Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit a Makerspace for the first time. While it was, clearly, in the beginning stages of development, and still had a ways to go, I think the concept is so amazing!
According to Trina Deboree, a Makerspace is supposed to be “a place where students can gather to create, invent, tinker, explore and discover using a variety of tools and materials.” The Makerspace Playbook adds, “Makerspaces come in all shapes and sizes, but they all serve as a gathering point for tools, projects, mentors, and expertise.”
I love the idea of having a designated room where you can find the necessary tools to help students create but I think it needs a specific teacher to “take control” of the room and ensure that the space is well equipped and organized. Someone needs to invest some time and a lot of love into the room to make it a creative space. Otherwise, it will probably become a just another room, taking up space. I am just concerned that without a lot of TLC (tender, loving, care), the space won’t be utilized as it’ll become MORE work for a teacher to pack up her supplies and take them to another room than it would to just stay in her room.
I really like the idea of “mentors” and “expertise” being available in the Makerspace. I wonder if the room would be used more if the school set up a little schedule with rotating “mentors” to help guide and encourage the students? For example, for one month the space could be dedicated to wood working with a retired carpenter there to assist students and help them create simple projects; the next month, the space could be dedicated to painting and have an artist come in to mentor the students. Yes, I think I like that idea…
Mostly, what I am most excited about is that students a place that fosters wonder. In one of my textbooks, From Striving to Thriving: How to Grow Confident, Capable Readers, there is a paragraph that says,
“We’ve all noticed that five-year-olds burst in on the first day of school brimming with questions, but those qestions diminish as the year goes on. The number of curiosity episodes at school fall to about one an hour in kindergarten and even fewer than that by fifth grade. Researchers conclude that many children spend hours a day in school without asking a single question.” It later continues, “In other words, conventional schooling drums the curiosity right out of kids.”
I absolutely LOVE that Makerspaces are becoming more popular, allowing for opportunities to branch out of “conventional schooling” so we can insert some curiosity back into children’s lives. Perhaps, what sold me on Makerspaces, was when Trina Deboree said, ” With all the educational mandates and expectations, kids still need time to create, wonder, and discover” and Makerspaces, clearly, provide plenty of opportunity for that.