First let's start with, why maker space? Makerspace gives the students a safe place to fail. Often times students feel the pressure of having to be perfect, but there is beauty in failure! Failure means you are taking risks and putting yourself out there.
Failures can be an amazing learning opportunities on what worked, what didn't, and how to move forward. Let's take Thomas Edison, the man who I imagine had the ultimate makerspace. It took him over 10,000 tries to refine the modern day light bulb! Imagine if he had thrown a hissy fit when he didn't get it right the first or even 10th time. Where would we be today? Would anyone else have had the grit and determination to push through to invent something that we rely on everyday? His attitude towards failure was that it was just a stepping stone towards success.
Failures can also accidentally lead to some of the most simple but innovative inventions that we have ever known. Take for example the Post-It. The inventor, Spencer Silver, was attempting to make a super strong adhesive but was unsuccessful. He was about ready to give up when he realized he made an adhesive that stuck to objects but could easily be pulled off and that's how we got the post-it!
Sure failure is hard to take sometimes, but if you have the grit and determination to keep pushing forward the chances of success are inevitable! There is no shame in failure. It only comes when you give up too easily. Makerspace allows students to learn this vital lesson on the truth about failures. Students are allowed to fail without fear of ridicule. They learn to simply tell themselves, "This didn't work, what can I do next time?" There is no stress, anxiety, or pressure to feel like they have to be perfect the first time. They are allowed to breathe and work it out.
I have had many people ask me how we organize a student led PD and it isn't as difficult as one might think. Check out our how- to instructions
When the students come to practice for the first time we simply give them the materials and tell them to basically figure it out. For some of our students they love it and get started right away. For other students it is a little bit more scary. We support them and encourage them not to give up, but we never tell them how to do it. We want the students to struggle because through struggles there is learning. Through their learning they are better presenters. They know what worked, what didn't work, and how to be explain it in their own words.
Below is the sheet our student presenters use as a reminder on what to do when they are presenting. When we pick our student presenters, we pick students from various grades, ability level, and with different backgrounds. We have students as young as 6 present to our teachers. It is amazing to see these students in action!
The students are in charge from the beginning of the PD to the end. My principal and I are just there to facilitate the PD and help the students if needed.
Gears Activity
Ollie Maze
Ozobot
Tumble Trax
Marble Run
Keva Planks
Makey Makey
Tinker Table
I Can Build
Our student led PDs have been a wonderful opportunity for teachers and students to interact in new form of learning during a professional development session. The students love being a teacher and the teachers love learning from the students!
If you have any questions please ask below. I would love to help you as you begin to set up your own student led PD. You definitely won't regret it! :)
