Greetings SSIS Community,
We are very excited about the recent announcement that SSIS will have a dedicated MakerSpace in the elementary building that will open in August 2015. Construction and floor plans are underway, and physical modifications to the building will begin this summer.
We believe our SSIS MakerSpace will expand the limitations of traditional education and allow students to bring their passions forward in an inspiring and supportive environment. It will foster exploration and achievement; the attitudes and habits of mind of innovation and entrepreneurism; and resilience, the ability to seek challenges, withstand setbacks, embrace responsibility, and use the lessons of experience to move forward. The MakerSpace will explore areas such as construction and deconstruction, robotics, engineering, tinkering, design thinking, and other emerging opportunities for experiential learning.
A makerspace is not solely a science lab, woodshop, computer lab or art room, but it will contain elements found in all of these familiar spaces. Therefore, it must be designed to accommodate a wide range of activities, tools and materials.
We are in the process of collecting tools and resources that will be used in the MakerSpace. This is a call out to our SSIS community for donations of tools, materials, and resources that we can incorporate into our MakerSpace. The following is a list of some of the things we are hoping to acquire. This list is not all inclusive, so if you have things laying around the house that you think we may be able to use, please bring them to the elementary office. There will be a box labeled “MakerSpace Donations.” Please place items in the box:
| Tools | Materials | |
| hammers, mallets | nails, screws, any fastening devices | |
| screw drivers, socket sets, allen sets, hex key set (metric or sae) | bottle tops, rubber bands, popsicle sticks, wine corks, chopsticks | |
| pliers, wrenches, wire cutters, scissors | electrical wire, alligator clips, string, rope | |
| hand saws, hand drills, any hand tools | PVC pipe, tubing, hose, fittings and connectors | |
| sewing machines, needles, seam ripper, iron | magnets, batteries, LED lights and/or bulbs | |
| staple gun or staplers | scrap wood, scrap fabric, thread, cardboard and shoe boxes (any size) | |
| hot glue guns, glue sticks | plastic bins, containers, baskets | |
| clamps, vices, any holding devices | paints and paint brushes | |
| tape measures, meter sticks, calipers | tape (any kind), glue, |
We thank you in advance for your donations!
Mr. Shane Sullivan
ES Science Coach
