It's All in How You Make It: Maker Stations- at HOME???

It's All in How You Make It: 

Maker Stations - at HOME????

Our daughter teaching us how to play a 

game she created from items in her maker station.

For about half of my public school career, I worked as a library media specialist.  One of the major buzz words in all of my trainings and in-services at that time was "maker stations".  If you haven't had much experience in library situations or library programs, this may be a new term for you.  A maker station is basically an area of materials for students to create or make something.  Sometimes maker stations are very controlled and provide materials for a specific goal (like make a musical instrument) while other maker stations are very open-ended.  When I began homeschooling my daughter, I decided to implement a maker station in our house!  This sounds like a crazy idea for including at home, but it has been a major success!

One of the things about maker stations is to have items to make something- go figure! 😜. The other big portion is having a designated area.  I put a small table in our office and put a pretty box shaped basket on top for materials.  My daughter has other designated areas for materials like markers, crayons, scissors, and glue.  This area is just for materials that are ever changing.  Since making this basket a few years ago, I constantly have to refill items because she makes things daily!

The great thing about my maker station is that funding it has been totally free!  I know this sounds hard to believe, but I truly have NEVER purchased anything for her maker station. All of the items in the basket are repurposed items- think recyclables or things you often just throw away such as the packaging in boxes, empty toilet paper rolls, old containers (washed first), even junk mail!  One of her absolute favorite items placed in the maker station basket is the packaging that comes with one of my husband's supplements.  It's made of hinged cardboard, and makes perfect puppets!

When we first started the maker station, my husband and I would pull from it when making things with her, but soon she started using it totally on her own.  She even will add items to the basket that have potential (like empty paper towel rolls or pieces of string).  

It's been quite amazing and intriguing to see what all our daughter creates through her maker station. Even though maker stations are often used for collaboration in classroom settings, we have seen our daughter problem solve, invent, create her own costumes, and even make her own toys.  Anyone that knows her knows she is ALWAYS making something!  We laugh in our house because of all the random created items you can find in each room.

What I love the most about maker stations (besides it not costing a thing) is that she is always thinking and coming up with new ideas.  Often we will be in a room and she will get up and run to her maker station with a new plan in her head.  Although, I will admit I get frustrated with all the cardboard trails around the house sometimes 😉, it is pretty awesome to see our little inventor at work.  If you ever visit our house, don't be surprised to find a piece of scotch tape stuck to the bottom of your shoe (from one of her inventions)!

You can implement a maker station at anytime, just make sure to train your child about the purpose, and even guide them on creating a few items at first.  You may even want to set some goals like "make an item that can fly" or "make a mask" the first few times before you let them have free play to create.  Honestly, our maker station probably gets more playtime than most of her toys!

Here are some item ideas that we have used:

- cardboard pieces

- string

- rubber bands

- toilet paper rolls

- paper towel rolls

- scrap paper 

- old copies (or any one sided papers)

- old stationary

- the envelopes that come with paper bills (we often pay online and don't use them)

- old magazines

- tags off clothing and toys (especially when they have characters on them)

- small boxes or containers (from makeup, vitamins, or even toothpaste)

- leftover ribbon from gifts

- wrapping paper scraps (she LOVES this because of the prints)

- paper bags

- paper plates

- packaging pieces 

- junk mail

- stickers from items

- old file folders

- egg cartons

- small pieces of wax paper or foil

This list is just to give you some ideas to get started- the possibilities are endless! 

Here are some other photos of a few of our daughter's creations after implementing our maker station:

Side Note: As I was writing this blog post, my daughter was talking about how I sometimes "create" things on the computer.  She wanted to know if that was what it means in the Bible when it talks about God creating the world out of nothing.  I explained how I'm not really creating from "nothing", and how I have tools on the computer.  This brief teachable moment gave me an opportunity to share with my daughter about our Creator.  It's amazing the opportunities God provides to us to teach our children in everyday moments.  We just must be diligent to take those opportunities He provides...it's all in how HE makes it. 😉

Revelation 4:11

“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”