning spaces equipped with sophisticated tools and supplies, but they don't have to be. Dougherty offered the following simple tips for creating one in your school.

Step 1: Secure some space.

It doesn't need to be fancy. It doesn't even need to be large. At the Ellis School in Pittsburgh, girls tinker at "Innovation Stations" that are tucked into hallways and the corners of classrooms, said technology director Lisa Abel-Palmieri.

Sometimes finding space is simply a matter of reprioritizing. For example, Shannon McClintock Miller, the teacher librarian at Van Meter Community School in Iowa, had an office in the corner of her library. She decided to convert it into a makerspace for students.

"It's not about our stuff," she said. "School is about the kids, and the kids are really grateful we made this for them."

That jibes with what Dougherty advises educators to do.

"I'm a big fan of making do. Just get something going and declare it," Dougherty said. "Usually there's some space already available. Maybe it used to be a shop class that was shut down. Let's reinvent it. It could be an art studio, a biology lab or a computer lab. It can be all of those things mashed together because we want to allow interdisciplinary exploration."

Step 2: Put stuff in it.

3D printers, Arduinos and agile furniture are great if you can afford them, but they don't necessarily define a makerspace. Instead, start with what you have and let it grow organically.

"You could throw in discarded materials from around your school and say, 'Kids, let's make something,' and they can have as good an experience as if you had $100,000 to build the space," Dougherty said. "Just get it started, and then reach out to engage your community. You'd be surprised. People have tools and materials they don't use and would love to donate.

"You can create a space for kids that becomes richer and richer over time."

Lissa Blake, a K-2 instructional technology integration coach in Clarendon Hills, Illinois, got creative with some unlikely materials. She used pizza boxes and a fistful of green stars from Starbucks to create a low-cost recording student where her 6-year-old students could make their own videos.

Watch her ISTE19 TED Talk to learn how she did it:

Step 3: Invite kids to play.

Sure, you can develop a curriculum for your makerspace. Sometimes it's helpful to give students a starting point, especially if they're new to the concept of tinkering in school. But it's just as valuable, if not more so, to let them explore on their own, Dougherty said.

"I value space over curriculum here," he said. "I value opportunity over rigidity."

Once you've got a functioning makerspace, you can start looking at how to take it to the next level - for example, getting community support and helping students extend their projects into the digital realm where they can share and sustain them. But the important part is to just get started.
Nicole Krueger is a freelance writer and journalist with a passion for finding out what makes learners tick. This is an updated version of a post that originally published on June 21, 2014.

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Create a school makerspace in 3 simple steps

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As maker education gains steam, many educators are looking for ways to incorporate making and tinkering into their schools and classrooms - often on a shoestring budget. "Kids are saying they want to learn more about technology and science, but they also want to experience it creatively and use it personally," said Dale Dougherty, founder of Make Media, which produces Maker Faire and Make Magazine.

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Designing a School Makerspace | Edutopia

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Designing a School Makerspace | Edutopia

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An approach to defining and designing the right space for your school.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Cooper

Makerspaces, STEAM labs, and fab labs are popping up in schools across the country. Makerspaces provide hands-on, creative ways to encourage students to design, experiment, build and invent as they deeply engage in science, engineering and tinkering.

A makerspace is not solely a science lab, woodshop, computer lab or art room, but it may contain elements found in all of these familiar spaces. Therefore, it must be designed to accommodate a wide range of activities, tools and materials. Diversity and cross-pollination of activities are critical to the design, making and exploration process, and they are what set makerspaces and STEAM labs apart from single-use spaces. A possible range of activities might include:

Cardboard construction

Prototyping

Woodworking

Electronics

Robotics

Digital fabrication

Building bicycles and kinetic machines

Textiles and sewing

Designing a space to accommodate such a wide range of activities is a challenging process. Educators and administrators can help guide the process and generate the space that works best by researching, brainstorming and clearly articulating their needs, while keeping in mind inevitable changes in the future.

Some schools have chosen to incorporate makerspaces within multiple classroom spaces. This works well for many activities, particularly in elementary schools. As maker activities expand to require more tools, it makes more sense to create a dedicated makerspace that includes appropriate tools, work areas and materials. The following design approach focuses on creating dedicated makerspaces and STEAM labs.

Ask the Right Questions

Because of the constantly evolving activities that a makerspace accommodates, a flexible design is critical from the outset. Therefore, the first moves should be the right moves to result in a space that's as usable as possible. Project leads must ask critical inquiring questions to guide and inform the design process.

What range of subjects will be taught in the space? What types of activities and projects could be done there? Determine the needs and desires of all teachers in the school who will or could possibly use the space. Imagine what projects they might initiate with their students. Ideally a science, math, technology and/or art teacher would lead or participate in the brainstorming. The Makerspace Playbook is a helpful guide to envisioning the projects and activities that could happen in the makerspace. The new book Invent to Learn is a great resource for making, tinkering and engineering project ideas. The main point here is to clarify the types of activities that the space would ideally accommodate.

Which tools are most needed? Will digital fabrication tools such as CNC routers, laser cutters or 3D printers be included? Which materials will be used? The Makerspace Playbook and Makerspace's Tools & Materials PDF document are both very useful tools for addressing these questions. They provide detailed lists of the diverse tools and materials that you might consider. Many types of equipment have special requirements, including ventilation and other elements to ensure a safe working environment. The list of tools and materials will naturally grow as specific projects and programs generate new needs, so it's good to allow for flexibility and expansion. Depending on the projects and activities, the space required for materials and project storage can be significant.

Who are the kids that will be using the space? Will others use the space as well? Who is staffing and managing the space? Having a space that is functional for a range of ages is key in school settings. Additionally, the space might be used for maker activities outside of class time, such as clubs (like Young Makers groups) or parent groups, as makerspaces grow into popular community hubs. At some point, the school may hire a part- or full-time makerspace teacher. In fact, some see this as critical from the outset.

When will the space be used? Students will use the space during the school day, perhaps in a dedicated class time or with their teacher. Other opportunities may arise to maximize utility of the space after school or evenings and weekends. In this case, the design would need to accommodate access outside of school hours and for multiple users.

Where in the school or on the campus would be ideal? What considerations are important? To accommodate the need for access to materials and tools, it's useful for the space to be easily accessible by cars and trucks, ideally during school day. A location close to or including outdoor work areas allows for larger or messier projects. Access to plumbing and electricity are critical. The space should be located where noise won't disturb classroom learning. Given the need for flexibility, it's good to find a place where the space could expand in the future. Finally, the makerspace would be centrally located so that it can be accessible to students, and visible so that work can be seen.

How will it be built? Is a new or separate structure needed, and if so what type? What is the budget? Will the design and construction team be a combination of contractor and volunteers, all-volunteer or fully contracted?

If you're lucky, there is a large space, classroom or portable just waiting for a new use, and building out the interior will be the main project. If space is at a premium, however, a new structure, portable or shipping container could potentially provide the space or some portion of it. Knowing your budget range will help determine the best way to proceed and whether you'll be able to employ contractors or need volunteers for some of the work.

Going Forward

Answering these questions will allow schools to create a design program for their makerspace, defining the specific needs and requirements. Because makerspaces and the activities they accommodate can vary so much, the design program is one of the most critical steps in ensuring the space will be functional and well used. The school could work with designers or architects to articulate the best ways of meeting those needs. Visits to other makerspaces or labs can be valuable and insightful during this phase, as educators envision what their space could be. A subsequent blog post will provide more information about design patterns typically found in makerspaces.

Resources

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An approach to defining and designing the right space for your school. Photo Credit: Jennifer Cooper Makerspaces, STEAM labs, and fab labs are popping up in schools across the country. Makerspaces provide hands-on, creative ways to encourage students to design, experiment, build and invent as they deeply engage in science, engineering and tinkering.

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Starting a School Makerspace from Scratch | Edutopia

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Starting a School Makerspace from Scratch | Edutopia

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Step 2: Get Others Involved

Start a steering committee for your makerspace by involving interested teachers and students. Include your committee in purchasing decisions, goal setting, workshop ideas, and even leading makerspace programming. Learn from other schools and students about what they do by reaching out with Skype or Google Hangouts.

If you can, reach out to the community and get parents and community members involved. You'll also engage students if you enlist mentor experts. Start by finding student experts in your school and around your community. Utilize Twitter or Skype in the Classroom to branch out. Our students love connecting with other maker students around the country, as well as maker experts like the inventors of Makey Makey.

Step 3: Purchasing Makerspace Resources

Here are three guidelines:

1. What purchases will give you the most bang for your buck? Will buying a 3D printer break your budget?

2. Write grants, ask your PTA for funds, or use crowdsource funding like Donors Choose or GoFundMe. You can sign up for monthly emails about grant opportunities from Mackin.

3. Ask for old electronics, popsicle sticks, balloons, old car toys, old electronic toys, wire cutters, old telephone wire, old tennis balls, etc. You'll find lots of great STEM lessons at past Google Maker Camps. Follow STEM accounts and other makerspaces on Instagram, and scour Pinterest for cheap ideas.

Step 4: Building a Community of Makers

Immerse your students in maker supplies. Just as surrounding kids with books motivates them to read, surrounding them with tinkering tools motivates them to create. You don't need a special room for your makerspace. All you need are maker resources, somewhere to store items, and a beginner's knowledge of how to use your resources.

Once I moved our makerspace materials from the back room into an easily accessible area behind our circulation desk and instituted a project shelf, our students started tinkering every day!

Step 5: Hosting Workshops and/or Design Challenges

One of the most important aspects of starting a makerspace is getting the pulse of your community. I have an "iWanna" box on the circulation desk, and the first successful design challenge at Lamar was born from a student idea that ended up there. That student wanted to create catapults, so we ended up throwing down a Catapult Challenge to Diana Rendina's class in Florida, and they in turn challenged us to create games in Scratch and invent controllers with Makey Makey.

Students also love tinkering with Snap Circuits, littleBits, Knex, Lego, Makey Makey, Sphero, and Scratch during our maker mornings (see a resource list here) -- although just owning all of these resources is not going to ensure that making leads to learning. Let kids tinker and play, but eventually, you'll have to guide their learning by creating design challenges.

Design challenges teach problem solving and creative thinking, and they're one of the easiest ways to create a community of makers. Makey Makey co-inventor Jay Silver declares, "Design challenges are so important. . . it introduces time limits, a focused theme, and ends with a show and tell." You can show off student creations by hosting a mini-maker faire, connecting your makers with other students via Skype and Twitter chats, or showcase projects on other social media.

Here are some design challenge ideas that worked for me:

Step 6: Integrating Maker Education Into the Curriculum

While tinkering can lead to learning, remember that makerspace programming can also support classroom curriculum. Here are some ideas for incorporating making in the classroom:

What are some goals that you'd like to set for your school makerspace? Have you incorporated any great makerspace lessons in classrooms at your school? Please share in the comments section of this post.

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Starting a School Makerspace from Scratch

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Start a steering committee for your makerspace by involving interested teachers and students. Include your committee in purchasing decisions, goal setting, workshop ideas, and even leading makerspace programming. Learn from other schools and students about what they do by reaching out with Skype or Google Hangouts.

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Manufacturing Makerspaces | American Libraries Magazine

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Manufacturing Makerspaces | American Libraries Magazine

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Kids gather to make Lego robots; teens create digital music, movies, and games with computers and mixers; and students engineer new projects while adults create prototypes for small business products with laser cutters and 3D printers. Many libraries across the US have developed makerspaces-places to create, build, and craft-and they are experiencing increased visits and demand as a result. For public libraries, they are places to promote community engagement. For academic libraries, they are places where students and faculty feel welcome to do classwork and research.

Fundamentally, makerspaces are a technological leap past library knitting and quilting circles, where patrons and experts have often come together to learn new techniques and train others in a skill. The new tools are a lot flashier, and certainly more expensive than a needle and thread. The cost factor is what makes a makerspace so appealing to library visitors-what one person cannot afford to purchase for occasional use, the library can buy and share with the community.

The ALA 2012 Virtual Conference featured two well-attended makerspace sessions. The ALA Midwinter Meeting in Seattle offered more makerspace know-how, including Maker Monday.

In the next few sections, you'll find expert opinions and advice from author Cory Doctorow and Make Magazine writer Travis Good, as well as practical pieces on the costs and resources involved.

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Three Makerspace Models That Work

By Travis Good

Tools in a library makerspace range from electronics to digital media, 3D printing, and more. While the variety of products and space configuration is vast, the approach to implementation is not. Here are a few makerspace models that work.
Collaborate
Jeff Krull, director of Allen County (Ind.) Public Library (ACPL), identified partnerships as a key ingredient to developing a successful project. While he can't pin down the exact day they joined forces, Krull and Greg Jacobs, president of TekVenture, met several years ago, and a partnership blossomed.

"They [TekVenture] needed a practical solution to their space issue,  a physical presence where the community could visit to learn about them," Krull said. "I needed a partner to help work through ideas, expose the library to making, and potentially help me implement a solution. We could both benefit from working together."

Jacobs outfitted a 50-by-10-foot trailer; wired it for phone, power, and internet; filled it with tools; and then parked it in a lot across the street from the library. ACPL's costs are less than $200 a month for utilities and other services.

Together, TekVenture and ACPL developed a summer program schedule.

The library promotes the TekVenture Maker Station while TekVenture delivers the makerspace programs. Topics run the gamut from basic robot  assembly and circuit bending to holography and welding, totaling more than 50 classes. In addition, Maker Station is home to weekly maker meetups and the place where library staff receive hands-on exposure to making.

What's next for ACPL? "I've come to the conclusion that if we're really going to have a library makerspace, then we need to get past the Maker Station very quickly. It's too unavailable across the street and its open hours are too limited. We need to do something inside the library building itself," Krull said.
Centralize, develop, deploy
Cleveland Public Library Executive Director and CEO Felton Thomas Jr. is leading the charge to "make libraries the center of learning, where technology is provided that levels the playing field for the disadvantaged."

Cleveland Public Library's approach centers on its Main Branch, where ideas are developed and tested and then rolled out as appropriate. The library system launched TechCentral on June 14, 2012, building out 7,000 square feet and consolidating technology from two buildings.

TechCentral features a computer lab with 90 workstations (there are 120 HP Thin Clients throughout the library); circular tables to encourage meeting, interaction, and collaboration; and a "Tech ToyBox" with iPads, Kindles, and other technology. There's even a 3D printer. Working with HP and Citrix, Cleveland Public Library built a MyCloud service that includes Microsoft Office. MyCloud provides a personal desktop persistent across sessions and available to each library card holder older than 17.

The 14-member TechCentral team "are all trained library assistants but filtered for technology prowess," C. J. Lynce, TechCentral's manager, said. Team members offer free computer and tech topic classes and one-on-one training sessions.

TechCentral's $1 million launch was funded primarily through existing budgets: The library centralized computers and added a few new ones, and redeployed library employees. It also partially funded the MyCloud and Tech ToyBox through corporate partners. The facility itself was formerly housed in the AV department.

What's next? "We want to introduce the whole maker idea at a basic level. We've purchased K'NEX Kits, littleBits, Crawling Microbug robots, soldering irons, and various hand tools. We're doing this because we want to ignite that spark in patrons' minds to see where it takes them," Lynce said.
Opportunistic/entrepreneurial
Tod Colegrove, director of the DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library at the University of Nevada in Reno, used a strategy of deliberate opportunism to create his library's makerspace.

"It was the only way we could bring about any change. There was no funding. The state of Nevada was in the midst of dramatic budget cuts so we didn't have the luxury of being sidetracked by a master plan," he said.

Colegrove first assessed what space was used and what wasn't. With 22,500 square feet, the library had only 2,000-3,000 square feet open for collaboration. "There was way too much stuff in a fairly small space and certainly not enough room for the users," he said.

A patron usage study revealed that students and faculty mostly accessed electronic versions of journals, but print journals took up more than half the library shelf space. Officials decided to warehouse low-use items in an automated storage and retrieval system, opening up 18,000 square feet. To furnish the space, the library team picked up surplus UNR  furniture, inventory from the closed Getchell library next door, and surplus from the county school district.

Students liked whiteboards, but each 6-by-4-foot board cost $500. The solution was to cover walls with "Idea Paint," whiteboard paint that cost $500 per 100 square feet. "There's something just plain fun about an entire wall you can write on," Colegrove said.

SparkFun's Toolkit ($60) and Inventors' Kit for Arduino ($100) were purchased for electronics prototyping. Since the average science and engineering book costs $300, with overhead costs for handling and maintaining it, a lifetime cost of $500 of that average book made the expense of purchasing three kits seem reasonable.

To justify purchasing two professional 3D printers (one color for $20,000 and one monochrome for $4,500), Colegrove noted some individual journal subscriptions can cost more than $3,000 per year, with at least one engineering journal running more than $100,000 per year.

"We put the printers and scanner in the entry lobby for all to see, to use, to talk about, to think about; it's about marketing," said Colegrove. They hit their lifetime cost/use target of more than 1,000 uses after four months. Prior to the change, hourly head counts in the library peaked at 24. Now they average more than 200 and are expected to reach the rated capacity of 400 by spring finals week.

The university community collaborated to make the makerspace happen. Dean of University Libraries Kathlin Ray was very supportive, and an assistant dean secured an internal grant to fund the 3D printers. The Knowledge Center managed the intake of thousands of linear feet of material from the Science and Engineering Library.

"I see students and faculty actively engaged in the library. I'm just thrilled that it's happening in DeLaMare Library," said Colegrove.

Each of these approaches started with ambition. Whether it was through creative partnering, inventive central planning, or scrappy entrepreneurialism, these librarians found their way.

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Cory Doctorow on Making

Prolific author Cory Doctorow envisioned a makerspace revolution in his 2009 novel, Makers. American Libraries Editor and Publisher Laurie D. Borman caught up with him during his cross-country tour to promote his new book, Pirate Cinema.
American Libraries: In Makers, one of your characters says, "Every industry that required a factory yesterday only needs a garage today. It's a real return to fundamentals." Do you think this is what library makerspaces are-a return to fundamentals?
Doctorow: One of the things that I hope makerspaces can do in libraries is show people how the information works at the bare metal and to understand what is going on underneath all those abstraction layers with the technology that they use, and to take ownership of the devices and technology around them.

One of your characters says makers are like 5-year-old kids. Is that the way libraries should encourage making-unleashing the 5-year-old in you? Absolutely. That's the gateway drug to it. Being able to go in and take a tool and make it suited to your own hand is a thing that we've been doing since we started creating axes.

How do you want to influence the development of makerspaces? Makerspaces do a very good job of being welcoming to people who are of a technical bent. But they have yet to figure out a way of sorting out how to appeal to nontraditional audiences. I think that [librarians should be] actively pursuing ways to help people who are from nontraditional audiences in your hackerspaces, find the thing that they need to do and show them how to do it.

What would you say are essential elements of a library makerspace? Throwing smart, enthusiastic kids-who have received a little bit of mentorship-at a mountain of e-waste is the best way to get going, I think. Particularly if you can partner up with places that need computers. If you can get started turning e-waste into functional computers, your problem isn't going to be making computers run; it is going to be getting rid of them fast enough.

What are some likely businesses or organizations that could serve as fruitful partners in a library makerspace endeavor? Apart from the obvious, open-source hardware manufacturers would be one. Another good source would be whoever is in charge of your local e-waste recycling. Make magazine, of course, is another. Local vocational programs, local shops, and local unions, particularly trade unions. Also, parents who are freaked out that their kids go to schools where the chemistry [class] just allows them to make crystals from supersaturated solutions and actually want them to be curious about the world-they would make natural volunteers.

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A History of Making
1873
Gowanda, New York

The Gowanda Ladies Social Society formed to quilt, knit, sew, socialize, and talk about books. In 1877, it became the Ladies Library Association, receiving a state library charter in 1900 as the Gowanda Free Library.
1905
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

Frances Jenkins Olcott, children's department head, helped to establish home libraries in working-class houses, where she organized crafts such as sewing or basketry for local kids.
1933
Manitoba (Canada) Crafts Museum and Library

Created as a meeting place and resource connecting people to crafts, the Manitoba Crafts Museum and Library in Winnipeg is dedicated to preserving the province's cultural heritage and teaching students how to craft.
1960
Nebraska Library Commission

Funded for FY1960 by the Library Services Act of 1956, the Nebraska Library Commission (then known as the Nebraska Public Library Commission) in Lincoln hosted a variety of special activities, including creative arts, that were organized by area groups.
1976
The Tool Library

The Rebuilding Together Central Ohio Tool Library was created by Columbus as the tool-lending library with a federal community development block grant. In March 2009, Rebuilding Together Central Ohio took over operation of the library.
1979
Merrimack (N.H.) Public Library

The newly renovated and expanded Merrimack Public Library opened with a children's craft room.
2011
Fayetteville (N.Y.) Free Library Makerspace

The first 21st-century makerspace opened in Fayetteville Free Library. It was the first of its kind in a public library and includes a 3D printer that works in a mobile capacity.

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Cool Stuff to Outfit Your Makerspace

1. Modela

Tabletop-size milling machine that can drill holes and mill small parts and prototypes from a designer's plan. Modela can also scan a part and then replicate it on demand.

Manufacturers: JET Tools and Woodstock International, Inc., manufacturer of Shop Fox Woodworking

Price: $450-$9,299

2. Laser Cutter

A carbon dioxide laser that cuts through plastic and other materials, up to a quarter-inch thick. The cutter can also be used to engrave text, graphics, and photos on a variety of materials.
Manufacturers: Jinan Transon CNC Equipment Co. Ltd. and Lightobject
Price: $1,450-$5,995

3. CNC Machines

Computer-guided router makes complicated cuts in wood. It can carve complex designs for furniture and letters for signs.

Manufacturers: PRSalpha and Tormach
Price: $6,850-$23,000

4. Arduino

An open-source electronics platform or board and the software used to program it. Arduino is designed to make electronics more accessible to artists, designers, hobbyists, or anyone else interested in creating interactive objects or environments.

Manufacturers: SparkFun Electronics and Gravitech Distributors: RadioShack and Adafruit Industries
Price: $20-$65

5. 3D Printer

Able to generate 3D objects that can be used for parts or prototypes.

Manufacturers: Solidoodle and 3D Systems

Price: $499-$2,999

6. Vinyl Cutter

Uses a fine-tuned blade to cut thin materials. It can cut vinyl, cloth, cardboard, and thin metals such as copper sheets to make electrical circuits.

Manufacturers: Roland and Stahls'
Price: $595-$6,995

7. Espresso Book Machine

Machine prints and binds a paperback book in a few minutes. The technology can be used for self- and custom publishing as well as on-demand titles. Through its EspressNet digital catalog, users can choose from more than 7 million in-copyright and public-domain titles.

Manufacturer: Xerox Corp.
Price: Approximately $100,000 per unit, or
5-9 cents per page

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Resources

Websites

n  Arduino Blog: Tips on how to program Arduinos without learning technical syntax. arduino.cc/blog

n  Hackerspaces.org: A wiki that includes a listing of active hackerspaces, upcoming events and classes, hacker contact information, and a blog of interesting hacker projects.

n  Hackerspace Meetups: A directory of hackerspace Meetups around the world. hackerspaces.meetup.com

n  MAKE magazine: A good go-to source for maker-related activities and news. makezine.com

n  Makerspace.com: An online community that aims "to build literacy in design, science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics by combining what O'Reilly Media, MAKE magazine, and Otherlab have learned about the maker community."

n  Thingiverse: Digital designs for 3D printers. thingiverse.com

Books

n  DIY Couture: Create Your Own Fashion Collection. Rosie Martin. (Laurence King Publishers, 2012)

n  DIY: Design It Yourself (Design Handbooks). Ellen Lupton. (Princeton Architectural Press, 2006)

n  Hack This: 24 Incredible Hackerspace Projects from the DIY Movement. John Baichtal. (Que Publishing, 2011)

n  Makers: The New Industrial Revolution. Chris Anderson. (Crown Business, 2012)

n  Makerspace Playbook: An online guide to successfully building a makerspace, developed by Dale Dougherty with Dr. Saul Griffith. Includes all the necessary forms and tips for getting funding. bit.ly/Typ2Rr

n  P.S.-I Made This ... I See It. I Like It. I Make It. Erica Domesek. (Abrams Image, 2010)

Podcasts

n  Hackerspaces Signal: Streaming hacker radio. blog.hackerspaces.org/category/podcast

n  NerdAbsurd: Topics range from 3D printed guns to cool computer games. nerdabsurd.com

n  The Amp Hour: A weekly hourlong podcast on the world of electronics design. theamphour.com

ALA Webinar

n January 7, 1 p.m. Central time. "Learn About Makerspaces from the Innovators at Carnegie Library in Pittsburgh." To register, visit goo.gl/oZYUR. Or to view previous webinars, go to alapublishing.webex.com.

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Maker Monday at Midwinter 2013

The publisher of MAKE magazine, a panel of Maker Camp veterans, and other experts will share their insights and experiences at Maker Camp Monday at the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Seattle on January 28, 2013. The first session will be a discussion on the Maker Camp pilot program, a six-week online summer camp for teens ages 13-17 that taught them how to complete 30 projects in 30 days. A number of libraries from across the country participated in the program and four will share their experiences on integrating Maker Camp into their summer programs. In The New Stacks: The Maker Movement Comes to Libraries session, Dale Dougherty, founding editor and publisher of MAKE magazine, and Travis Good, a contributing writer for MAKE magazine, will discuss do-it-yourself (DIY) culture and how it can help libraries. Informal play and Q&A sessions are also available throughout the day with Steve Teeri of the Detroit Public Library in the Networking Uncommons area.

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Manufacturing Makerspaces | American Libraries Magazine

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Kids gather to make Lego robots; teens create digital music, movies, and games with computers and mixers; and students engineer new projects while adults create prototypes for small business products with laser cutters and 3D printers. Many libraries across the US have developed makerspaces-places to create, build, and craft-and they are experiencing increased visits and ...

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A Brief History of Makerspaces | curiositycommons

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A Brief History of Makerspaces | curiositycommons

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7 Things You Should Know About Makerspaces

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7 Things You Should Know About Makerspaces