A Montessori

Much as I would like to see the concept of making and the ideas from the Makerspace in every classroom, having a space with all of the equipment open at a commonly available time (such as lunch in our case) has some really big gains for students. I will try to list as many as possible. Recently, I was remarking to someone that it was like running a montessori – students from ages 6 through 11, students with various aptitudes and talents and interests and the same materials available to each student.  Why is it such a big deal to have this mixed age group together?

Firstly, it breaks down the artificial barriers. When a student sits in a particular classroom, he/she has no idea what goes on in another even at the same grade level, leave alone others. In this space, the students are very aware of all of the different activities going on around them, even though he/she may be focussed on one.

Next, each student is able to gather ideas from another. Even though several students come into the Maker Studio with a friend, they tend to observe the other activities in progress and pick up ideas. Younger students are able to give ideas to the older ones and each other and vice versa. There is tremendous amount of sharing that takes places across artificial boundaries.

Due to this collaborative nature of ideas, students challenge themselves to take risks as well as challenge themselves to the next level of exploration and learning. It is simply fascinating to watch – no matter what the age, no matter whether shy or bold, no matter whether fluent or not with English, and no matter whether a student settled into the school or a new student (we get new students throughout the year and this is their safe haven), I have seen this behavior of curiosity demonstrated consistently.

Empathy – one of the most important traits that we want our students to develop – is demonstrated in abundance again, across genders, age groups, ethnicities and language. It is absolutely astounding to watch.

And finally, a sense of accomplishment because the students are pushing themselves to explore new territories successfully.

If you are considering opening a Makerspace or have one, and do not have a multi-age approach, I strongly suggest you look into opening it up. I promise you, you will not regret it.