Running a Maker Faire: Good Hard Fun at St Joachim’s

After being inspired by our fantastic day working with Gary Stager and Sylvia Martinez at the Invent to Learn day hosted by Brisbane Catholic Education (which you can read about in the earlier post, Resourcing the Maker Movement, my colleagues and I decided to run a Maker Faire at one of our schools. Being based at ResourceLink, I began creating kits of resources and equipment that we could use to run the Maker Faire, and which could then be borrowed by schools who wish to investigate using this style of hands on learning.

Running the Maker Faire

The plan was to run the Maker Faire at St Joachim’s, Holland Park West, where we could work with the Teacher Librarian who had also attended the Invent to Learn day, to introduce the Year 5,6 & 7 students to a range of hands on activities based on the ideas in Invent to Learn.

We organised the students into groups of 8, and timetabled them to spend about one hour on each of the activities, which they would rotate through throughout the day.

One space, ‘Cardboard Alley’ was open for the students to visit at any stage during the day, and offered the students the opportunity to use Makedo and Rolobox equipment with a huge assortment of cardboard boxes of all shapes and sizes. This was an important option, as it provided students a place to go and recharge if they completed an activity early, or if they just needed a ‘brain break’ from the more challenging activities.

During the Maker Faire, the students had fun with:

Lego WeDo – an introduction to Lego engineering and robotics, Lego WeDo allows students from Year 3 and up to build and program simple models such as cranes, cars and ferris wheels. Using either the Lego WeDo software, or the free programming app Scratch, students can experiment and develop skills in  language and literacy, math and technology, as well as enhance their creativity, communication and design skills.

Arduino – Arduino is an open-source electronics  platform based on flexible, easy-to-use hardware and software. Using Arduino, students can write simple programs using  Arduino open source software to create projects using motors, gearboxes, speakers, LEDs, switches, cases and many other electronic parts.Projects can be as simple or as complex as you wish, suiting users from Year 5 and up.

Makey Makey – allows students to turn everyday objects into touchpads and combine them with the internet. Simply use the supplied wires or alligator clips to connect any type of everyday item (such as fruit, plants, coins, play dough etc) to the Makey Makey board, and then plug the board into the computer, and you are able to interact with the computer by way of the attached objects. Students love playing computer games using fruit as the controllers!

Squishy Circuits– by combining conductive and non-conductive dough with a battery pack, leds, small motors and buzzers, students are able to create innovative simple circuits of any shape. A fascinating way to learn about circuitry and basic electronics.

Interactive Cardcraft– students were able to make light up greeting cards by using conductive paint and copper tape along with led lights and small batteries to create simple circuits on the cards. The challenge was to apply their understanding of circuits and switches to the real-life application of the greeting card.

Interactive Wearables – Using ideas from this wonderful soft circuits booklet, students created brooches and arm-bands that lit up by sewing circuits using conductive thread, copper tape, batteries and led lights. While the sewing was challenging, so too was the application of their understanding of simple circuits to another practical challenge.

During the day, the students had so much fun. Their smiles, their engagement and the question ‘is this really school work?’ was evidence that the Maker Faire was a big success. However, not only did the students have fun; they also learnt so much about circuitry, programming, robotics and simple electronics, as well as developing their creativity, their problem-solving strategies and their ability to collaborate and work together. We encouraged the students to ask each other for help, and to share their successes and failures throughout the day. Listen to the conversations the students are having during this short video:

Constructing the Invent to Learn kits: advice for libraries wishing to resource Maker Spaces

When creating the kits for the Maker Faire, I purchased equipment from a range of different outlets. As a library, ResourceLink cannot supply the consumable equipment required for these kits, and so I created detailed lists of what was included and what the user needed to supply in order to run the activity successfully. This information is included in each kit on a laminated card (copies of which you can download below). I also included where possible printable information and instruction cards, which you can download also from the links below. Being based in Brisbane Australia, please note that some of the suppliers are locally based, however some of the online retailers ship all over the world.

Cardboard Construction:

Click on the image to download a printable pdf version.

Click on the image to download a printable pdf version.

Squishy Circuits:

Click on the image to download a printable pdf version.

Makey Makey:

Click on the image to download a printable pdf version.

Arduino:Lego Engineering:Interactive Papercraft:

Links to all of the resources you could possibly need to learn more about Maker Faires and creating maker spaces in a library are available on the ResourceLink Pinterest Board, Makerspaces and STEAM in Libraries or Anywhere, and also curated on this Pearltrees site.

For those who want to try running their own Maker Faire, I can only say: Go for it! The learning, the enjoyment and engagement is well worth the organisation, and the equipment is really not as costly as you would imagine. Start small, and build up. You may be surprised at what your school already owns, once you start investigating! For those in Brisbane Catholic Education, borrow these pre-made kits as a ‘try before you buy’ – contact ResourceLink find out how you can borrow these new resources today!

Does the Apple fall far from the tree? – Sharing one iPad among many users

2012 K-12 Horizon Report

The 2012 Horizon Report identifies mobile devices  and tablet computing as technologies expected to enter mainstream use in education within one year or less. The mobility of these devices, their almost instant accessibility, the ease with which the touch screens promote interaction and the huge range of educational apps available for very reasonable prices appeal to both teachers and students. Research has found that the use of iPads and other mobile devices in the classroom  improves engagement, supports multiple ways to access the curriculum and enhances assessment practices (Government of Alberta, 3 October 2011).

The flexibility of mobile devices is undeniable. They have been successfully rolled out in 1-1 programmes, where students have 24/7 access to the devices, and have equally been found to be powerful learning tools when used in a one to many scenario. In fact, Kristin Redington Bennett says in her recent article, Less Than a Class Set , that having fewer iPads not only challenged teachers to be more creative and innovative in the way they designed learning opportunities, but also that having a small number of iPads in a classroom facilitated individualized and tailored instruction, as a class set of the devices may encourage more traditional whole class instruction.

cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by flickingerbrad

This scenario, of having one iPad shared among multiple users is likely to be far more common that the 1-1 scenario in most schools, as the technology is still relatively new, and education budgets grow increasingly tight. Often, it is the school library which manages the mobile devices, loaning them out to teachers and classes on a needs basis.

Sharing iPads among whole classes and small groups can still lead to effective learning. As Bennett suggests, the teacher may use one iPad with the whole class as a moveable digital display, moving around the classroom with it, or having the students pass the tablet around. It may also be the focus of a small group challenge, or  as a part of a learning centre. They can be used by individual students for extension, or provide engaging practise for students who are struggling with specific concepts. Apps such as Futaba, which allow multiple students to play together on the iPad are also terrific options, and the list of these multiplayer apps is growing.

The iPad is designed primarily as a personal device.
cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by flickingerbrad

Apple in particular has had  massive success in the education market; with sales data in the United States finding that in the most recent quarter, iPads even outsold Personal Computers in the K-12 Market. Despite this success, and the enthusiastic take up by teachers and students, the iPad’s design remains that of a personal device.

This provides a range of challenges to educators who are using the device as a shared  technology between multiple users.

Logging in:

In May 2012, Apple Insider reported that the lack of multi-user support on iPad is a ‘known issue,’ which was  ‘being investigated’ by Apple. While there are apps that allow multiple users to access different accounts such as Facebook or cloud based document libraries, there is no way for multiple users to have their own personalised profile in the way that users can log into a shared PC. This would be useful in situations where teachers and students share the device, as the teacher could have a profile that allows them to access their emails, class and assessment data, teaching apps etc, while students could log into a generic ‘student’ account, which provides access to educational apps and a student email for exporting from apps.

Deployment:

Deploying multiple iPads to a generic user base is one of the most challenging aspects of their introduction to schools. The initial set up of multiple devices can be extremely time-consuming. There are ways to deliver email access, wireless network and other functions over the air, strategies which are detailed in Apple’s business solutions package, however the establishment of the Apple ID required for each device takes some time, particularly entering in the numerous details required by Apple’s strict security. The Apple Configurator app goes some way to simplify the process also (although this requires a Mac computer), however all of these options require not only an administrator with a fairly good basic set of IT skills, but also a robust WiFi network or the time needed to plug each device into a central (Mac) computer.

None of this should (or indeed does) dissuade schools from adopting these mobile devices; however they are good things to be aware of for any school looking to move into the mobile device area; deployment takes time and skills.

Management:

Managing iPads in a one to one setting is much simpler, as each student is able to manage the download of the apps they require. In situations where the device is shared, the process is a little more complex.

It was with great joy that Australian educators received the news that we finally had access to the Volume purchasing program for apps that had been available in the United States for several years. This makes purchasing large numbers of apps and installing them far more manageable.

Previously, to abide by licensing requirements, apps had to be purchased individually for each device, and then installed in this manner. The volume purchasing program, although somewhat tedious to set up, allows for the purchase of multiple apps with one credit card (although sadly, not with an iTunes card, which is how schools commonly manage the financial aspect of purchasing). A distribution code is then made available, which is then used on each device to download the app from the iTunes store. While this makes management easier, the code must still be physically entered on each individual device – which may take some time for 60 devices. Students can easily do this process, but for younger users, teachers may prefer to manage this process themselves. Not every app is a part of this program; app creators must nominate for their app to be included. For those apps which are not available through volume purchasing, individual purchases are still required.

Syncing and/or charging multiple devices is possible through the use of a professionally created solution, however for those with limited budgets, ideas on home-made docking stations are available.

Mobile devices continue to grow in their influence in education. As time passes, they are becoming easier to manage on a school basis, and hopefully these improvements will continue to develop. In the meantime, schools looking at managing multiple devices should be aware of the time this requires, and plan strategically in order to get the best out of their investment.