Are You A Maker?

May 2^nd Tuesday was Global Day of Design to inspire children to design and create. It was Maker’s Day for our students in the Resource Centre. It was not a preplanned project. We collected whatever materials we could like popsicle sticks, straws, buttons, balloons, paints, brushes, toothpicks, and a box of wooden blocks which was Shirin ma’am’s treasure. We had some ideas in mind but we just gave random materials to the children when they came to the library and asked them to brainstorm and come out with some ideas making them sit in groups of five.

 While asking the students to brainstorm, I was thinking about the last time I fixed something or created something. To my dismay, I realized that I never tried to design or discover to accomplish something. Not everyone is a maker. I told myself. But a conversation with the other librarians reminded me of my childhood when I used to make balls, watches, caps and tops out of palm leaves. It was a kind of weaving technique which most children of my age knew how to do. I also used to make wall hangings out of recycled materials. Is not that making too? I think it is. Well, I was a maker too then.

Times have changed. Children need not have to sit with palm leaves to make balls and watches. In the new wave of technology, children make VR Headsets. So what exactly is a maker space and who is a maker? Anyone who makes something by hand is a maker and the space they utilize for the purpose is Maker Space. Maker Space in the Resource Centre is an initiative by Ms., Madhur. We have many children who are real creative genii. For them, this has been a wonderful opportunity to nurture their spirits and become makers or creators or developers. As educators, we are committed to making students help learn new technologies and interact and collaborate with their peers to work on hands-on projects.

Given along with this post are the pictures we took when the students were in the process of ‘making'. Most of them were surprisingly enthusiastic and they came up with these amazing stuff.

Chain Reaction with Popsicle Sticks

https://vimeo.com/216178878

Chariot from Sphero

https://vimeo.com/216179088

Mat from Popsicle Sticks

Banjo..

If you want your students to be creative you need to give them challenges and specific themes to work on. Some examples are building a house out of cardboard, making something that a Sphero can pull around the library etc. These help students to stay focused. Let them explore new tools and come up with amazing results. They should be given some free days or blocks of free time so that they do not feel restricted. Let them be creators, innovators, explorers.

“Draw the art you want to see, start the business you want to run, play the music you want to hear, write the books you want to read, build the products you want to use – do the work you want to see done.” 

Austin Kleon.