6 Strategies for Funding a Makerspace The Maker movement continues to gain momentum. At this year's White House Science Fair, President Obama invited Super-Awesome Sylvia from Auburn, California to exhibit her water color robot as a representative of the Maker community. At the same event, the Corporation for National Service announced its commitment to place Americorps VISTAs in Maker movement organizations across the country. 1. Finding a room is easier than you think. Likewise, high school math teacher Casey Shea walked his maker class off campus in Sebastopol, California. Rick Shertle, middle school teacher and founder of the Washington Maker Workshop in San Jose, California recently opened his doors to the community by securing a space from a local church for free. 2. Start a maker club to raise money for the project, engaging the campus and local community. Search for civic organizations, societies and religious groups to bring the community into what the students are making in the schools. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Designing a School Makerspace 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. 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. Some schools have chosen to incorporate makerspaces within multiple classroom spaces. Ask the Right Questions Because of the constantly evolving activities that a makerspace accommodates, a flexible design is critical from the outset. WHICH tools are most needed? Resources:
Arduino + Chromebook With over 5 Million units sold in 2014 alone, Chromebooks are a growing trend among schools and homes. One of the biggest drawbacks to Chromebooks has been the inability to connect it to any hardware (i.e. Arduino) -- until now. Favorited Favorite 2 Where EdTech meets TechEd With over 5 Million units sold in the past year, Chromebooks have been a growing trend among schools, homes, and small businesses. Many schools and school districts have been deploying tens of thousands of Chromebooks district-wide in 1:1 initiatives to get computing and technology into the classroom. In my experience, I’ve found that Chromebooks are amazing. Codebender + Chromebook The folks at codebender just released the codebender plug-in for Chromium OS / Chromebooks. A while back, we posted a short overview of alternatives to the standard Arduino IDE. This has been a big gap in what we have been able to do with Chromebooks. Click here for instructions for your browser plug-in. This is amazing! Give it a try!
A Librarian's Guide to Makerspaces: 16 Resources "There were more than 135 million adult makers, more than half of the total adult population in America, in 2015." What is a makerspace? You’ve no doubt been hearing that word more than a few times over the past several years. Makerspaces, also called hackerspaces, hackspaces, and fablabs, are collaborative spaces where people gather to get creative with DIY projects, invent new ones, and share ideas. Since the first official makerspace convened six years ago in a library in upstate New York, libraries have remained an ideal setting for makerspace events across the country. Many offer community resources like 3D printers, software, electronics, craft and hardware supplies, and more. There were more than 135 million adult makers, more than half of the total adult population in America, in 2015. Articles & Blog Posts on Makerspaces 1.) 2.) 3.) 4.) 5.) 6.) 7.) 8.) 9.) 12.) Maker Faire Makerspaces Directories 1.) 2.) 3.) 4.) Revitalizing Community Spaces
Makerspace Starter Kit | Design Make Teach Makerspace Starter Kit Congratulations! You are now the proud owner of a Makerspace. The Makerspace Starter Kit includes:Makerspace Welcome Letter (pdf)Makerspace Starter Kit (pdf)Mini Maker Notebook (pdf) If the links above don’t work , please try these alternate Dropbox Download Links: Makerspace Welcome Letter, Makerspace Starter Kit, MiniMaker Notebook. Directions: Please read the Makerspace Welcome Letter then download and print the Makerspace Starter Kit (pdf) and the Mini Maker Notebook. Why a Makerspace Starter Kit? Deluxe version of the Makerspace Starter Kit that includes designs for laser cutting and 3D printing a Makerspace sign is at The Makerspace Starter Kit follows the model of the folk tale Stone Soup.
Let's Make | A guide for promoting making in libraries The True Adventures of a High School Librarian: JCHS MakerSpace a Go Go! The adventure of creating a MakerSpace in the James Clemens High School library has taken off with a lot of help from my friends! Once my principal, Dr. Brian Clayton, approached me about bringing a MakerSpace to the JCHS Library this year the first thing I did was crowd source my amazing PLN for ideas and resources. Some the top contributors that helped me to ultimately build my final list of items to purchase for the start of our MakerSpace includes: Diana Rending, Nathan Stevens, Laura Fleming, Tom Kilgore, Mark Samburg, and Faith Plunkett. My daughter's boyfriend, Damien Owen, was also a great help to me. I would call, text and email him often as he loves to tinker with electronics, LEGOs and robotics. I also immediately pulled up the TL Virtual Cafe website so that I could review the MakerSpace webinar presented by Diana Rending and friends. I am very fortunate that my principal provided me with a nice amount to get this MakerSpace started.
Makerspace Starter Kit The hot new Makerspace Movement is NOT new to Murray Hill Middle School. Eighteen years ago we designed and opened the school with the idea that we would have creation labs in the Media Center, GT room, and the TV studio. We started with video production, iMovie, Specular LogoMotion, Hyperstudio, and animation with Hollyood High kids. Here's an example of an EARLY (2003) video production called Bookfellas, featuring some Guy Ritchie-esque film direction techniques. It's OK to Start Small! I re-purposed some of my empty study carrels for this Makerspace center at the top corner of our library. As I asserted in a recent blog post about new Ed Tech trends, fads, & tech -you can start small and You Don't Have to Marry It! For the Duct Tape Craft Cubby, I used a spring loaded curtain rod to hold the duct tape rolls, bought a bright blue colored shower caddy for the scissors and other tools. Amazon Delivers! Makey Makey Made Simple Simple:a Crowdsourced Google Doc Tutorial FUND Me!
How to Solder - Through-hole Soldering Introduction Soldering is one of the most fundamental skills needed to dabble in the world of electronics. The two go together like peas and carrots. In this tutorial we will go over the basics of through-hole soldering – also known as plated through-hole soldering (PTH), discuss the tools needed, go over techniques for proper soldering, and show you where you can go from there. Suggested Reading As stated earlier, you can learn about and build electronics without touching a soldering iron. If you would like to know more about building circuits without needing to pick up a soldering iron, check out our solderless breadboard tutorial: How to Use a Breadboard Lastly, we will be building upon some previous tutorials, so it is suggested that you read about and understand these subjects before moving forward in this tutorial: If you’re all caught up on the above reading, let’s dive right in! What is Solder? Solder, as a word, can be used in two different ways. Leaded vs. Soldering Irons Recap
The Way of the Lego I've had some emails and Tweets lately asking how do I manage the LEGO portion of our Makerspace area, so I thought I would share with you... The Way of the Lego. Questions: How did you set up your Lego Creation Station? When I first started the Makerspace, inspired by my PLN, I had a very small budget and a admittedly a rather large dose of skepticism that all this Makerspace folderoll could just be another fad or Ed Tech buzzword. The reason I often talk about baby-steppin into Makerspace (or any new education innovation) is because I don't want you to feel like pressured or guilted into jumping into something new or spending thousands of dollars right away. Answers! Did you start with a Lego Wall? Well, my friend the Mighty Little Librarian Tiff did and a few others, too! Lego Walls ALL the Rage! Stray Pieces Things to consider with a Lego wall - what if the kiddos create something naughty? How do you manage a Makerspace? What do you buy? Rules? Share Be neat Celebrity Status Have Fun!
Resources for Creating a Makerspace Are you ready to create your own Makerspace? Would you like some help? The Makerspace Lab website is designed to provide teachers, technology directors, librarians, hacker space designer and community leaders with information on how to make a Makerspace. The Makerspace community is very generous, and provides a lot of free information about how to build a space, lessons learned and tips for running a Maker Space. Links to Makerspace Websites MAKE- Make Magazine's website includes project instructions, the Maker Shed maker supplies store, project plans, videos, event listings and more. Maker Eduction Initiative - Make Magazine's Education specific site. Links to Makerspaces and Hackerspaces MakerSpaces for Kids, at Schools, Libraries and Community Spaces Creating Self-Sustaining Recess/Lunch-Time Makerspace Visits - Ravenswood School District started creating their Makerspace in 2013. The Imagination Club with Mr. MakerEd Resources MakerSpaces for Adults (Some kids too.)
New Makerspace and Digital Media Lab Resources Talking Points: Museums, Libraries and Makerspaces, Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) IMLS makes a strong case for libraries and museums to implement makerspaces as a means to “strengthen community-based learning, particularly for critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and engagement in STEM.” Makerspace Planning This selection of resources will help guide the implementation of your makerspace, including space planning considerations and getting buy-in from stakeholders. Projects and Tools There are many tools available beyond the 3D printer to get people making at your library. Crafting at the Library, Public Libraries Online Very simple and low-budget crafting programming for adults.Legos! Digital Media Labs As a variation on making, a digital media lab is more focused on youth cultural production, creating a space full of media equipment where teens can Hang Out with each other, Mess Around with the stuff and Geek Out on creating and producing (HOMAGO). Stephen
Open Exploration in a Makerspace: Best Practices | Renovated Learning In Open Exploration in a Makerspace: What it is and Why We Need it, I explored why having open exploration time in your makerspace in an important part of the learning ecosystem. In this post, I dig more into the practical stuff – how to actually make this work in your space. Open-exploration in a makerspace is a time when students can freely explore different tools and materials with little to no structure and minimal supervision. In a library makerspace, this often coincides with walk-ins, where students freely come in during the day to work in the makerspace. That being said, there are best practices you can put in place that will help things to run more smoothly. Tools and Materials Look for tools and activities that can support multiple students at once without a lot of guidance. Perler beads can be good, but they can also be messy and need a bit of supervision. Storage and Organization Maker Culture Slightly structured open exploration Passive design challenges Logistics and Procedures