Eclectic Technology

Jackie Gerstein has created a new website that explores the Maker Movement. If this is an area that you would like to explore you will find 10 areas that you can explore:

* Paper Circuits

* Squishy Cirtuits

* Bare Conductive Paint

* Sew Electrics

* Operation Game

* Toy Take Apart

* Soldering Projects

* LittleBits

* Makey Makey

* Hummingbird Robotics

Each of these areas leads to a webpage and the ones I checked out included a number of videos to help you understand the topic as well as some documentation and additional resources.

She also includes a brief video that helps you understand what the Maker Movement is (and you hear from learners involved in a number of projects). In addition there is a ThingLink (based on the image above) that provides  links to additional resources.

The Maker Movement provides learners with opportunities to create something that is new to them. It is authentic learning and learners will go through iterations as they work through the process, and potentially experience failure that will help them become successful.

Have you noticed that STEM has transformed to STEAM? The A stands for art and this infographic looks at how the introduction of art to STEM can make  a difference in the academic performance of students. The infographic shares statistics on the perception of STEM and facts about both STEM and the Arts. It looks at how each impact the brain and also statistics about the number of schools with arts (US only) as well looking at US STEM rankings and global arts education.

There is a reason that STEM is shifting to STEAM and this infographic provides an overview of some of the reasons this is taking place.

Take STEM, add A for Art, and you get STEAM. As this post states, if you think of Leonardo di Vinci and his work this is a logical connection. This post discusses why adding the A for Art is important and the changes that may happen because of it, such as more innovation and creativity.

The list of resources includes links for all five letters and chances are you will find a few that you may not have checked out. Below are five of the resources listed...but click through to see the rest, and all are hot linked in the post. (Most tools listed are free but a few have costs.)

* Cardboard Challenge

* Why Scientific Innovation Needs the Arts

* PBS Learning Makers Party

* Odyssey of the Mind

* The Arts Institute of Chicago

Have fun exploring this diverse set of STEAM resources!

How do we learn? New research continues to inform us and we should help our learners discover that making some shifts in their practices may lead them to being more successful learners. This post provides "fifteen steps towards a better brain."

Four of the steps are below.

* Laughter boosts brain function.

* You can improve your memory with one simple step.

* Bilingual brains process information better.

* Higher vocab increases cognition

Some of the steps in this post may be new to you. Each is explained in more detail in the post, and every step includes at least one (or more) links to additional information.

As you read through think about what you can do in your classroom to help your learners and yourself "build a better brain."

Jackie Gerstein discusses how we can bring maker education activities into our schools beginning with a look at three current trends:

* The Play Deficit - for many children time to play is minimal as they lead very scheduled lives

* "Lack of creativity and play in children's lives and toys"

* The Maker Movement as in Maker Education

The first two trends are also apparent in our education system. In many schools playtime has decreased with the rollout of Common Core curriculum. Students in pre-school and Kindergarten have specific benchmarks that they need to hit to move on, and it often comes with a decrease in play time.

And many toys we find on the market today do not promote creativity. We often think of Legos as a toy to promote creativity. Gerstein shares her thoughts on this, noting buckets that contain freeform Legos that promote free play are often in the back of the store while the packages of Legos that come with directions on how to build a Star Wars character or a Harry Potter character are in the front.

At the end of this section Gerstein concludes that the literature shows that (quoting from the post):

• Making, creating, innovating, experimenting is needed now more than ever in this rapidly evolving world and our children are severely lacking in these skills
• If these skills are to be integrated into formal and informal learning settings, some direct instruction and scaffolding will need to occur.

The final section of the piece explores how the Maker Movement may impact the two issues noted above and provides a look at six areas that we as educators need to consider if we are going to become a part of the Maker Education.