Take Apart Day, Trenton Public Schools Meeting, and Upcoming Board of Education Meeting

Happy 2017 Everyone!

Apologies for not posting in a while. A few weeks ago, the Maker Ambassadors had their annual Take Apart Day. On this day, we took apart numerous electronics, ranging from heaters, to PCs, to digital clocks! We had a lot fun meticulously unscrewing and jacking open the electronics. We also learned a lot about how the machines work and how their individual parts allowed them to function as a whole.

We also met teachers from the Trenton Public Schools District a little while after Take Apart Day. CMS NüYü, a Community Problem Solving group that's using mindfulness to tackle stress in our local area, was also there to give an overview of they were doing. We, as Maker Ambassadors, really got to showcase our accomplishments and the powerful message that we're spreading: to empower students to use empathy to solve meaningful design thinking problems. Apologies for no pictures currently. I will post them soon. 


Here are some additional photos from EdCamp from a while ago: 

Stay tuned, as we will have a meeting on the 21st with our local Board of Education. We will be presenting what we do as Maker Ambassadors and our message as well! We will post soon after the meeting. 

EdCamp New Jersey

Edcamp New Jersey was a fun and interesting experience. I got to meet a lot of teachers from all over New Jersey and the surrounding states. This was my first EdCamp, and it really made a good first impression on me. I also go to other professional development days as well to teach teachers. However, I had never experienced a PD day this massive until now. I could literally feel the energetic atmosphere coming from the teachers as they milled around in the cafeteria and in the Makerspace in the gym. As I saw the car plates from New York and Connecticut, I realized how eager the teachers were to come to learn at EdCamp, and how some teachers came from really far away just to learn at Edcamp. I could tell that all of the teachers were really excited about improving their teaching experience and their classrooms as well.
EdCamp is definitely the best professional development day event that I have gone to so far. The event was organized really well, and I got to learn how other teachers teach. All the teachers that I met had different personalities, and that ties into how they teach. I loved this diversity. More importantly, I got to spread the mission and the community engagement and impact that my school's Makerspace has on our local community. It was really nice to be part of a team that is passionate about creating and using the Maker Mindset to help spark innovation and creativity in others.
Overall, EdCamp was really fun. Even though I didn't eat anything in the four or so hours since I was presenting almost all the time, I really enjoyed the time I spent at EdCamp. It was time well spent.
Shoutouts to Dr. MC and Dr. Aderhold for being such great supporters!

Halloween Hack Preparations

The Maker Ambassadors are planning away for the Halloween Hack. Teachers and students, we hope that you will join us and be inspired by the awesome maker activities designed by the students!

Don't forget to register!

Dutch Neck Science Day 2016

A band of Community Middle School Maker Ambassadors facilitated a makerspace for elementary school students on Friday, April 22. They designed the learning experiences for students attending their five sessions and focused on the maker mindset, empathy, creativity, and learning from failure. Great job makers! I am proud of you for sharing your love of innovation and creative talent development with the young makers in our community! 

Maker Fridays

littleBits Tutorial

Halloween Hack 2015

I don't try to explain makerspaces or Maker Faire.  I just get people to come visit and experience them. -Dale Dougherty 

The Maker Ambassadors did an absolutely fantastic job selecting maker projects for our Halloween Hack and sharing them with the entire school. It was a great day of learning and applying our understanding of science to new tasks. We even had a chance to virtually tour Mr. Jarrett's STEM classroom through a Google Hangout and physically hang out with the district's technology resource team.  

Thank you makers, big and small, who came to support the Halloween Hack!