Methodology for educational making activities (V)

Making activities materials and supplies

Makerspaces are collaborative places where all people, including young individuals, can gain practical hands-on experience with new technologies and innovative processes. They provide a flexible environment where learning is made physical by designing and building projects which apply science, technology, maths, art and creativity.

Building robots at MakerConvent.

It is important to emphasise that every space will be different due to its size, its available resources and the makers who use it. Any kind of physical space can be used; from a classroom to a table, from a storage room to a freestanding building. These spaces then may support a handful of makers focused on a particular activity such as electronics, or offer a broad range of equipment and materials.

Given this range of possibilities it would be inappropriate to make a template for developing a Makerspace. Instead, this guide aims to provide an approach to selecting equipment, tools and materials which will help to develop a space as well as providing instructions and advice around possible educational maker activities that could be conducted within it. In Annex 4, further information about kitting out a space is also given, including possible space requirements, workbenches, storage, and maintenance materials.

Communication supports

In the 21st century, communication is key to all activities. We need to use collaboration and communication to build our community and bring people together.

Communication within the field of maker education activities has two lines of impact:

• An internal line orientated around the participants, focusing on the results and processes, to help the students involved to see how their actions are valued. In this line of work, communication channels which are shared among the users can be used, such as applications and social networks. An example is the use of the Instagram app to show what, who and how the activities are done and their results. This generates a spirit of belonging to a group and provides the possibility of spreading news and project results.
  Also for internal communication within a Makerspace is it essential to ensure that the space is maintained and remains accessible to all users. For example, this could include differentiating and defining spaces, ordering equipment and setting up methods to organise activities as well as protocols to maintain safety and security.
• An external line of communication, more with the aim to attract new makers, should be used to showcase the activities of the Makerspace to people who are not part of it. For this, both online and offline communication methods are very important and should be used.

Once the contents of an activity have been established by a Makerspace, for example by identifying how, where, with whom and when it will take place, it will then be necessary to put together a communication plan which will help the Makerspace to reach the public who may be interested in participating. It is necessary to take into account all stages of the communication plan including before, during and after the activity has taken place.

For the preparation of the plan it is important to take into account:

• The public: if the participants are adults, we address them; for children or teenagers, it is more likely to need to address the parents. It also helps to identify whether the aim is to target local participants in a particular neighbourhood and if there may be particular methods in which the public in these areas may seek or receive information.
• Contents: prepare a clear and brief explanation of the program, define to whom it is addressed, the objectives of the activity, dates and registration data. It is also helpful to include photos or illustrations which complement and demonstrate the activity in some way.
• Dissemination material: Information can be presented through the use and adaption of brochures, flyers and posters, etc.
• Network and community: do not underestimate the word of mouth. It is also possible to spread information about an activity through staff of the center and any assistants or volunteers of the Makerspace.
• Web: it is essential to have an entry on the web which provides detailed information on the project or center. By not having limited space, here we can place more photographs and expand more on the fundamentals and methodology of the activity or any information that may be of interest to future participants. The registration data (date, place, time, price and contact) must also be clear and easily locatable.
• Social networks: once the information has been published on the web, it is best to disseminate it through social networks. Posts and messages should provide content giving information about the registration process. It is also important to anticipate having to answer any questions that may arise.
• Permits: in some cases it will be necessary to follow certain rules of use and provide permits for completing a particular activity depending on where it is located.
• Image rights: it is always necessary to verify in advance that participants are happy to have their photo taken. All participants have the right to refuse any image of themselves being shared or stored on public platforms. Therefore permission should be granted by all participants before an activity is started, to clarify whether they give consent to the dissemination of audiovisual elements. On the web you can find a model document for this.
• Document: on the one hand, it is possible to disseminate the results of an activity through photographs and videos that were recorded throughout the activity itself. However, it can also be helpful to write down more detailed information such as; how an activity was developed, how the organisation of the activity was completed as well as details on communication methods used or any material or financial requirements. It is also useful to document how participants reacted to the activity; what particularly interested then, what queries they had and what degree of understanding and integration the activity was able to provide. Through critically documenting an activity, it can then help to identify how or why an activity may have failed or how it could be improved.

Once the activity is done:

• Self-evaluation: it is important to evaluate the actions to help identify what particularly worked well and what could be changed for future actions. It is useful to conduct participation surveys to find out the opinions and observations of the participants as well as channel what they learnt through the activity and what they would recommend to help improve it.
• Communicate: with text, photos or videos, it is good to make a post on the web with the results, the process and perhaps some testimonies which can be spread online through a website and social networks.

How to build a Flyer

In order to communicate about an educational maker event, whether it’s a week-long program or a 2-hour long workshop, you will need effective communication supports, for example a flyer or a poster.

Here are some guidelines you may find useful when developing your own communication material.

Digijeunes flyer.

• Be colourful. Colours, especially warm colours, capture the attention of people, first and foremost youth. You may also want to use complementary colours. In the example above, we chose yellow and blue.
• Include at least the following details:

— name of the event

— time and place

— content (for example 3D modeling and 3D printing, or electronic prototyping)

— target public (ex. young people aged 9 to 17 years old)

— whether it involves a participation fee or not

— how to make a reservation (ex. via e-mail)

— contact details of the organisers

— logo of the organising team and partners

— social networks where we can find more information

• Don’t be afraid to use graphic items, such as icons. In the example above, we included plenty of icons that you can download from thenounproject.com.
• If you are planning to print out several copies of your flyer, you may find it more convenient to print in black and white. If so, don’t forget to make sure that the text is visible. You may want for example to remove the background color and replace it with plain white.

Publishing activity results using on-line platforms for makers

All maker projects are worth publishing. Makers learn from one another by building on each others failures and successes, which helps them to improve and grow in competence over time. Maker education is very much a creation of the 21st century, therefore all modern means of communication can be used to help document and disseminate projects and activities which the larger community of makers can benefit from.

A number of on-line platforms exist which are ideal for publishing maker projects. Platforms such as hacksters.io or instructables.com gather millions of projects in a huge range of thematic areas from cooking to electronics.

Here follows a description of the process for making a publication on instructables.com

First, You will need to login with a google or facebook account, or register with an e-mail address.

Before you start writing your “instructable” you will need to gather as many photos as possible that document each step of your activity. The first photo usually depicts all the tools / supplies / components / ingredients / materials which are needed. It is also essential, when making an “instructable”, that each step of the project is documented with notes.

Next up, you will need to start using the “instructables editor”. The first thing to do when you make an “instructable” is title it. The easiest way to do this is to ask yourself “How would someone Google for this?”

The next step is writing an introduction.The introduction is just as important as the main image and title — this is your “hook” that will get people to continue reading.

The introduction should tell the reader what the project is, why you made it, and how you made it. While this is often obvious from the title and photo, some projects need a little more explanation and this is the right place to do that. This is your story, so share all the details!

Once the introduction is done, you will need to break the project into clear steps.

Finally, you can go ahead and publish the “instructables”.

At publication stage, the website will prompt you to set a main image, set a category and channel, and choose keywords which will be associated with your “instructable”, to help others find it.

This methodological guide has been made by the consortium of the European Project, Makerspace for Inclusion Nº 2018-l-BE0S-KA205–002425, with the participation of the following associations:

Digijeunes (France), Timelab (Belgium), Horizonlab (Italy), Nod Makerspace (Romania), MakerConvent-Trànsit Projectes (Spain).