CSER MOOC

I am doing the CSER Years 7-8 Digital Technologies MOOC https://csdigitaltech.appspot.com/cser_nextsteps/course so this blog post will serve as my eportfolio, as I have chosen the makerspace stream.

Portfolio Task 1

Every few weeks I will add reflections and information about MakerSpaces and continue to document our journey in developing our MakerSpace Zone. As can be seen from other posts in this blog we inspire the girls to create and make from literature. We started with LED light cards and Squishy Circuits inspired by the ‘Bogles’ in Catherine Jinks book ‘A Very Unusual Pursuit’. We then spent time introducing our girls to maker language using books like ‘Beautiful Oops!” Different Like Coco’ ‘Marvellous Mattie’ and created a window of words.

MakebooksPNG windowResearch has shown that girls do not take risks as much as boys, so it was important for us to ensure our girls did not hold back and would give our MakerSpace ‘a go’. Many of the books above encourage trying, persisting, not giving up, failure is learning……. these stories were very successful. Our girls have created some wonderful things!

collage

Its been crazy the last few weeks….setting final assessment pieces, marking, collating, and then writing reports and proof-reading reports. Preparing breakout session for EduTECH and then attending EduTECH …..so inspiring!

Portfolio Task 2

The next step in developing our Makerspace Zone was to get the school community involved. The prefect opportunity came in the shape of ‘Connection Day’ which can be read in the post called Promoting our Makerspace Zone within the school.

This unit of work addressed Geography Australian Curriculum and Digital technologies, including computational thinking skills and programming skills, through involving following steps:

  1. Define and decompose problems (ACTDIP027)
  2. Design for the user experience (ACTDIP028)
  3. Design algorithms represented diagrammatically and in English (ACTDIP029)
  4. Implement and modify programs or products with user interfaces (ACTDIP030)
  5. Evaluate how the solution meets the requirements of the design brief (ACTDIP031)
  6. Create and communicate interactive ideas and information collaboratively online, taking into account social contexts (ACTDIP032)
  7. Plan and manage projects, including tasks, time and other resources required, considering safety and sustainability (ACTDIP033)

For this task I re-visited making dough for squishy circuits and collecting the necessary materials for the girls to enjoy creating ‘things’ with LED flashing lights. During ‘Grandparents Day’  I invited the Year 6 girls to bring their grandparents into the library and this event can be read on ‘Making with Grandparents’.

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Portfolio Task 3

I have purchased a few more pieces of equipment for our MakerSpace Zone. I’m learning how the use them and hopefully the girls and I can learn and share our learning.

Makey Makey https://vimeo.com/60307041

Make a piano out of bananas, play Mario on Play Dough, let your kitty take a picture of herself. This is a simple invention kit for beginners, experts, and everything in between.

Arduino https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Z7z3Zduj6w

Three projects using Arduino:

1)Toll Tax Barrier 2) Hand motion Controlled Motor using Arduino 3) Arduino UNO Synchronization

Little Bits   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fJRDjaoLIk

Fun projects to catch out sneaky TV watchers and cupboard thieves!

Portfolio Task 4

Little Bits
After receiving our ‘Little Bits’ kits the girls set about playing and discovering what each part did…..heaps of fun and excitement. The girls are now designing things they can use parts of Little Bits for in their ideas

 

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Links to Curriculum

Analyse and visualise data using a range of software to create information, and use structured data to model objects or events (ACTDIP026)

Design algorithms represented diagrammatically and in English, and trace algorithms to predict output for a given input and to identify errors (ACTDIP029)

Plan and manage projects, including tasks, time and other resources required, considering safety and sustainability (ACTDIP033)

Portfolio Task 5

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We decided to create torches to tie in with 2015 Book Week theme ‘Books Light up our World’. Just using two tongue depressors, copper tape, LED light and a small battery, the girls and I fiddled around until we could make the torch work…..it meant lots of taking apart and trying to work out how to make it turn on and off. We finally used a small piece of blu-tac to go between the battery and the negative copper tape!! Yay!

WearableWe then decided to try the same principle with wearable art….bracelets and chokers. We are still working on these, some girls are sewing using electrical thread others are using tape, but all want to cover the back so they can wear and turn on and off!

Links to Digital Technology curriculum

Investigate the main components of common digital systems, their basic functions and interactions, and how such digital systems may connect together to form networks to transmit data (ACTDIK014)

Investigate how data are transmitted and secured in wired, wireless and mobile networks, and how the specifications of hardware components impact on network activities (ACTDIK023)

Portfolio Task 6

GEog Criteria

In the post connecting our MakerSpace Zone into subject areas, I used the following criteria sheet for assessing the unit of work which included how the girls engaged the younger students with their own learning by creating an activity in our MakerSpace Zone. Photos can be seen in the post link below:

Geography Assessment for Connection Day

Our journey continues. This I pasted into our school newsletter this week:

Mornings in the MakerSpace Zone

These cool mornings have not been a problem for many of our girls who have been creating and making in our library MakerSpace Zone. The girls have been having fun challenging themselves in designing and making balloon cars with Lego, LED light cards, electric mazes and coding robots.

making2image

We have been equipping our space with plenty of exciting materials, such as ‘Little Bits’ which are electronic building blocks, Goldie Blox kits which encourage our girls to construct and be innovative in building and a ‘Dark Room’ to see how this year’s book week theme Books Light up our World activities look in darkness!

Coding

Many girls come into the library at lunch time to use: iPads, enjoy stories, puppet shows, draw pictures, play games and now to start projects in our MakerSpace Zone.

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Jackie Child
Jackie Child has been teaching primary aged students for 40 years in a number of countries. She is passionate about how children learn through constructivist pedagogy. She is a Teacher Librarian at St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School and a sessional tutor at Griffith University for pre-service teachers. Jackie doesn’t believe in standing still, there is always plenty to ‘do’ and learn!

2 COMMENTS

  1. I really enjoyed reading through your eportfolio. I am also developing a Makerspace at my school and I liked the way you incorporated some of the activities into the curriculum.

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