littleBits Pro Library

Photo Credit Ultra-lab www.flickr.com/photos/62141688

Last fall, Spring Hill Elementary was awarded a WVDE SPARK grant to support STEM/ STEAM initiatives in West Virginia schools.  The grant was utilized to purchase the littleBits Pro Library as an integral feature of the reimagined library/ maker space at Spring Hill Elementary.  

John Spencer defines a maker space as "simply a space designed and dedicated to hands-on creativity."  This project helps to establish a space for the students of SHE that will foster the generation of ideas, problem-solving, ingenuity and innovation.  

Included in the maker space are enrichment opportunities for creating digital and physical products which support science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics.  Other areas of impact include development of communication skills requiring listening, speaking, writing. and reading, design and creativity, and responsible digital technology citizenship.  

More making opportunities in schools leads to a maker mindset, which is essential to the 21st Century learning experience.  According to John Spencer, a maker mindset develops students skills to revise, pivot, change, and persevere.  By embedding a maker space within the library at Spring Hill Elementary, students will be engaged in creative thinking connected to content, experiencing a greater depth of knowledge, solving complex and real-world problems.

To read more about STEM in education, check out this excellent Forbes article, When STEM Becomes STEAM, We Can Change the Game featuring friend and colleague, Dr. Jenny Nash!