Making a Makerspace!

For the past few months I have been wrapped up in school because I have so many exciting projects in progress. One of them is...drum-roll please... a Makerspace!

When I was given a Freshmen Learning Lab as my "extra duty" this year, I admit I thought of it as a punishment. 28 extra ninth graders, during 6th hour when everyone is burnt out and doesn't want to do homework, did not sound like fun. I quickly realized, however, that this was actually the perfect test kitchen for some of my far-out Library Media ideas.

It all started when I had some wall decals that I wanted to put up on my big blank wall and I asked some Learning Lab students to help me. One of them, without my knowledge, took the giant piece of paper the decals came on and made a jumbo paper airplane. When he showed it to me, I told him to figure out a way to hang it and voila, I now have a this awesome decor!

This student inspired me to start collecting random materials and allowing students--when they were finished with their homework, of course-- to experiment with different materials. With help from friends and family, I created a mini-Makerspace with materials like duct tape, pipe cleaners, and fabric.

 So far, projects have included:

-a duct tape backpack (still in progress)
-a curtain for the window on my door
-taking apart old cell phones and putting them back together
-several art projects, including amazing play-doh sculptures!

None of these are ground-breaking, but they are more productive than staring mindlessly at one's phone!

Teenagers spend so much time on their phones, but that time isn't really a brain break--in fact, screens make their minds race! Giving them time to spend on puzzles, play-doh, or board games increases their attentiveness and quiets their minds. Chess is a huge hit in my learning lab, with several students teaching other students how to play. In this digital age, this seems like a big win to me.

I have to admit, I also had a more selfish aim in creating my Makerspace. I wanted to test out some ideas before I try this out in a library setting. One thing I've learned is that using a design process is essential. Without some sort of plan, students will rarely follow through. I don't want to stunt their creativity or make it less fun, so I'll have to think more about the best way to require some sort of blueprint before they can access materials. Without the design process, it really becomes more of a crafting space.

Many times when we think of a Makerspace, we think high-tech, but mine is decidedly low-tech. I did manage to borrow an old laptop from our Tech department and a makey-makey from the Gifted teacher. I don't have any photos of that yet, but I will post some as soon as we do anything brilliant with it. As with many things in education, this is a work-in-progress!

  Left: A plastic bag dispenser (life hack!)

Right: Play-doh art