[ISLMA-Share] MakerSpaces

[Email list for the Illinois School Library Media Association]

Hello, Illinoisans!  I'm a teacher librarian from Iowa but wanted to put my
two cents in on this topic, a favorite of mine.

To make it clear to teachers that I wasn't going after their turf, we held
a school-wide assembly and pointed out to everyone, we already do making
here.  In shop class and FCS and art and all the rest.  So why do we need a
makerspace?  I think just stating that as a fact helped teachers to see
that we understood that.

The story I always tell to say answer that question is this:

So my daughter was in a class where she had to create a large project on a
book she read.  She read *World War Z*, and wanted to create a puppet show
of a scene.  But not just any puppets - no paper bags or socks, but muppets
that she'd sew.  She found directions on Youtube.  $80 in supplies later,
she was ready to go.  Now all I want you to know that I'm a woman with a
sewing machine, but I also didn't know where I put my charger.  So she went
to the FCS teacher and they worked something out.  But what if my daughter
rode the bus and couldn't stay after school, and had no study halls?  What
if she didn't get along with that teacher?  What if the FCS teacher was
very territorial about her equipment after some bad experiences with other
kids?  So let's have a place where she can use a sewing machine just
because.

If you want to chat about makerspaces more, let me know (email or Twitter
<https://twitter.com/c_sturgeon>).  As far as I know (no one has corrected
me yet), we're the first school district in Iowa to have a makerspace in
all district buildings.  It's just two (elementary and 7-12), but it still
counts!

Christine Sturgeon
MNW Schools



On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 8:05 AM, Email list for the Illinois School Library
Media Association <islma at list.railslibraries.info> wrote:

> Hi,
>
> We're a middle school and are in the planning stages of creating a
> MakerSpace in our library.  We are fortunate to have an extensive elective
> program that includes Woods, Plastics, all mediums of art, sewing, music,
> etc.  Some of our elective teachers feel like a MakerSpace intrudes on
> their curricular area.  If you have experienced similar push back, would
> you please email me off list and tell me how you were able to work through
> it?
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Denise Reeder
>
> --
> Denise Reeder
> Library Information Specialist
> Lincoln M
> ​​
> iddle School
> 200 South Lincoln Avenue
> Park Ridge, IL  60068
> https://sites.google.com/a/d64.org/lincoln-middle-school-lrc
> 847.318.4220
>
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