Creating makerspaces and incorporating them into schools involves more than coming up with project ideas. Typically, when schools add makerspaces, they’re also looking to shift their education goals and focus on skills beyond traditional curriculum. As Michelle Luhtala, Library Department Chair at New Canaan High School, CT, and Bill Derry, Consultant at School and Public Libraries, CT, explained in their edWebinar, “Design Models that Guide Innovative Thinking,” for educators looking to make this transition, there are several different methodologies that complement the goals of makerspaces and help students become creative problem solvers.
In a recent edWebinar, Michelle Luhtala, Library Department Chair, and Donna Burns, Technology Integrator, both from New Canaan High School in Connecticut, showcased the transformation of the NCHS library from a collection of used reference and biography books into a living, breathing makerspace. Using mostly recyclable materials, equipment and furniture, these educators are providing learning opportunities for students and teachers that have changed the school climate and culture. “Making learning more real for students allows them to learn better in a much more energized school,” said Luhtala.
In this edWebinar, learn how reorganization and materials selection helped one learning community embrace “making” across disciplines and grade levels.
Looking for new ideas, tools or projects to reinvigorate inventors in your makerspace? Learn how to take a school or library makerspace to the next level.