EdTech Learning: Christy P. Novack
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Design Project Reflection

5/23/2018

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In my role, my students are educators. I conducted my project as part of a training with 4th and 5th grade teachers. As part of learning the 5 E's model, teachers were put in the role of a student. We first started with a phenomenon to introduce the topic and engage students, which focused on types of energy. 

I had thrown general materials for the Exploration phase in bins throughout the room. Materials included different types of paper, pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, LEDs, sticker LEDs,  batteries, copper wire, tape and scissors. Teachers were then given the challenge: "How can you make the light light up?"  I showed them an example of a drawing I did in my notebook that had a LED lit up. However, they did not see the back page of how it was made. 

I encouraged teachers to work in partners or a group of 3. None of the teachers had used copper tape before. I walked around and actively observed the conversations. I saw collaboration. I heard teachers naming the materials or giving a name to the item to help define it. After about 20-30 minutes, they had to stop. 

Groups then shared their creations, what they discovered and what they had questions about. I then asked, "How did you feel while going through this experience?" Just like students, answers 
such as fun, confusion, uncertainty, motivation, perseverance, and wanting to understand why something did not work came up.  "These are the very types of skills and thinking that can benefit your students on how to approach problems in any subject," I replied.

Teachers were then given further information on how circuits worked. I could see some of the connections from the initial making experience to the new information on some faces. 

With this new understanding, teachers were then asked to take this knowledge and create a card or drawing that would light up. By continuing to incorporate this level of creativity and option, participants were more engaged and had more ownership with their project .

​Overall, I was very pleased with the day. There was success with bringing teachers through how to conduct a 5 E's lesson and address NGSS concepts while at the same time incorporating making, which really drove key concepts home with them, along with the understanding that this type of learning experience can really benefit their students.

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Maker Reflection: Learning to Use a CNC Router

5/17/2018

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My county office STEAM center is hosting Maker Mondays from 3-6pm for any educator to drop in to learn, explore or work on a project. I recently attended one in which the highlight topic was introduction to a CNC router.  A computer numerical control (CNC) router is a computer-controlled cutting machine related to the hand-held router used for cutting various hard materials, such as wood, composites, aluminum, steel, plastics and foams. 

I love machines and the idea of carving things. My only experience using machine tools was in 7th grade to make a napkin holder and a rainbow wood sign for our mailbox, so it's been a while. 

We were given a square composite to make a sign. I decided to find a quote about perseverance to carve out, since if you are a public educator, this is a big part of our daily reality, no matter what area you might be in.  Plus, it is a core component of a Maker mindset.

We used a program called Easel to construct our design. I found Easel fairly easy to use since quite a few aspects were intuitive. You can choose shapes and types of font, etc. Having step by step directions though, helped! Robert showed us some finer aspects of the program, like choosing the size drill bit and how to know how much space you actually have on the canvas. We also learned about depth of the carving and the impact of a shallow vs deeper cut. A deeper cut can add considerable more time to complete. We double checked in the Preview to see if our design would carve out correctly and deep enough. I had to tweak my depth and type of font in order to get a decent carving. 

One other thing I learned from watching Robert clipping the composite was to make sure that the clips were not in the drill's range of carving. On one clip he eyeballed, it ended up carving part of the metal clip up. Live and learn.

It took about 20 minutes to carve my masterpiece. I have realized that I would really like to continue practice using programs like Tinkercad and Easel since you can take your 3D creation and actually bring it to life with materials.
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Maker Reflection: Early Learning Professional Network Workshop

5/17/2018

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Last month, I volunteered to present at a workshop for Pacifica School District and the City of Pacifica's Early Childhood organizations. These are pre-K organizations and transitional kindergartens that are located in Pacifica. The focus was on STEAM and Making with students in Pre K and TK education.

I am passionate about educating people on the importance of learning by doing and how STEAM related activities, like Making, can ultimately help a student be successful in college and career. 

I started with a photo of a toddler holding a fancy DSLR camera. "What is going on here?" I inquired. Curiosity was the majority answer. As young children, the world is full of wonder. With wonder comes exploration, questioning, and trying to understand how things work. As children become older and go through their school years, how might we continue to keep this same level of inquiry instead of squashing it with direct instruction, testing and talking them to death? How might we  facilitate learning experiences for students that can lend themselves to student interests and relate to the real world?

I shared Pacifica School District's definition STEAM and our vision with regard to hands - on - learning. I then had the, participate in building a coat hanger balance that they could take back and use with their students. Participants were given a bag with materials and worked in pairs or groups. Their job was to cut out pieces and figure out how to weigh items with the materials provided.

Watching the process of people talking things out, inquiring, troubleshooting and being stuck at times is always interesting to me. Our society has evolved into one of convenience and having things done for us. It is easy for people to simply say "I don't know," and give up. I find with adults this mindset can be just as common as with any other age group. And, just with any age group, there are always some people who are compelled to figure something out. I encouraged participants and when needed, asked them questions to help them with their thinking process. "Ohhh,"  "I get it," and hearing people help each other out were a few observations of people tapping into  different thinking skills.

At the end, I brought them back together. "What did we experience?" I asked. "What were some feelings that came up when doing this activity?"  Confusion, teamwork, engagement, trouble shooting were a few of the comments. "Exactly," I said. "These are the very skills that we need to tap into our learners, not only at young ages, but throughout their educational experience." 

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Maker Reflection: Redwood City STEAM Festival

5/17/2018

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 This past month, I volunteered to assist with the San Mateo County Office of Education's contribution to the Redwood City STEAM Festival. SMCOE runs a Cardboard City at this event. Our role was to encourage, guide and assist children and adults with the creation of a temporary Cardboard City. My tag line for people was, "Welcome to Cardboard City of the Future, where you are only limited by your imagination!"

Before the event began, we did a quick start up of the area by creating a paper road and roundabout. We each then built something as examples. I decided to build a giant skyscraper based on the size of some cardboard I found. For Cardboard City, we did not put out tape but instead focused on having participants use Makedos, which are great reusable screws designed for cardboard construction They can be used to create hinges, moving parts or to keep something together. I also ended up making a rollercoaster. A kid who joined us for a while decided to add a parking lot since that is important to have near an amusement park.

I also helped man the button making station we had set up. Button making is quite popular with various age groups. I found children were highly engaged and interested in the process of how to make a button and the satisfaction of pulling down the button maker handle to put it all together. We did have basic directions out and I encouraged participants to read the and follow the step by step directions, which for school age children, is always a skill for them to practice. We were there for 6  hours, but time flew by because we were having fun!

Creating a Cardboard City in any makerspace or school site is easy and cheap! I encourage the idea of using something like makedos vs disposable tape that is not technically recyclable. It is a great introduction activity to generate creativity, collaboration, ownership, trouble shooting and perserverance, which are important in this day and age. 

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Welcome to my Maker Journey!

5/17/2018

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This blog is devoted to my Maker journey with learning and implementation for a K-8 public school district. I hope you find some of my experiences helpful as you start or continue your own Maker journey!
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    This blog represents my journey into the world of Maker education.

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