Dip a toe in the Maker pool this summer
Chances are you have heard the growing buzz around makerspaces, DIY, hacking, and fab labs. June 18 marks the first-ever White House Maker Faire and a nationwide Day of Making. Maker education helps ensure the United States remains a nation of inventors and innovators. With the advent of new technologies, making has taken on a new and exciting life with amazing potential for the education, but that does not mean your makerspace has to be entirely high tech. There are many low-tech and high yield ways to infuse the maker mindset in your classroom and the next few months provide you with the time research, collaborate, and set a plan in motion. Legos, wood, duct tape, and paint will always have a place in my makerspace, and I hope they will be a part of yours as well.
Summer is the perfect time for us to tinker around with new ideas to breathe new life into classrooms and programs. If you are looking for ways to catch up on making, below are a few tips to get you started. Remember, you don’t have to jump right in. You can dip a toe in the maker pool.
Maker basics:
- Making embraces the 21st century mindset of education through creative and practical problem solving with real-world applications.
- A classroom that infuses the maker mindset is constructivist in nature and appeals to all students on a deep, ancestral level. We were made for making.
- Maker activities engage students in STEAM and inspire our next generation of entrepreneurs.
Don’t:
- Spend thousands on new equipment for a room without a plan.
- Throw away items that could be repurposed.
- Assume makerspaces don’t apply to your curriculum.
- Feel like you have to plunge right in if you are not ready.
Do:
- Check out the maker resources on Jerry Blumengarten’s Cybraryman site.
- Look at what you already have in your school and classroom.
- Connect with colleagues on Twitter who are using the hashtags #NationOfMakers, #maker, or #makerspace for some inspiration and examples.
- Catch up on your summer reading by checking out Invent to Learn: Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom by Gary Stager and Sylvia Martinez, Zero to Maker by David Lang, and and sign up for Make magazine.
- Sign up for a free online course, such as the one offered June 19- August 9 through Coursera on the basics of tinkering brought to you by Exploratorium.
- Consider writing a grant through your local PTA or Donors Choose for some electronic, robotic, and programming supplies, such as littleBits, BrushBots, solder sets, Arduino microcontrollers, Squishy Circuits, Snap circuits, and Makey Makey boards.
- Check out your local libraries, museums, and science centers. Many are offering summer workshops on the maker movement and have makerspaces.
If you have been sitting on the ladder of the maker pool waiting for your chance for some refreshing fun, consider this: Our students will not remember every lab we prepare, every author they read, or every awesome joke. They will remember how we made them feel. Will your legacy be that you made your students feel like innovators? Will you help inspire more makers?
