Vermont Business Magazine Lyman CHunt and Edmunds Middle Schools have been awarded grants from Verizon Innovative Learning for $20,000 each, for the creation of makerspaces at their respective schools, the Burlington School District announced today. Schools nationwide applied for the grant, which will be used to design a space where people can go to create, invent and learn in a do-it-yourself and hands-on setting.
Quoting from Hunt’s grant application: “Children are naturally creative and our school should provide frequent opportunities for wonder and creativity. This grant is a perfect opportunity to help level the playing field for our students and allow them to continue to progress with their STEAM skills and interests, with greater access and exposure to a more student-centered and challenge-based focus curriculum.
Our vision is to develop a space, resources and opportunities for our students to engage in making before, during and after school. We plan to create a Maker Lab in our Library with seven mobile maker carts stocked for a variety of purposes.These carts will cover a range of maker themes including: basic circuitry including paper circuits;advanced circuitry including littlebits; programming including Sphero robots; textiles and wearables; looms, knitting needles and yarn; a 3D printer and a vinyl cutter. This will give a needed upgrade to our building, creating spaces where students can engage in self-selected and mentor-inspired challenges. Students will be able to take on coding, programming and design challenges,as well as learn new soft skills in the fiber and paper arts.”
Quoting from a previous press release written by EMS student Ana S: "We plan to use this money to make a makerspace. We are calling the space the “CnC Lab” which stands for coding and communicating. The room will have a video production center, a sound room and an anchor desk. Students will make robots, video games, websites, toys, edit and produce videos and podcasts - the possibilities are endless. McLeod Kredell Architects and Offenhartz Management Co. have volunteered to partner with us.Planning and construction will be a collaborative effort between our partners and our students. This is a great opportunity for kids to learn, problems solve and to express their creative side. With the makerspace, the students can really make and create whatever comes to their mind. We can’t wait to see to see where this creative and innovative journey takes us."
Hunt’s three “Maker Champions” - Tech-Integrationist Val Lodish, Social Studies Teacher Charles Dabritz and Afterschool Site Director Rebecca Reese - and EMS’s three “Maker Champions” - Tech-Integrationist Brent Truchon, STEM Teacher Matt Chandler and Design and Tech Education Teacher Eric Schoembs - will participate in two days of STEAM-focused professional development and lead the setup and launch of the Maker Lab and the CnC Lab.
Source: Burlington School Dsitrict 1.12.2017