“This is awesssssome!”
The boy standing in front of me could hardly contain his excitement as I explained the challenge of trying to build a structure out of Popsicle sticks and tape. As I demonstrated the shake table that we’d use to test our structure, he simply couldn’t hold in his enthusiasm and turned to his dad to shout “This is awesssssome!”
Lucky for me, during my career as an educator, I’ve seen kids get jazzed about science on numerous occasions. This particular day, however, was slightly different from my past experiences. This scene took place at World Maker Faire, an event that I’m not even sure how to begin to describe (I won’t even try, so click on this link to learn more.
Thousands of people flocked to the grounds of the New York Hall of Science, and everywhere I turned somebody was getting excited about something. Whether your idea of making involves Arduinos, Popsicle sticks, or knitting needles, there was literally something for everyone at this event. I could write dozens of blog posts, and it wouldn’t fully describe the energy and excitement buzzing around NYSCI during Maker Faire weekend.
As you might imagine, the stimulation and ideas from World Maker Faire sparked many discussions in the days following the event. One of the conversations that emerged has focused on how we can take the spirit of Maker Faire and harness it for education.
While working at the event, I encountered many classroom teachers who came to Maker Faire looking for resources to take back to their schools. What they walked away with was so much more than simply activities. They were introduced not only to new concepts, but new ways of approaching STEM learning.
Looking at the Young Maker section of the event, some of the teachers I talked to were amazed by how even the youngest children were engrossed in things like circuits. Another teacher mentioned to me that science concepts seemed to be jumping out of textbooks and into creations like a fire breathing dragon or a robot drum machine. World Maker Faire gave these educators new ideas for how to explain the real-world application of science concepts and also proved that students’ interests and passions can be connected to science in ways that we often don’t consider.
Even though it has been almost a month since World Maker Faire, the energy and inspiration I got from the event hasn’t dissipated. Some of the resources I’ve found useful in thinking about this topic are:
Did you visit World Maker Faire? How can we foster the Maker spirit in our students?
