Making Space for Fearless Fun and Playful Learning

A sign at our psychologist's office

    Fail hard, fail often! This is the motto for my son’s robotics team. I love the idea of celebrating failure! As a classroom teacher I have noticed that my students have a hard time taking risks in their learning and many are reluctant to try new things for fear of ‘failing.’ If a project doesn’t go their way they give up. This is one of my main reasons for starting a maker space. I want my students to persevere and work through challenges. I want them to experience enthusiasm and determination when looking for ways to improve or rework their ideas both at school and throughout their lives.

    There is loads of research that claim maker spaces help students learn to take failure in stride. I’ve also learned that making things with your hands makes you happier and more intelligent. I have had to be selective in choosing material to share because of the enormous volume of posts surrounding the idea of maker spaces.

Core Competencies display in my classroom

    To be honest I was searching for small feasible maker projects to start with my class when I discovered academic journals that promote public maker spaces because of the breadth of benefits. Having the research to support my maker space initiative really grounds me in moving forward. I can readily promote the academic, social and emotional benefits of maker spaces while connecting them to our BC curriculum, especially the in the Core Competencies.

See BC Curriculum here.
https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/

    In the School Library Journal, article Seven Surprising Benefits of Maker Spaces, Carrie and Alton Barron claim, “Making is crucial for happiness, health, and mind expansion.” (2016). Their article explains how making things with your hands keeps you in the present state and requires movement so you aren’t worrying as much and are actually getting more blood flow to your brain.

“Making and tinkering expand intellect because a disproportionally large part of the brain’s somatosensory cortex is connected to the hands.” (Barron and Barron, 2016). They also claim other benefits including improving one’s mood, building a sense of community, and breaking the habit of wastefulness.

See the full article here.
https://www.slj.com/story/seven-surprising-benefits-of-maker-spaces


    Learning through play is a benefit of maker spaces that I had not initially considered when I began this learning journey. As I delve into the research supporting maker spaces, I am learning about library and university common spaces that are encouraging and supporting patrons to create in public spaces.

   In Library Journal, Lauren Britton states in her article The Making of Maker Spaces: Making Space for Creation, Not Just Consumption, “Someone who wants to do something because it is fun is more likely to find an activity to be meaningful than someone who is doing something for a reward or to learn something. When someone is engaged in a playful space, that person will learn more easily.” (2012). I have found this to be true as a classroom teacher which is why I have embraced inquiry based learning, especially in Science.

    Britton also states, “Maker spaces promote learning through play; have the potential to demystify science, math, technology, and engineering; and encourage women and under­represented minorities to seek careers in those fields.” (2012).

See the full article here.
http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2012/10/public-services/the-makings-of-maker-spaces-part-1-space-for-creation-not-just-consumption/


    In the American Academy of Pediatrics, the article The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds by Dr. Kenneth Ginsburg describes in detail the importance of play in learning, especially free play where children can use their imagination and be creative. 

See the full article here

Importance of Play in Promoting a Healthy Child

Pictured is my daughter is standing between prom dresses

made from garbage found in the ocean in Tofino, BC.

    The University of Toronto has an online guide to inform users about Digital Pedagogy. It includes information on educational theory, a collection of case studies, and resources relevant to the study of digital pedagogy including maker spaces. Dale Grover states, "They (maker spaces) are environments where people share tools, skills, and ideas, and collaborate on projects. The learning experience tends to be hands-on, collaborative. The focus of makerspaces is to bring together people to explore and create projects that interest them."

See the full article here.
https://guides.library.utoronto.ca/c.php?g=448614&p=3216758


    Focus on creating rather than consuming. Think social engineering. In Neil Gershenfeld's TED talk he gives multiple examples of digital innovation created by people working together in public Fab Labs.

See the full article here.
https://www.ted.com/talks/neil_gershenfeld_unleash_your_creativity_in_a_fab_lab?language=en


    Although sidetracked by journals supporting maker spaces, I did find some inspiring projects to help get me started. I need to see where I should focus my initial collection of materials. Rubber bands, popsicle sticks, milk lids, pop lids, small plastic water bottles, toilet paper and paper towel tubes, tape, tape, and more tape, are part of a beginning list of items I have asked friends and colleagues to collect for me. In the meantime, I need to purchase containers to organize and store building materials and tools. Here are a couple of links that got me really excited to set up shop!

See full articles here.
https://www.sciencebuddies.org/blog/makerspace-projects

https://stemactivitiesforkids.com/


Picasso said, "All children are born creative; the task is to help them stay that way." Making a classroom space for fearless fun and playful learning is how I am going to help my students stay creative. 

I am so excited to get started.

References

Barron, C. and A. (2016, August 2). Seven Surprising Benefits of Maker Spaces. School Library Journal. Retrieved October 1, 2022, from https://www.slj.com/story/seven-surprising-benefits-of-maker-spaces

Britton, L. (2012, October 1). The makings of maker spaces, part 1: Space for creation, not just consumption. The Digital Shift. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2012/10/public-services/the-makings-of-maker-spaces-part-1-space-for-creation-not-just-consumption/

Cowen, A. (2021, November 5). 22 projects to jump-start your makerspace: Science buddies blog. Science Buddies. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.sciencebuddies.org/blog/makerspace-projects

 Ginsburg, K. (2007, January 1). Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds. Publications.aap.org. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/119/1/182/70699/The-Importance-of-Play-in-Promoting-Healthy-Child?autologincheck=redirected%3FnfToken

TED Talks. (2006). Unleash Your Creativity in a Fab Lab. Neil Gershenfeld: Unleash your creativity in a Fab Lab | TED Talk. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.ted.com/talks/neil_gershenfeld_unleash_your_creativity_in_a_fab_lab?language=en.

STEM Activities for Kids. (2018, February 20). Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://stemactivitiesforkids.com/

 University of Toronto. (2022, May 9). Digital Pedagogy - A Guide for librarians, faculty, and students: Makerspaces. Library Guides. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://guides.library.utoronto.ca/c.php?g=448614&p=3216758