Manufacturing Makerspaces

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 ALA 2012 Virtual Conference featured two well-attended makerspace sessions. Three Makerspace Models That Work By Travis Good Tools in a library makerspace range from electronics to digital media, 3D printing, and more. 1.

Getting started 3 Key Qualities for a School Makerspace Over the past year I had the privilege of leading a team to create makerspaces in 15 high schools around the Bay Area. Our goal was to learn how to help educators create makerspaces in schools and use making in the classroom. DARPA, which funded our program, eventually wanted to take what we learned and create makerspaces in 1,000 schools. While our DARPA funding ended in December, we believed so strongly in the benefits of these spaces that we continued to support our pilot schools until the end of the year. This was particularly rewarding work. Most of us have enjoyed watching someone’s eyes light up at Maker Faire, but listening to a high schooler describe his or her first open-ended project was very powerful. Every space in our program was different. Process Making requires two sets of skills and the confidence to try something new. The second set of skills can be thought of as diagnostic and problem-solving skills. The first is what we call a level I project or a skill builder.

Want to Start a Makerspace at School? Tips to Get Started As the Maker Movement starts to gain momentum, schools that are trying to find ways to foster the do-it-yourself environment can learn a few lessons from another nexus in the universe: public libraries. Dale Dougherty, founding editor and publisher of Make Magazine — and the de facto leader of the Maker Movement — has a vision to create a network of libraries, museums, and schools with what he calls “makerspaces” that draw on common resources and experts in each community. Libraries and museums, he said, are easier places to incorporate makerspaces than schools, because they have more space flexibility and they’re trying to attract teens with their programs. “Schools have already got the kids,” Dougherty noted wryly, at the recent American Library Association Midwinter Meeting in Seattle. One day during the conference, dubbed Maker Monday, focused on the Maker Movement, which emphasizes learning by engaging in tech-related projects. “Why are you here?” Related

What It Takes to Draw Low-Income Students to Afterschool Art Programs Uncategorized The Wallace Foundation went out and asked more than 200 low-income kids in seven cities what they want out of an afterschool arts program and what would keep them coming back. The study focuses on a key time in a student’s development when they’re more easily reachable, before they go to high school and may often become harder to engage. Tweens want hands-on learning taught by professional artists and they want public spaces to perform or show their work. Wallace Foundation Related Explore: arts, infographic