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:
Makey Makey | Buy Direct (Official Site) 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!
www.iteea.org/EbD/ebd.htm The International Technology and Engineering Educators Association's STEM±Center for Teaching and Learning™ has developed the only standards-based national model for Grades K-12 that delivers technological literacy in a STEM context. The model, Engineering byDesign™ is built on the Common Core State Standards ( High School / Middle School), Next Generation Science Standards (K-12), Standards for Technological Literacy (ITEEA); Principles and Standards for School Mathematics (NCTM); and Project 2061, Benchmarks for Science Literacy (AAAS). Additionally, the Program K-12 has been mapped to the National Academy of Engineering's Grand Challenges for Engineering. Using constructivist's models, students participating in the program learn concepts and principles in an authentic, problem/project-based environment. Mission We live in a technological world. Citizens of today must have a basic understanding of how technology affects their world and how they exist both within and around technology.
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.
Makerspace | Creating a space for young makers and educators Defining Makerspaces: Part 1 Recently, I had the unfortunate experience of dealing with criticism. I was told (not to my face) by a visitor to our school that our library makerspace is not a “real makerspace”. This same person stated that our woodshop is a “real makerspace” because it has power tools. Feeling personally insulted aside, what bothers me most about this statement is the concept that some makerspaces are more valid than others and that a makerspace is solely defined by the tools it contains. But is my space any less of a makerspace simply because it doesn’t have power tools? Defining Makerspaces All of this got me thinking about how we define “makerspace”. For the record, here’s my own definition of a school Makerspace: A makerspace is a place where students can gather to create, invent, tinker, explore and discover using a variety of tools and materials. A #makerspace is a place where kids gather to create, invent, tinker, explore & discover. What the Research Says About Makerspaces More on Makerspaces
Let's Make | A guide for promoting making in libraries Hackerspace Activities[edit] Many hackerspaces participate in the use and development of free software, open hardware, and alternative media. They are often physically located in infoshops, social centers, adult education centers, public schools, public libraries or on university campuses, but may relocate to industrial or warehouse space when they need more room. Hackerspaces with open membership became common within Germany in the 90s in the orbit of the German Chaos Computer Club, with the C-base being probably the most impressive example. In 2006, Paul Bohm came up with a fundraising strategy based on the Street Performer Protocol to build Metalab in Vienna, Austria, and became its founding director. Most recently the advent of crowdfunding and Kickstarter have put the tools required to build hackerspaces within reach of an even wider audience. Facilities[edit] The specific tools and resources available at hackerspaces vary from place to place. Organization[edit] Ethic[edit] Difficulties[edit]
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!