By LAURA HAMMACK, guest columnist

When our school district engaged in the Ready Schools design thinking process last school year, one of the innovations that we consistently observed in benchmark school districts was a dedicated space for students to be creative. We learned that these spaces are commonly referred to as “makerspaces.”

The English Oxford Dictionary defines a “makerspace” as “a place where people with shared interests, especially in computing or technology, can gather to work on projects while sharing ideas, equipment and knowledge.” Maker Media describes a makerspace as a “community of makers” where the space is “conducive to inspiration, collaboration and conversation.”

We recognized early that providing students with places to explore, create, tinker and “make” things was a foundational element for realizing several of the dispositions on our Brown County Schools graduate profile. Seeking to innovate, being prepared for success in a 21st Century workforce, and communicating effectively are all dispositions that will be cultivated within the walls of a makerspace.

Last week, our district celebrated the opening of our first makerspace/collaboration lab at Brown County Junior High School. The renovation of this space into a 21st Century learning environment was funded from a portion of the Ready Schools grant our district received from the Regional Opportunities Initiative Inc. (ROI). The space is divided into three sections that all seek to offer world-class opportunities for innovation.

The first section of the space is designed for students to create or “make” things. Students have a variety of tools and materials on hand that range from drills and saws to sophisticated 3D printers. From this trove of resources, students will be encouraged to learn to try new things.

When presented with a new technology, young people typically “play” with it until they figure it out. We intend to extend that skillset in this space, where students will work to unlock how things are made by taking them apart, or seek to improve upon common designs through the engineering design process.

The second part of the space is the collaboration lab. Here, students will be invited to learn in collaborative pods around a common monitor. Throughout the Ready Schools design thinking process, we learned from our industry partners that they are desperate for employees who think creatively and engage in collaborative problem solving with a team. By allowing students time to engage in collaborative learning models that replicate working spaces in college and industry, we are better preparing them for their own success and the success of our region.

The third part of the space is the sound studio. Here, students will be able to engage in sound engineering through a variety of applications. Students will be invited to develop documentaries and presentations with professional-grade sound technologies. Additionally, students will be able to develop, mix and edit music. As you can imagine, our junior high-aged students will be genuinely motivated to create with this particular craft of innovation.

I have had the opportunity to see student faces when they are learning in this new space. The observation is simple. They are smiling. The gift of deep thinking through “making” is that it is really important and sophisticated cognitive work, that happens to also be a whole lot of fun.

In a few weeks, if you see a BCJHS student, ask them what they are “making” right now. I am sure you will see the same smile and will be delighted to hear what they have to share.

We are excited to welcome our parents and community members to experience this new learning space at an upcoming open-house event. Please join us on Tuesday, March 5 anytime from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Brown County Junior High School. We will offer tours of the space and will also have examples of “making” available for your review.

We hope you will join us as we take this very exciting step that genuinely transforms the learning environment.

Laura Hammack is superintendent of Brown County schools. She can be reached at 812-988-6601 or [email protected].