Getting Started

The first step to planning a collaborative project in the Innovation Lab is to touch base with Kara Gehring.  Send a quick email, catch up when we see you in the hallway or when  we all may be together in an outdoor campus space like carpool or recess. For students, please send an email (or have your homeroom teacher / advisor send an email) directly to makerspace@hawken.edu to make an appointment to plan your project. 

Ideation

The second step is to brainstorm and identify student objectives, timeframe, goals, materials, audience, etc. This can be captured and documented with the Project Planning Vision Board. We will usually get this template started for you, but clicking the link will generate your own personal copy. Rename, save and share this template with us. This template can be shared with you, your teaching team, Division Directors, department chairs, interested parents, etc to loop others into your idea. 

Prototype

A prototype is a simple proof of concept of an idea. This step is key in working through the experience your students will have when trying to design and build the idea. It allows us to identify safety needs, pinchpoints, source materials, possible assessment and presentation of learning; plan out a budget for the project, estimate time-to-completion, and build skillsets with new machines. With the Project Planning Vision board started, we can begin to flesh out the project with notes, images, and links to generate an overall concept and eventually a prototype.  Creating a prototype will also help your students visualize the concept. 

Production

Utlize your preferred Design Process to walk students through the brainstorm, sketch, refinement, and (when applicable) digital design of the project. 

Once machine-based production is ready, we will work together to create a production timeline that will most likely involve remote fabrication, possible video stream of the production, and a pick up option for your students, or complete any possible steps outside on the Lab patio. 

Safety is an important part of any lab work. We will point you and your class to prepared safety videos, training, machine information, and guidelines as each project utilizes its own unique machine and tool set. 

Showcase

Determine an authentic showcase opportunity for students to celebrate their work, present their learning, and invite others to see their process. Our hope: Document the learning experience with photos, artifacts, and a brief summary of the project. We have provided a template on the Project Vision Board for collecting student work examples; but know there are many ways to share and show this experience. Occasionally, we will also post a longer write up of project work to our project blog  for more external audiences.