The Lively Learning Commons: September 2015

As much as I hoped I would post at the start of this new school year, it just didn't happen. Adjusting to this new role has been positively amazing, but it's also been quite time-consuming in order to do it right. As a result, the blog had to go on the back burner. That said, I just HAD to take a moment to share my experience at Maker Faire Milwaukee. In Washington DC this past summer, I was fortunate to meet Dale Dougherty, the founder of MAKE Magazine and the creator of Maker Faires. After meeting him, subscribing to MAKE, watching middle school students giving up part of their lunch period to create in my Learning Commons makerspace, and seeing all sorts of video about Maker Faires, I knew I just had to set aside time to visit a Faire myself. Fortunately, I live with fellow makers and tech geeks, my husband and two sons, so it wasn't hard to talk them into joining me for this excursion on Sunday.

Before I dig into what all we saw and did, it's important for you to know exactly what a Maker Faire is. According to their site, a "Maker Faire is the Greatest Show (and Tell) on Earth—a family-friendly festival of invention, creativity and resourcefulness, and a celebration of the movement." If you ask me, it was all that and more!

The very entrance to the Maker Faire was pretty enticing--a flying machine, an iron "Toothless" from How to Train Your Dragon, and a flame thrower. Who doesn't like all of this crazy cool stuff in one place? And that was just the start! Upon entering the Faire, we were whisked into a world of joy, wonder, and interaction. This wasn't about competing to be the best; it was truly a display of individuals' and groups' wild imaginations and innovation and having the chance to get in on the action. At times, I felt like I was walking into the workshop of Doc Brown from Back to the Future or Dick Van Dyke's character from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; it was truly that wacky, surreal, and awe-inspiring. There were robots moving around and talking to (and insulting) passing individuals, Tesla coils lighting up to "Let It Go", a small space home in the midst of renovation on display, kid rocket creation and launching, a makeshift Operation game using the MAKE robot, a cardboard city that begged for participants' additions, and even a sewing station where you could sew whatever your heart desired. It was about arts. It was about crafts. It was about technology. Most importantly, it was about interacting with others, learning, creating, and having a good time. All of us--my husband, my 9- and 11-year-old sons, and I--enjoyed four hours of exploring and learning and creating with one another.

Thank you, Maker Faire Milwaukee, for creating an everlasting memory my family and I will never forget. Thank you for creating a safe environment that encourages people to learn from one another, tinker, and create. Thank you for inspiring my sons to hash out their battles with Magnatag and to build a robot from scratch with their dad and papa. Lastly, thank you for giving me plenty of ideas to bring back to my own little makerspace at Shepard Middle School. Now if only I could get principal approval for a Tesla coil!

A flying machine greeted us at the entrance!

A moving digital clock