Explore
Exploration is a great way to introduce teachers and students to the Makerspace mindset. Stations can be set up with digital or print resources such as video tutorials to help students begin to work with the tools and materials. Below are some kits, applications, and materials you might provide for students to explore in a Makerspace. However, this is an extensive list! If you are just beginning, choose a topic to focus on and then grow your knowledge and ability over time.
Building Materials
Provide opportunities for students to build, invent, engineer and tinker. The instructables website may provide inspiration for some project ideas. Collecting building materials from the community is a great way to gain buy-in, publicize your Makerspace, and repurpose recycled materials.
Coding Apps
Coding, or computer programming, is a series of instructions to a computer using a computer based language such as html, C++, python, javascript, and more. In recent years, block language has been used to teach the logic and structure of coding to a younger audience with blocks of code as shown below.
IOS: The Foos / Google Play: The Foos (K-2)
IOS: Code Karts / Google Play: Code Karts (K-2) IOS: Kodable / Web-based Kodable (K-2) IOS: Lightbot / Google Play: Lightbot (K-2) IOS: Daisy the Dinosaur (K-2) IOS: Save the Animals / Google Play: Save the Animals (2-4) IOS: Box Island / Google Play: Box Island (2-4) IOS: Hopscotch (4-8) Code Monkey (4-8) IOS: Tynker / Google Play: Tynker (4-8) Hour of Code: Tynker Play Lab (4-8) Hour of Code: The Maze (4-8) Hour of Code: Moana (4-8) Hour of Code: Ice Age (4-8) Hour of Code: Flappy Bird (4-8) Hour of Code: Minecraft (4-8) Hour of Code: Frozen (4-8) Hour of Code: The Artist (4-8) Hour of Code: Star Wars (4-8) Scratch Jr. (4-8) IOS: Cargo Bot (6-12) Scratch (Link to Creative Computing Curriculum Guide) (6-12) CS First (6-12) Made with Code by Google (6-12) Hour of Code: Star Wars Javascript (6-12) Code Combat- Java Script (6-12) Hour of Python by Trinket (6-12) Python Room (6-12) Rep.it Python (6-12) Grok Learning Python (6-12) |
Robotics / Applied Coding
Coding is used to automate projects or robots. Some of the robots listed first are for younger students and use colors and blocks to code the robots. The robots and kits listed towards the end like Arduino and VEX EDR require more advanced coding language skills.
3D Printing
Three dimensional printing uses .stl files created using computer-aided design (CAD) applications on a computer to print in a variety of materials along the X,Y, and Z axis. The printer melts the materials and extrudes it on the bed, laying down one layer at a time.
CAD Applications:
Tinkercad- beginner Google SketchUp - intermediate Autodesk Inventor- advanced 3D Printers: Airwolf 3D Robo 3D Makerbot |
Electrical Circuits
Electrical circuitry is easy to explore using any of the kits below. However, Arduino is definitely more advanced.
Arts and Crafts
Art projects like painting, sculpting, and sketching can be done in a makerspace or combined with other projects for a STEAM-based approach to learning.
Graphic Design
Canva and Pic Collage make graphic design easy. However, check out the Adobe creative cloud for education suite for more advanced graphic design tools.
Video/Media Production
Provide opportunities for students to share their voice and tell stories through media production.
iMovie
Adobe Premiere Pro
Stop Motion Studio on IOS / Stop Motion Studio on Google Play
Green Screen
Digital Storytelling
Adobe Premiere Pro
Stop Motion Studio on IOS / Stop Motion Studio on Google Play
Green Screen
Digital Storytelling
Video Game Design
Bloxels is a hands-on approach teaching video game design for younger students while the MIT Creative Computing Curriculum leads students into making their own video game using the Scratch programming platform.
App Creation
Students design, build and test their own apps.