Programs for kids?

[Thomas Gray]

We've been asked a lot over the last year about programs for kids <12 years old.  We don't run a kid-friendly space (power tools, lasers, welding equipment, bio lab, etc), but don't want to shut kids interested in making things right out.

Has anybody else received requests like this?  Do you offer anything?  Is so, what?

-Thomas, Victoria Makerspace

[Darcy Casselman]

A couple of our members specifically joined the space to run programs for kids.  So that's great!  We wouldn't like have much of anything if they weren't willing to step up and take charge.  

You can read about one of their efforts here:

http://helloworldcamp.com/

One thing we've had luck with lately is local libraries wanting to run making events for kids.  They host and advertise the event and we show up and do 3D printer demos or little make-and-takes or something.  You might want to drop by your library and see if there's any interest.  If something like that gets off the ground, that'll at least give you an answer.

Darcy.

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[doug moen]

Kwartzlab is an adult oriented space, and we don't offer that much in the way of kids programming. Maker Kids Toronto are the experts in this field, they run an explicitly kid oriented space. They are privately run, and you pay for everything.

Kwartzlab allows people as young as 16 years old to join, providing they pass our admissions procedure, and we think we can trust them with a key. Some of our members are parents who join with the idea of bringing their kids to Kwartzlab and doing maker activities with them. In this case, the parents are effectively running their own programs.

As Darcy already mentioned, Gillian is a Kwartzlab member who runs maker kids programs as a paid service (hello world camp), and we occasionally host these programs at Kwartzlab.

Kwartzlab runs a number of special events each year where maker kids programming is featured. We participate in "Family Hack Jam", which is run by Hive Waterloo (you should look up the Mozilla Hive learning network, and check hivevancouver.com). We run a Maker Faire in June, which has a lot of families and kids, and there are lots of kids activities there. And we occasionally run other events, on an ad hoc basis.

Ultimately, Kwartzlab is not designed to be kid friendly. Our funding model ($50/month to be a member) is only one part of the problem. To satisfy the demand for this, we need separate kid friendly makerspaces to open up in our region. The public libraries are probably going to occupy this niche, eventually. But the idea that all public libraries should become makerspaces has only become mainstream in the last two years, and the libraries have long timelines for securing funding for building projects. In our region, CPL is moving ahead right now with building plans (an entire floor of their new building is a makerspace), but WPL can't do anything until at least 2016, and KPL is in a similar situation (they are just finishing a building project with no place to put a makerspace). A library makerspace has fixed opening hours (unlike the 24 hour access of Kwartzlab), they have paid staff (unlike Kwartzlab), and they are generally free (unlike everyone else). Free is good if you are a kid or teenager. At the Innisfil Idea Lab in Ontario, for example (a new public library makerspace), you just walk in off the street and you can start using the 3D printer, laser cutter, or other facilities fairly quickly. And that excites me: kid friendly, socialized makerspaces.

Doug Moen.

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[Simon Clark]

On 2014-01-16, at 3:06 PM, Thomas Gray <tgray.p...@gmail.com> wrote:

We've been asked a lot over the last year about programs for kids <12 years old.  We don't run a kid-friendly space (power tools, lasers, welding equipment, bio lab, etc), but don't want to shut kids interested in making things right out.

Has anybody else received requests like this?  Do you offer anything?  Is so, what?

We try to be very kid friendly. We do workshops on arduino for kids, run events at community group events, host cub scout groups and such frequently, and we just got a grant to get a class set of laptops that we can take around to teach programming in local schools.

We also have a number of kids related to members that come and build stuff frequently.  Teaching my 8 year-old daughter to weld in her best party dress was fun:

Simon Clark - Diyode Community Workshop

AIM:siatdfi, Skype:zebraspot, Twitter:diyode

71 Wyndham St. S, Unit B, N1E 5R3, Guelph, Ontario

+1 (519) 822-6788

[Jennifer Turliuk]

Hi,

We are a makerspace for kids: www.makerkids.ca.

Thanks,

Jenn

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Jennifer Turliuk

647-926-2478 / 415-213-2819

Twitter: @jenniferturliuk

http://www.jenniferturliuk.com

[Thomas Gray]

It sounds like there are a few things that could work.  We've already been doing demos at the libraries (3d printing and laser cutting), but they take a not-insignificant amount of time and energy to run and organize and deprive our space of the tools we use for the duration of the demo (usually a few hours in an evening).  I'm looking at a demo-specific 3d printer and a portable suitcase-based laser engraver for keeping these going.

It sounds like it would work if we set up kid-specific programs and hours at our space, and kept them out of the wood and metal shops, focusing more on the electronics and computer side of things.  Maybe DIY brush bots to start, with computer, 3d printing, and arduino electronic activities as we get more established.

Thanks for your feedback.

-Thomas