In the Classroom: Finding Solutions for Classmates

"My name is Renata Keller and I’m a Kindergarten Teacher at San Pascual STEAM Magnet Elementary in Los Angeles, California.

Our tablets didn't have a stand holder and students were tired of holding them with their hands to complete assignments. So we decided to use Makedo to make cardboard stand holders!

We used a design thinking process as a methodology for creative problem solving. It helps to understand the users (in this case our classmates), identify problems and create innovative solutions. See our design process thinking video showing the five phases—Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test.

Makedo is a great way for students to learn and practice new skills, especially computational thinking which is identified in our curriculum. We use the ISTE Standards for Students. 

• Today’s students must be prepared to thrive in a constantly evolving technological world. The ISTE Standards for Students are designed to empower student voice and ensure that learning is a student-driven process.
• Innovative Designer Students use a variety of technologies within a design process to identify and solve problems by creating new, useful or imaginative solutions.
• Computational Thinker Students develop and employ strategies for understanding and solving problems in ways that leverage the power of technological methods to develop and test solutions.

Oh no! #Kinder is tired of holding their iPads🥺 How can we solve this problem?🤔 We are designers & computational thinkers🤩@Makedo #DesignThinking @ISTESTEM @LisaMLove1996 @christinekdixon #STEAM #MakerSpace #EduTwitter #TeacherTwitter @beekks1 #Recycle #Reuse #SDG15 @lausd_ldc pic.twitter.com/rJIN0sg2JY

— KinderKeller👾 (@kinderkeller4) May 7, 2021

We are always looking for engaging, interactive, hands-on activities. With Makedo we found that the students’ excitement was contagious. They felt successful and proud to solve a problem for their classmates. Now they want to show other grades how to design a stand holder for their tablets as well!

Makedo is a simple tool that can be used to bring forth students’ 4 Cs skills: communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking. Best of all, every school has plenty of cardboard boxes, so you won't need to spend any money buying supplies. You will be surprised with your students' creativity if you give them the Makedo tools and let them come up with designing ideas."

Thanks to Renata and her clever students for sharing their Makedo classroom experience. You can find more from them on Twitter: @kinderkeller4

Are you an educator using Makedo in the classroom? We'd love to hear all about your creative learning adventures.
Educators are invited to upload here.