#ParkwayMakes

Why are makerspaces important to the students of Parkway School District?

The mission of the Parkway School District is to ensure all students are capable, curious, caring and confident learners who understand and respond to the challenges of an ever-changing world. 

As shown in our mission statement, Parkway values curiosity and confidence in our students. Through the Makerspace movement students have access and opportunity to engage in maker activities that may support STEM growth, stimulate creative thinking, reinforce collaborative development, and promote that ever important curiosity. This unique learning environment encourages tinkering, play, and open-ended exploration. In Parkway, makerspaces come in all shapes and sizes, structured and organic, but always with a particular purpose in mind that meets the needs of students in their learning community. These innovative spaces give students the opportunity to develop and enhance their mindsets to learn, collaborate, and innovate in a community setting where curiosity is embraced.

What is Parkway's Mobile Makerspace?

Parkway's Mobile Makerspace is a project meant to empower libraries, kickstart the maker movement, and minimize the risk of assembling a space and acquiring items. It gives schools an opportunity to experiment and prototype their own spaces and to think about how it might meet the needs of their communities. The available Mobile Makerspace kits are a way to bring awareness to new technologies, accelerate innovation in education, and reach new users. These kits are checked out through the librarian for one month at a time and for special building/district events, such as STEM night or other community events. 

Today's librarian is so much more than the "keeper of the books and information," they connect the dots for the entire learning community. The Mobile Makerspace is an opportunity for librarians to influence that community through innovative programming and approaches to learning. It creates a portal where the free exchange of ideas, information, and wonder come to life through collaboration with teachers, administrators and students. 

See items for kit checkout, purchasing ideas, innovation playground items, and other resources at https://pkwy.info/mobilemakerspaces.