*This blog post is part of a course practice exercise.What are makerspaces, anyway? "Makerspace" seems to be the new buzz word at the moment. School libraries are finding new ways to reinvent themselves by offering their patrons new opportunities to create, collaborate, and innovate. A makerspace is as simple as it sounds: a space to simply make something!
Makerspaces can revolve around many themes including STEM, crafts, visual arts, production rooms; the possibilities are endless!
I had a vision last spring: create a makerspace with an arts integration theme. Of course I wanted a 3D printer. And I had to have a Lego Wall. But since our school received a large grant to integrate the arts into daily instruction, I knew it needed to revolve around the arts. Our students have been collecting bottle caps all year, and a duct tape drive is planned after the holidays.
Check out our progress!
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| Building the Lego Wall |
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| Teachers have fun in the makerapace as well! |
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| Students participate in International Dot Day using resources from our makerspace. |
Third graders have been studying plants and plant cells. I asked a couple to construct a flower with all its parts. Fabulous job! We will upload it to Google Drawings and diagram it!
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| Locate the roots, stem, leaves, and flower. |
What ideas do you have for a makerspace in a school library?
I think an idea for a makerspace could be to have a graphic novel made by students collaborating together. The only pre-made thing would need to be squares marked for pictures and squares marked for captions. Students could either draw the next picture or write a caption for a drawn picture, or do both, but only one square at a time.
ReplyDeleteI love this idea! Did you know that graphic novels are a favorite of my students? I think it's a trend nationwide. I would love to try this during this school year.
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ReplyDeleteWow this is a really great idea! I think the incorporation of pictures of your progress helps to capture the progress you are making. I think this idea could be used on a college campus especially in the area of student affairs. Residence halls could use marker spaces to get the residents to work on a project which would help them to get to know each other while adding something to the place where they live.
ReplyDeleteTinkering with objects can be really fun. Often, adults and college-aged kids don't take the time for this. I see makerspaces in the fields of science and engineering. They probably just aren't called "makerspaces." I guess they are just labs! But I do like the idea of using them in a residence hall to promote collaboration.
DeleteWhat about a Makerspace for children to record stories or accounts. I enjoy listening to Storycorp on NPR in which individuals record short personal accounts. The stories are archived and broadcast on a segment on NPR. Check it out here http://www.npr.org/series/4516989/storycorps. The library story makerspace would include a recorder an a couple of microphones to accommodate more than one student. The story makerspace might also include story starters, ideas that could be used as launching points for a stories.
ReplyDeleteThis is also a growing trend. Many schools have green screens for broadcasting and producing videos, podcasts, and maybe even stories.
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