The past seven weeks I have been guided on an amazing journey. Dr. Bigenho stated, “For some, this new may have even been a bit scary or uncomfortable as you were asked to journey outside your immediate comfort-zone.” He was not joking! I have been stressed, overwhelmed, terrified, and extremely uncomfortable, but once I embraced the struggle and maker spirit, what I learned from this course is life changing. Throughout my journey, I continued to remind myself that without struggle there is no progress. Struggling is where I learn and grow the most, so I will embrace the challenges and struggles in which I did. I want to thank all my peers for being a part of this journey. Each and every one of you were truly a blessing.
What was the build that you are most proud of and why?
The build I am most proud of is the Iron Challenge build using the servo, photo resister, LEDs, and the buzzer. I am most proud of that build because I knew what I wanted and I didn’t settle for “easy.” I continued to work through all the failures with the circuit and coding until I created the build I had envisioned. I was also able to incorporate a Christmas scene into my build and that made me happy. I was passionate about the project and determined to find a way to make the vision for my build a reality. GRIT!
Go back to your first week and read each week’s submission with an eye for personal growth. Where were you when you started and where did you end up?
As I went back and reviewed my blog for personal growth as each week progressed, I was reading week one and couldn’t help but think, “You poor girl!” I was terrified and so unsure of myself. I struggled to the point of having major anxiety and working with the code for hours trying to get two LEDs blinking. As the weeks progressed I began to embrace the struggles and that is when fear and anxiety turned into a challenge and determination. It was the beginning of week five while looking back while completing Retrospective of Week 4 that I became annoyed with myself and finally had a break through. I had finally realized that being a part of the maker movement is about sharing and learning from others instead of thinking I had to do everything on my own. It was at that point that I truly embraced the challenges, struggles, failures, and I started to grow and embrace the “maker” spirit.
What did you learn that you didn’t know before?
I have learned many things I didn’t know before throughout these seven weeks. I learned what the “Maker Movement” actually is. I had heard about maker spaces but I had no idea what it consisted of other than making things. While I still struggle and work through my failures until I get it right, I can now use C++! Coding has always terrified me and knowing that I have the determination to work through the errors makes me proud of my accomplishment. I am proud to now consider myself a maker and I am also excited to have the opportunity to help others find the maker in them also. Before this class I had never heard the word Ardunio and now I enjoy the challenges it brings and the success and fulfillment I have when I complete the build and it works! I also learned the many benefits a maker space can provide for students. I firmly believe students should have the opportunity to be part of the maker movement and to be part of something bigger than go to school to work toward the standardized tests. Students should have the opportunity to enjoy student led learning with choice, the opportunity to express themselves creatively, and the independence needed to engineer, make, build, and explore.
How did you actually come to learn this new knowledge?
I learned this new knowledge through the many challenges laid before us by Dr. B. He did not spoon feed us what we needed to know, he provided challenges and put the learning in our hands. I also learned a lot from my peers. Reaching out to one another for support and help troubleshooting was a great experience.
What did you learn about yourself?
The personal growth I have made over these seven weeks surprised me. I learned that it is okay to fail, but take that failure, learn from it and try again. I also learned that I have GRIT! This challenges, failures, and successes I have made during these past few weeks have shown me that I can take challenges that terrify me and with determination I can achieve what I set my mind to achieve. I completed challenges I never thought were possible.
Where did you say your challenges where?
At the beginning of the class I was my biggest challenge. It took me getting to the point where I wanted to throw the Arduino (coding reasons) until I realized I was not in this alone. Once I realized I could reach out to other makers for support and ideas I began to embrace the maker inside and my outlook changed. Other than myself, coding was the major challenge for me. I will continue to learn and feel more comfortable with coding with time and practice.
Did these challenges change over the time of the class?
The challenges did change over time of the class. I gain confidence in my maker ability and embraced the challenges. It finally got through my head that without struggle there is no progress. I am not afraid to work with the coding as I was at the beginning of the course and in that I am thankful.
As you entered the world of the maker, what do you see as your next adventure in the world of making? Is it to expand your abilities to work with microprocessor and move from prototype to the production of something fun and useful? Is it to see what you can learn about the world of 3D design and printing? Is it to see what aspects of making can be used with the younger children? It is to see what you need to do to bring your vision of a maker space to life in the real world? It can be anything.
My next adventure in the world of making is to expand my abilities to work with the Arduino and create many fun and useful things. I can see one problem being that I will need to buy more Arduino's because when I take apart the builds that I am so proud of, a piece of myself goes with it. I need a collection of my builds. 😊 I have not had the heart to take apart my last build and since it does have a Christmas scene I will display it and buy myself more time until I buy another Arduino. Thinking about it, probably not because I want to design, build, and play through Christmas break.
What are your next steps?
My next steps are to play with the Arduino and create all the wonderful projects I have come across during the past few weeks. I am going to also complete some craft projects that I have been putting off. I want to make things! Once I have a classroom of my own I will create a makerspace in my classroom and propose to the administration the need for a maker space in the school. I believe all schools need a maker space!
"Making is fundamental to what it means to be human. We must make, create and express ourselves to feel whole. There is something unique about making physical things. These things are like little pieces of us and seem to embody portions of our souls"
~Mark Hatch The Maker Movement Manifesto
