The adventure of creating a MakerSpace in the James Clemens High School library has taken off with a lot of help from my friends!
Once my principal, Dr. Brian Clayton, approached me about bringing a MakerSpace to the JCHS Library this year the first thing I did was crowd source my amazing PLN for ideas and resources. Some the top contributors that helped me to ultimately build my final list of items to purchase for the start of our MakerSpace includes:
Diana Rending,
Nathan Stevens,
Laura Fleming,
Tom Kilgore,
Mark Samburg, and
Faith Plunkett. My daughter's boyfriend, Damien Owen, was also a great help to me. I would call, text and email him often as he loves to tinker with electronics, LEGOs and robotics. Damien is actually the first person to tell me about
Cubelets so I am very interested to learn more about those when they arrive!
I also immediately pulled up the
TL Virtual Cafe website so that I could review the
MakerSpace webinar presented by Diana Rending and friends. I also went back and reviewed
Wendy Cope's slides from her session I attended at the Georgia Library Media Association Summer Conference.
HERE is a link to my MakerSpace Pinterest Board that I will continue to refer to throughout the year as our MakerSpace is implemented and as it grows.
While researching and crowdsourcing a large list of items was compiled for the proposed MakerSpace, but without sponsorship from Bill Gates or Oprah Winfrey a spending cap had to be met. Ultimately, this is the final list of items that JCHS will start our library MakerSpace with this school year.
| Qty. | Item No. | Description | Unit Price | Total Price |
| 1 | | Chromakey Green Screen Kit 800w Photo Video Lighting Kit 10x12 feet Green Screen and Backdrop Support System Included Ul15 10x12 Green By Fancier U15 10x12 Green | $119.99 | $119.99 |
| 1 | | LEGO Education Wheels Set 4598357 | $49.95 | $49.95 |
| 1 | | LEGO Education Doors, Windows & Roof Tiles Set 4587438 | $49.95 | $49.95 |
| 1 | | LEGO Chain Reactions: Design and build amazing moving machines (Klutz S) Spiral-bound – January 13, 2015 | $14.95 | $14.95 |
| 1 | | The LEGO Ideas Book | $14.07 | $14.07 |
| 1 | | LEGO Crazy Action Contraptions | $13.17 | $13.17 |
| 1 | | Wonder Workshop Dash & Dot Robot Wonder Pack | $279.99 | $279.99 |
| 4 | | Craft E Vinyl - 12" x 24" - 40 Sheets Assorted Matte Colors of Removable Adhesive Backed Vinyl for Cricut Cutters, CraftROBO Cutters, Pazzles Cutters, QuicKutz Cutters - CEV2300 | $32.99 | $131.96 |
| 5 | | Expressions Vinyl - Black (matte) 5-pack of adhesive vinyl sheets - 12"x24" indoor/removable | $14.00 | $70.00 |
| 2 | | Joylabz Makey Makey An Invention for Everyone Science Kit | $49.99 | $99.98 |
| 2 | | **Giant Version** I AM Cardboard® 50mm Focal Length Virtual Reality Cardboard Kit - Inspired by Google Cardboard | $21.99 | $43.98 |
| 2 | | Google Cardboard Valencia Quality 3d Vr Virtual Reality Glasses New (Natural) | $4.55 | $9.10 |
| 1 | 43299BBR | Parrot - Rolling Spider Bluetooth Robot Insect Drone - Blue | $99.99 | $99.99 |
| 1 | 43792BBR | Parrot - Replacement Battery for Parrot Sumo and Rolling Spider Drones | $19.99 | $19.99 |
| 1 | 5003462 | EV3 Core Set with Software Pack | $443.95 | $443.95 |
| 1 | 551617045 | K'NEX Education: Roller Coaster Physics Building Set | $202.99 | $202.99 |
| 1 | 553935141 | Cricut Explore Air Tools Bundle | $269.70 | $269.70 |
| 1 | | CRICUT Cutting Mat Variety 3 Pack - Cutting, Paper, Chipboard, Fabric, Poster Board, Magnet - 12" Length x 12" Width | $28.94 | $28.94 |
| 1 | 551380586 | Cricut StandardGrip 12" x 24" Adhesive Cutting Mats, 2pk | $15.92 | $15.92 |
| 1 | 553514161 | Cricut Explore Medium Point Pen Set, 5-Pack, Color Candy | $9.69 | $9.69 |
| 1 | 552307756 | Cricut Color Metallic Med Point Pen Set | $7.37 | $7.37 |
| 10 | 553514206 | Cricut Vinyl Transfer Tape, 12" x 48" | $10.83 | $108.30 |
| 1 | 670-0013 | Workshop Set | $998.75 | $998.75 |
| 1 | 650-0046 | Light Wire | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| 1 | 650-0044 | Bright LED | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| 1 | 650-0032 | Long LED | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| 1 | KT-MRCKT20 | Cubelets Twenty Kit | $499.95 | $499.95 |
| 2 | 552204352 | Apple iPad Air 2 16GB Wi-Fi | $499.00 | $998.00 |
| 2 | | Minecraft: Pocket Edition | $6.99 | $14 |
| 2 | Internet # 204324077 | Blink1 Pan-Tilt-Zoom Wi-Fi Camera in Black | $169.99 | $339.98 |
| 1 | | BreakOut EDU | $99.00 | $99.00 |
I am very fortunate that my principal provided me with a nice amount to get this MakerSpace started. If you are like many others around the country who have a much smaller budget, be sure to check out this great
post by
Gwyneth Jones for starting a MakerSpace for just $350.
After the list was compiled the next task was typing up all of the requisition orders and making sure
that the companies accepted school purchase orders. I spent the better part of two hours typing a PO for Amazon only to learn that my school has a spending cap with Amazon. Sigh. That PO had to be scrapped. Many phone calls, emails, and hours later I finally had all of my requisition orders typed and ready to be turned into our amazing bookkeeper. Within a day several of the POs had already been ordered and the items are on their way!
My next task this weekend will be to move the furniture int he library around and completely reimagine the space!
Stay tuned as boxes and students arrive and watch our learning fun!
