Lewis and Clark Learns

Four Friday mornings |  7:45am |  Many first and second grade makers |  Excitement | Choice | Friends | Creativity | Fun !

Here is a quick look at the cardboard arcade games my kiddos have been building.  We took a break from making and spent some time sharing and getting feedback to make our games the best they could possibly be.  For the next couple of weeks we will work toward finishing our games so that they can be played by the ENTIRE school!

This little gal is a Maker!  She was standing in line to check out her books and I spotted this cute little purse that she was carrying.  I asked her about it and she said that she had made the pot holders a while ago and they were in her kitchen drawer and she decided to stitch them together to make a purse.  Isn't it the cutest thing ever!

I am currently completing year two of running a MakerSpace in my library.  It is a constant struggle to make sure that materials are available and ready for upcoming builds and projects.  Here are a few ways that I have been able to keep up with the needs of our kids and the space.  Donations of recycled materials are an easy fix.  I have found that just letting families know what is needed at the beginning of the year seems to keep those materials coming in throughout the year.  Just today, there were 3 bags of recycled materials sitting by my mailbox in the office.  They contained tin cans, plastic water bottles, lots of paper towel and toilet paper rolls, and the ever popular duct tape.  I have also been gifted fabulous donations of yarn, fabric, and other craft materials.   Donor's Choose projects have been a great resource for our MakerSpace.  I have created and have fully funded 3 projects that range from sewing machines and ...

After studying inventors, we used the Caine's Arcade Video to springboard into inventing our own cardboard inspired games.  We have created games for several years now and each year the experience gets better for our kids.  I have learned from past years a process that works and the kids have learned things by playing other kids' games from previous years.  This year we focused on game directions more than we have in the past.  One big improvement this year was the usage of low-heat glue guns.  Using hot glue improved the quality of our games and helped to speed up the making process.  

Marble Mazes This kiddo lost his very first tooth! Battle of The Brains planning. Catapults Inventor Inquiry 3 Billy Goats Gruff bridges. 5th grade MakerKid's Club Action at the (LFL) Little Free Library. Magnetic Poetry Rock Wonder Center

This is what I made... What are they, you ask?  They are vendor aprons for my daughter and her friend to wear at their Gladfest craft booth next weekend.  They are makers and specialize in miniature clay charms like these... I used this as an inspiration...just a simple Lowe's tool belt. The girls will be using the aprons to hold supplies, phones, and their earnings.  There are six total pockets as there are also pockets on the inside of the apron.  Because this was something I had never made before, I had to spend some time in the last week and a half thinking about how I was going to make them so they would turn out as I imagined them in my brain.  I had to figure out the pocket situation and how I was going to put the two sides together.  What I realized this morning as a sat down at my sewing machine (thanks mom for the amazing Bernina hand me down) that my thinking time drastically cut the time I had to spend in my studio.  ...

My kindergarten kiddos are ending the year with a great learning experience that included inquiry, note-taking, and making.  The idea came from Lori Riedel, the teacher librarian at Warren Hills Elementary here in Liberty.   We didn't just jump into this research project.  We worked up to it throughout the year by working on several small inquiry projects such as researching as classes to identify an unidentified animal skeleton we had found in a dusty old closet. Each student adopted a beanie baby animal to measure, weigh, label, and use as a spring board for questioning. Utilizing PebbleGo, my little researchers set out to answer their questions and some basic background information as well.  Following the research portion of their learning, the kids set out to build a habitat for their animal based on what they had learned.   My kiddos learned so much from this project.   How great researchers record their learning. What to do when they ...

About a year ago I set out to bring a MakerSpace to my elementary school library. Because of a grant that I was awarded, a write up about our library program through MASL (Missouri Association of School Librarians), and a Principal team who often presents PD around the area, I have had MANY visitors to our library MakerSpace.  After spending countless hours answering emails and questions about the space, I have finally taken some time to formally write down a bit of what I have learned along the way.  I certainly am not an expert on MakerSpaces and continue to learn everyday how to make my program better.  I continue to read professional materials, visit other MakerSpaces, and search far and wide for new opportunities for my students.  However, I hope the information and experience I now have can give others a step up in... Planning and Implementation of a MakerSpace!

I love all the little treasures that students/staff drop off in the MakerSpace.  It encourages me that making, and all the thinking that comes from it, has become an integral part of our school. Kids bring in tubes, plastic bottles, boxes, broken toys and even furniture to be used in the space weekly.  The little pile of goodies below was dropped off this week and will become part of an amazing creation...maybe a pinball machine or a pulley system.  I just never know what our kids will create!  So, thank you families and staff for supplying our space with materials that move our learning forward.

Grade 3 makers started their Monday morning early with a new session of MakerKid's Club.  We started with a challenge and we ended with... We will pick up here next Monday and reflect on the process, design, decisions, failures, teamwork, and results.