Tinker Tree Stump

Just thought I'd share what the evolution of thought looks like around the Sappington Makerspace when we get a cool piece of cardboard donated to us! 

When Colin Davitt, LiNC technology trainer, dropped off a cool slotted piece of cardboard the other day, Mrs. Czaicki and I knew it had to be used for something that represented just how cool and unique it was. After some brainstorming, we thought we could put cards in each slot with a different tinker time challenge on each card. We decided on 5 categories each representing a different area of the Makerspace. Naturally, the app/coding category challenge cards will only have a QR code that our friends will have to scan to get their challenge. :)

While we were making the cards, I found myself thinking about the box we would put the card holder and the cards themselves in. It made sense to create a box using only the materials we have available to us in the Makerspace, and just like that the "stump" idea was born. 

If the kids ever find that they're "stumped" on what to do or try in our space, they can draw a card from our Tinker Tree Stump. Problem solved! 

It seems a logical next step for the students to design some toadstools, ladybugs, and/or frogs on the 3-D printer to decorate our Tinker Tree Stump. All of these ideas and the creation itself was inspired by Mr. Davitt's Makerspace donation! So, we would like to thank you!!

-Beth Grebe

Amazingly Awesome Announcements!

created on our very own HP Sprout using Martha Stewart CraftStudio

The makerspace couldn't be happier to announce our new addition, the HP Sprout! If you aren't familiar with the Sprout, we encourage you to check it out in the quick video below.

 

 

We can't wait for our friends at Sappington to dive into this amazing device, and explore all of its possibilities. We are so fortunate that Mrs. Moehlmann wrote the grant that allows us to explore cutting edge technology like the HP Sprout. Now, our school has the unique opportunity to integrate it into our curriculum giving our friends a leg up on learning.

 

A few of our first grade friends from Mrs. Boughman's class were lucky enough to experience the Sprout for themselves on Tuesday. They used the Crayola Color, Draw, and Sing app, and the Martha Stewart CraftStudio app. Crayola Color, Draw, and Sing combines art and music in a very engaging way.  With the CraftStudio app, they can design their own scrapbook style page layouts to make reports and projects come to life. The large touch pad and touch screen on the HP Sprout make these apps very user friendly, and much more dynamic than a typical desktop. What is even more exciting is that these two apps are just a small fraction of what the Sprout is capable of!

 

 

 

We would also like to announce the St. Louis County Library's "The Write Stuff Contest". We encourage all of our friends age 8 and up at Sappington to consider participating. It's a great way to practice all of the writing skills we learn here at school!

 

If you are interested in entering the contest read the requirements below, or click here.



Finally, we wanted to share a discovery one of our tinkering students found while disassembling a donated DVD player in the take-apart center. He was very pleased to show us the "Return of the King" DVD left behind in the old player. If it belongs to anyone that has kindly donated a DVD player to our makerspace, we are keeping it safe and sound for you. You can email Mrs. Czaicki or myself, or call the library to arrange for it to be sent home with your child.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tinker on!!! 

 



Makerspace Happenings

Last night, Sappington Elementary celebrated the 2015 Makers' Fair! It was such an incredible display of the passion driven learning taking place all over our school! As you may know, in addition to any projects the students may have done in their classrooms, our 3rd-5th grade friends were able to explore a topic of their choice in the Sappington Library Makerspace using the Genius Hour approach. The end results were displayed in the gym. If their final project was digital in its presentation  (Google Slides, iMovie, Lego movie, or a Scratch program), visitors of the Makers' Fair were invited to the library to view them on one of our big sharing screens. They were so proud to share their projects!

Topics covered a range of categories from arts and crafts, sports, animals, occupations, photography, and 3-D printing. Our Sappington friends learned so many new things!

As busy as it has been in the Library Makerspace, we still find time for reading. The students look forward to checking out new books every week, and always manage to squeeze in a few minutes of quiet reading time when their class visits. 

In other Makerspace news, our kindergarten-2nd grade friends have had the chance to explore one of our new items... MagnaTiles. They are awesome! The students have quickly learned that working as a team can yield larger, more detailed designs. 

They have been able to efficiently build some superb structures by delegating jobs, and working together. They have been challenged to figure out what makes an ideal foundation for a tall and narrow structure versus a wide and short structure. They have also discovered through trial and error that two shapes combined can create an entirely new shape, for example, two triangles can become 1 square. Additionally, they have been able to put their knowledge of spatial concepts into practice in this hands-on activity. The MagnaTiles are quickly becoming a Makerspace favorite. 

We look forward to the weeks ahead in the Makerspace as we explore even more new technology and ideas!

5th Graders Sharing Genius Hour Projects

Our Makerspace was on Ch 4 News!

Back to School and Back to More Makerspace Exploration

Transitioning back into our routine following the winter break can sometimes be tough, but our friends in the makerspace are diving right in! As our 3rd-5th graders continue to work on their passion projects to gear up for our Maker Fair in February (details coming soon), our 1st and 2nd grade friends were able to continue their exploration of our LegoWeDo robotic kits.

This week they were able to work in groups and build a  more complex project that performed a pretty cool function! Our friends built a kicking robot that kicked "snowballs" (cotton balls & packaging peanuts).

Students took turns as they made their way through the step-by-step instructions using the Lego WeDo software. It was interesting and fun to see the groups work out the challenges they faced during the build process and to celebrate their victories.

Once the build was complete, they needed to program their kicker to perform its function...kick the snowball!!! The programming portion requires the students to click and drag blocks that each have an assigned function. Before the kicking began, each person was asked to record their prediction of how far they thought the snowball would go, and then they were able test the kicker. After each friend had their turn kicking the snowball, they measured the distance it went, recorded that measurement, and then compared it to their prediction. Some of our 1st and 2nd graders were very close to their original guess, and others were amazed at how much further the snowball went than what they predicted. 

The smiles were everywhere once they were able to see their kickers in action! Some of our friends even created a new program to keep their robot kicking. Some of our friends from Mrs.Porte's class even challenged themselves to kick as many snowballs in a row as possible. It was awesome!

We are also challenging all of Sappington to sign up for the St.Louis County Library Warm Up with Reading program! It is for kids, teens, and adults! With the temperatures outside becoming  bitter cold, what better way to spend your time than to curl up with a good book? Sign up at your local branch, and earn entries for some great prizes including Kindles, Magic House memberships, and Wherenberg gift cards!

Makerspace Happenings

The past couple of weeks have been busy, busy, busy in the Sappington Library Makerspace! 

 The Scholastic Book Fair has been visiting since Thursday, December 4th and will be here in the library until tomorrow, December 12th. Our friends have loved shopping for their very own books throughout the day, and it has been so fun seeing their excitement for reading their new books. It has been a very successful Book Fair this year, and we want thank all of you who have bought books! The library benefits so much from those sales because it allows us to earn money to purchase Scholastic books for our library. We are so grateful to have such amazing and supportive families at Sappington!!

We have also been plugging away at Hour of Code. Sappington has been working on Hour of Code for several weeks now, but the week of December 8-14 is Computer Science Education Week, During this week the students are being challenged to complete the Hour of Code by December 14th. Students who have exposure to computer science presented in such a relevant and engaging way are more likely to pursue higher education in this area. With computer science and coding driving much of the economy and society at large, it is important for students to know what it's all about. We are so proud to have so many students who have completed Hour of Code already! They are really working hard, and are enjoying it in the process!

Mrs.Czaicki and Mrs.Grebe have also been working very hard on organizing all of the wonderful arts & crafts supplies that have been pouring into the Makerspace thanks to all of your generous donations. We have so many great things to put out at our Creation Station, it will be hard to wait until the Book Fair is gone to restock that center! As always, you may donate items at any time. We have a quick turnover of all of our back stock, so don't hesitate to send in cardboard tubes, shoe boxes, cereal boxes, beads, buttons, glue, yarn, ribbon, etc. Whatever we put out gets used, and in very creative ways, too!

In addition, we have sorted through all of our donated electronics for the Take-Apart Center. We have loads of great items, BUT they won't last long. Any broken or unwanted electronics that you may have we will happily take off of your hands. Some of the items contained in these boxes include: radios, cameras, keyboards, phones, remote controls, calculators, etc. This one of our most popular centers in the Makerspace, and the steady stream we have been getting through donations is much appreciated! Keep them coming!

The Makerspace would not be the success it is without your continued support of this new adventure here at Sappington! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!