Tag Archives: Makerspace

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Are You Coming to the Edible Book Festival?

ediblebooks_button (1)We hope so! This is the first year that CMLE is co-sponsoring and helping to offer this Edible Book event out beyond the St. Cloud State University (SCSU) campus, and we really hope that some staff and/or end users from area libraries and school media centers join us!

Have you always wondered about doing your own Edible Book event in your setting? Participate in ours to get the lay of the land! Looking for an activity to do in your makerspace? Do an edible book entry for April 14th and register as a group; win a group prize!

Prize categories are shown below.  Which category do you think you might have the best chance in winning?

  • Individuals entries will compete for: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place; based on the popular vote of attendees at the event. Individual prizes will be valued at $100, $80, and $65 respectively!
  • SCSU Student Groups ($50 cash; total value of $85) (2nd place, $75 value)
  • Other Group outside of SCSU Student Groups ($85 value)

You only need to register if you are entering an edible creation in the contest. Spectators are encouraged and welcome, bring your friends and family! Everyone will have two hours to vote for favorites on April 14th.

Activities! Wondering what to do during the judging period?  Come to the Miller Center coffee shop (library lobby) and enjoy book-themed music by the campus radio station, KVSC.  There will also be Creation Station table activities to keep those jitters at bay while we wait for the judging results. Just for fun, try your hands-on-skills in several areas, or deduce book titles in a visual edible book trivia activity. But wait, there is more! View the professional entries from five local bakeries too and enjoy refreshments!

A little late to the game?  Get ideas and details here. Got questions? Email CMLE or call us at 320-308-2950.

Registration must be submitted by 12:00 PM (noon) on April 13, 2015.  Register here

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Makerspace Mania: Ideas, ideas, and more ideas

15854128181_5c4ec55106_kMarch is makerspace month here at CMLE! This month we’ll have a series of  blog posts with the makerspace theme. This week we give you ideas!

 

Plenty of posts that talk about Makerspaces, but what if you just want ideas? In our last post of the makerspace series we are giving you just that. Plus, a way to add your ideas to the list too!

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/l92kuy3, licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Academic, General, Public

Makerspace Mania: Academic and Public libraries too

15854128181_5c4ec55106_kMarch is makerspace month here at CMLE! This month we’ll have a series of  blog posts with the makerspace theme. This week we learn that makerspaces aren’t just for schools.

A lot of the buzz around makerspaces seems to be about school libraries. But academic and public libraries are getting into the action too! From 3D printers to edible book festivals, many academic libraries have had makerspaces, except by name, for years. And who doesn’t think of their local public library and not think of the children’s area where kids can play and explore.

Academic: 

Many in academia will quickly dismiss makerspaces due to their lack of obvious pedagogy learning goals. However, others see a move beyond Fixed-Choice Tests into Performance Assessment – which can sound a little like makerspaces.  “In the performance assessment paradigm, learning is an active process in which “students construct meaning and knowledge: they do not have meaning or knowledge handed to them in a book or lecture,” says Megan Oakleaf. “Learning, then, is a process of students ‘making sense’ of how things fit together…” (DOI: 10.1353/pla.0.0011 ). Even Megan Lotts’ recent article: Implementing a culture of creativity: Pop-up making spaces and participating events in academic libraries dug deeper in to the Academic Makerspace.

Public:

One local example where public libraries are getting into the makerspace business is with Smart Play Spots and a partnership with the Minnesota Children’s Museum. Smart Play Spots are learning environments that encourage children’s “literacy development through hands-on, multi-sensory activities that include dramatic play, story telling, and playing with letters and sounds.” You can read more about the program here. From play areas to 3D printers, public libraries are joining the makerspace fun!

Let us know how you’re using makerspaces in your academic or public library!

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/l92kuy3, licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Makerspace Mania: Pinterest, the Makerspace Resource

Looking to try out a makerspace in your library, but unsure of where to start?  Why not try Pinterest?  Pinterest is a visual site where you can search for boards and users (called ‘pinners’) for pinspiration in all sorts of topics. Need a quick intro?

For example, you could follow this board by pinner Eric Sheninger (Senior Fellow and Thought Leader on Digital Leadership). . .

. . .this board by AnibalPachecoIT (owner and Chief Learning Officer, Instructional Technology Solutions). . .

Or, you may find a pinner like Diana Rendina (Media Specialist and School Librarian, blogger of Renovated Learning), who has many boards on makerspaces.  You can follow one of her boards, all of them, or a number in between:

Did you find some other great resources on Pinterest as you were browsing?  Be sure to let us know!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

"MaKey MaKey" for Makerspaces

Banana keyboard
Image courtesy of MakeyMakey.com

At the recent MEMO Conference, I saw adults during an unconference discussion circle literally explode with excitement when they were talking about their “makey makey” kits and what they had done with them. It was hard to get a coherent thought out of the group for a while! Basically, they were talking about feeling alive and having fun while “smashing” electronics and everyday objects. It seems that lots of schools and libraries have been trying these kits out, and the students love it! Example: Build a piano keyboard with bananas! If you are interested in learning more about the maker movement, and makey-makey kits, check out the following links! Oh, and if you watch the Jay Silver TED Talk below (you really must), fasten your seatbelts!

Note: Makey Makey is based on research at the MIT Media Lab.