Makerspaces in the Media Center For most people when they hear the words location, location, location they think real estate. I think of school library media centers. In almost all schools the media center occupies the largest amount of real estate on the campus. It Starts With the Look and Feel of the Space Today’s patrons are looking for a space that is inviting, contemporary, and comfortable. Design With Your Product in Mind What is your product? Create a Makerspace Librarians are the leaders in exploring and trying out the latest trends in digital tools, resources, and training. Photo via Flickr Creative Commons by informatique. Makerspaces need to be created around several key concepts. Originally an avenue for promoting and providing STEM activities, makerspaces have helped to draw attention to the creative side of the student population. In Short Media centers today have a lot to offer in terms of space, products, services, activities, and value.
Lego in libraries This page aims to bring together a whole ton of information on lego in libraries in one place. Why? Because I love lego. I remember playing with it as a child so it was particularly thrilling to see so many references to lego in public libraries in so many countries. Not yet sold on the life-changing power of lego? Through the wonder of Twitter, I was put in contact with the award-winning (for lego, naturally) Jo Beazley in Australia who kindly sent me a ton of information. So, why have lego in libraries? Here’s all the reasons I could find, there’s quite a few: Attract boys into the library. Here’s what Jo says: “Play is one of the primary ways children learn about the world; it has been shown to improve creativity, problem solving skills, memory, language and attention span among children. … and here’s a video that was created from one of the sessions (which ties in so much together, it is almost guilty of showing off…) “What’s the connection between Legos and books, you ask? 1. 2. 3.
Creating School Library Makerspaces While there is no clear, single definition to the term makerspaces (Burke, 2013; Fontichiaro, as cited in Bell, 2015), there are commonalities existing in terms of features, functions, goals and activities that makerspaces provide. A makerspace is a place where people gather as communities to be innovative, create and collaborate, to share knowledge, tools and resources (Britton, 2012). Makerspaces have transpired from the maker movement which has been popularised by Make magazine and Maker Faire founder Dale Dougherty. These creative spaces emphasise the ‘do-it-yourself’ philosophy while promoting a richer engagement and curiosity within the Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths (STEAM) disciplines (Dougherty, 2013) and encourages students to pursue careers in these fields, but also to create their own jobs and industries (Peppler and Bender, 2013) that may not exist yet in a rapidly changing information and technological world.
ISTE 2015: Takeaway Tips for a Library Maker Space | ISTE 2015 Maker station at the ISTE Librarians Digital Age Playground at the 2015 ISTE conference in Philadelphia. The maker movement was front and center at the 2015 ISTE conference—and that’s a good thing for me. After following maker initiatives with great interest for some time now, I have the opportunity to design a maker space this year for 6th–12th grade students at my school, Worcester (MA) Academy. A search of this year’s program at ISTE, held June 28 to July 1 in Philadelphia, using the term “constructivist learning/maker movement” resulted in 67 related sessions. The ISTE Librarians Network hosted a maker station at their Digital Age Playground and convened a panel on library maker spaces, featuring elementary and middle school librarians, a school administrator, and the coordinator of a public library maker initiative. Vendors and exhibitors demonstrated tools, lessons, and ideas for maker spaces. Problem solving, problem solving, problem solving A big budget is not necessary
School Libraries and Makerspaces: Can They Coexist? More and more schools are coming to value maker education and exploring ways to create makerspaces in their schools. Many schools are discussing how they might utilize their library to facilitate this. As my school has increased our commitment to constructionist learning and maker education over the last few years, we have done so in close collaboration with our school library. In exploring the relationship between the school library and school makerspace, it's not difficult to see why conversations about the growth of makerspaces are often tied to the conversation about the future of libraries. Both makerspaces and libraries are constructivist learning spaces that share a number of common goals, while approaching them in different ways and through very different material resources. Similar Yet Distinct Makerspaces and libraries are sites of informal learning. Libraries and makerspaces are inherently interdisciplinary spaces. Makerspaces and libraries are more than just resource closets.
When Kids Engage In “Making,” Are They Learning Anything? Tuesday, May 12, 2015 A note to Brilliant readers: The following essay appears in the May issue of School Library Journal. The issue is devoted to making and maker spaces, and includes many interesting articles on the subject—I encourage you to check it out. My own contribution looks at how librarians, teachers, and parents can make sure that kids are learning while they make stuff.—Annie There’s no doubt that students find making to be a creative and engaging activity. Making is too young a phenomenon to have generated a broad research base to answer this question. The first line of research is called cognitive load theory, developed by John Sweller, a professor at the University of New South Wales in Australia, and others. This argument has relevance for student makers in two ways. Second, cognitive load researchers caution that learning and creating are distinct undertakings, each of which competes with the other for limited mental reserves.
Starting a School Makerspace from Scratch With the National Week of Making behind us, you might be ready to start a makerspace in your school -- but not know where to start. Will purchasing a costly 3D printer and the latest robotics kit ensure learning and maker success? What are some steps to starting a successful makerspace from scratch? Step 1: Immerse Yourself in Maker Education Before you can build your own community of makers, you need to join one! Immerse yourself in makerspaces by joining a summer maker camp like Exploratorium's Tinkering Fundamentals or the virtual Camp Google for cheap and easy STEM ideas, but most importantly: make stuff! Step 2: Get Others Involved Start a steering committee for your makerspace by involving interested teachers and students. If you can, reach out to the community and get parents and community members involved. Step 3: Purchasing Makerspace Resources Here are three guidelines: What purchases will give you the most bang for your buck? Step 4: Building a Community of Makers
How to Turn Your School Into a Maker Haven | MindShift | KQED News One of the best ways for frustrated parents, students and teachers to convince school leaders that it’s time for a reboot is with amazing student work. An unconventional learning community of “makers” — people who like to figure out and fix problems with their hands — stands ready to demonstrate a hands-on learning style in which students engage problems that matter to them, taking agency and displaying creativity along the way. The Maker Movement is slowly infiltrating schools across the country with the help of dedicated educators and inspirational students proving with their creations that they can do incredible things when given a chance. “People are seeing through the eyes and the hands and the screens of children what’s possible, and it’s re-energizing progressive views of education,” said Gary Stager, co-author with Sylvia Libow Martinez of “Invent to Learn,” a book about the Maker Movement. “School is a big system,” Martinez said. “When you push it one way, it pushes back.”