November 2019 Experiential Learning Roundup!

Girls Who Code 6-week program wrapped up in Battle Ground on 11/4. 7 of the original 
9 girls completed all six weeks of the program and were excited for another round of 
programming. 
The weekly projects for Girls Who Code were determined using feedback submitted by 
the girls at each meeting. BG’s program completed the following projects:

Week 1: GIF and website build using Made with Code (language: blockly) and 
Trinket.io (language: HTML)

Week 2: Video Game Design using Make Code (language: Blockly)

Week 3: Video Game Design using Make Code (language: Blockly, Javascript)

Week 4: Video Game Round Robin Testing

Week 5:Game Design in Unity (language: C#)

Week 6: celebrate with friends and family 

BG’s project website: https://gwcclub-wa18616-2019.weebly.com/

We also have 2 adults interested in assisting at the next Girls Who Code in BG.

STEM @ Green Mountain 11/15 I arranged with the community library to host a quarterly 
STEM project at Green Mountain Elementary. November's project: Crappy Robotics for 4th and 
5th graders!

   

Vancouver Community Library's Crappy Robotics Tournament 
11/19  I hosted the 3rd Annual Crappy Robotics Tournament at Vancouver Community 
Library. 45 people attended this program, including one participant who has attended all 
3 years’ of this program at VA. Participant age ranged from 3-45 and we saw a lot of families 
working together, and some siblings working against each other, to build the crappiest robot.
Finding enough chassis for everyone has proven difficult and I am looking into 
creating a simple battery-operated chassis for 2020. The final battle came down to 
Destructo Kitty and the Baconator: 

Stevenson STEM Wednesday 11/13 This month, the 2nd and 4th Wednesday focused on 
using the Edison robots. We incorporated coding the robots for older participants. 
Everyone enjoyed building with LEGOs and having the robots interact with each other and 
people.

11/25 STEM @ Clark County Juvenile Detention Center 
November’s project focused on exploring with Cubelets. We offered 2 sessions, with 15 
students. Their teacher commented that she appreciates how this project was simple enough 
for all students to have success, and complicated enough to provide a unique challenge to 
the more advanced students. The teacher commented that one of the JDC students generally 
doesn’t interact during class, but he was very engaged with today’s activity and she really 
appreciated seeing him open up.

District Partnerships

VR @ Adult Services Training Day. I demonstrated the Oculus Rift and Go during Adult 
Services Training Day. My colleague shared his experience taking the Gos to Outreach 
at an assisted living facility. Several attendees indicated interest in trying out this program.  
The 2 Oculus Gos owned by Program Services have been made into a kit for the branches 
to borrow.

Covered La Center’s 3D Design 11/7 and 3D Printer Certification 11/14. We had a full 
room for 3D Design  (11 people) and Certification (10 people). Ages varied from 12 to 
senior with one group of 3 generations (grandson, daughter, grandpa) certifying together to 
use the printer. 

Fixed Vancouver Community Library’s 3D printer. The glass plate chipped on the corner 
and metal bed mount damaged. I replaced plate with duplicate from dead 3D printer and 
inserted a longer screw to hold the calibration washer in place.

Covered Stevenson’s STEM Wednesday 
11/27. We had 6 people attend this program to play with Edison robots. One 4 year old cried 
when her mother told her they had to leave.

February 2020 Leap Into Science Storytime arranged at all 12 branches.  
A group of us received Leap Into Science last Spring and have arranged to host programs 
at all the branches, taking over a normal storytime during National Leap Into Science 
Week (2/24-29).

Community Partnerships

11/9 Girls in STEM @ Heritage High School (Evergreen School District). 
This is our 2nd year participating in this event. We hosted two 50-minute sessions and 
a project table during lunch. Our 50-minute project focused on building a marble maze
 using the game engine Unity. I built the base assets and scripts for this project ahead 
of time and students focused on working with the tools to get used to the build environment. 
We had a very positive response to this project. 36 students opted in for our session.  We
created custom icons using perler beads in honor of Susan Kare. 250 Girls, boys, 
non-binary individuals, and their parents attended this event, including 3 students from my 
Girls Who Code clubs (Cascade Park and Battle Ground). A colleague from 
Vancouver Community Library and a superstar volunteer assisted.

11/12 PDX Makerspace Coalition meeting @ OMSI 
+ tour of new teen maker lab. The newly formed PDX Makerspace Coalition met for the first 
time. This group is organized by the Portland Youth Builders Organization and is focused 
on sharing maker skills and knowledge with one another and the community. In
 attendance, representatives from MultCoLib and BeavertonLib. I spoke to one of the 
Beaverton librarians in September at OMSI Maker Faire. She indicated she attended my 
OLA/WLA conference session “Make Easy” last April and was inspired to join the 
makerspace workgroup formed at Beaverton library. They hope to open their makerspace 
in January 2020.  The next meeting for this group is February 2020.

We also had the opportunity to tour OMSI’s new teen maker space (partially funded by 
Best Buy). 
This area is free for teens to use, but has limited open hours (mostly after school). 
The space is located on the 2nd floor in the interactive play space. Their 
makerspace features:

Tinker table with passive activities (perler beads, button maker)

Sewing/knitting/crafting supply closet

10 computers loaded with Adobe Creative Suite

Large drawing tablet

3 iMacs (1 for 3D modeling + Ultimaker printer, 2 sound station) 

Green screen

Instruments and Digital Audio Workstations

1 sound booth

11/16 FVRL hosted Washington State Library’s “Makerspace Your School Library” at 
Vancouver Community Library.. 20 teacher librarians attended to learn more about how to 
integrate maker activities and maker spaces into their schools. Hillary Marshall from 
Washougal School District and Craig Seasholes from Dearborn Elementary (Seattle) 
conducted the training. I met Hillary Marshall through the Washougal Community Library
 in 2016. Hillary was just starting out in makerspace activities and I helped her plan  
and conduct activities until Hillary was comfortable leading programs. :). 
In general, most teacher librarians find themselves suddenly in charge of maker tools 
and spaces with little knowledge or training in these tools. Attendees discussed how maker
 tools in schools can help students engage in learning even if they struggle with traditional 
educational structures. Attendees mentioned struggling with giving up some “control” 
over the space and taking a step back from educating to guiding. 
They shared their curated list of maker activities aligned with school standards:
 https://padlet.com/mlarsen4/4chwf5g963hv 

Washougal high school sees ~125 students in their makerspace over lunch breaks.

The attendees discussed the desire to try out STEM tools before committing to them for their 
school. Some places to access STEM tools: 4H/WSU has STEM tubs you can check out. 
Also host summer camps. R. David OMSI and California State Parks has a Skype option 
for classrooms. Microsoft hosts Skype calls with authors in February.  We also discussed 
that FVRL has access to a lot of these tools and could partner with schools to host the
equipment at their school.

We also discussed the option of partnering with the school district to host a ½ day Maker 
Day during teacher professional development days.

I learned about the Hummingbird Kit and think this might be a valuable addition to FVRL’s 
MicroBit set. 

I also learned about the Apple Store Teacher Tuesdays https://www.apple.com/today/pioneerplace/

October 2019 Experiential Learning Roundup!

In October, I attended the ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) Creative Constructor Lab. ISTE inspires the creation of solutions and connections that improve opportunities for all learners by delivering: practical guidance, evidence-based professional learning, virtual networks, thought-provoking events and the ISTE Standards. I learned about the current and trending technologies used in K-12 classrooms and the evolving roles of educators and students interacting with technology. View my full report. 

Programming

Girls Who Code 6-week program at Cascade Park wrapped up on 10/22. 10 of the original 12 girls completed all six weeks of the program and were excited for another round of programming. The weekly projects for Girls Who Code were determined using feedback submitted by the girls at each meeting. CP’s program completed the following projects:

Week 1: GIF and website build using Made with Code (language: blockly) and Trinket.io (language: HTML)

Week 2: Generating art using Trinkiet.io (language: Python with Turtle Module)

Week 3: Custom website using Trinket.io (language: HTML/CSS)

Week 4: Creating music using Incredibox and Earsketch (language: Python). Earsketch lost the songs generated by the participants. When I contacted Earsketch they said there was an issue with their server.

Week 5:Free Design. Students worked in the environment of their choice. Several chose to complete projects within Earsketch, Incredibox, Made with Code.

Week 6: celebrate with friends and family 

Project website: https://gwcclub-wa15574-2019.weebly.com/

The coding program in Goldendale wrapped up.  The group consisted mostly of boys. Participation increased when we moved our project to the Teen Area. Anywhere from 3-8 kids participated in weekly projects. Since we didn’t have a consistent group week-to-week, I focused on one-off programs.

Week 1: GIF and website build using Made with Code (language: blockly) and Trinket.io (language: HTML)

Week 2: Chatbots using Trinket.io (language: Javascript)

Week 3: Game Design using Make Code (language: blockly, Javascript)

Week 4: Creating music using Incredibox...Internet died...we then played Uno

Week 5: Game Design using Unity (language: C#)

Week 6: Coding with Arduino and Wink Robots (language: C/C++)

BG’s Girls Who Code program wraps up the first week of November. 7 of the original 10 girls attend weekly. Our club was also featured in the local newspaper!

District Partnerships

I covered Stevenson’s STEM Wednesday program on 10/9. 25 children and their adults built circuits using Program Services’ circuit blocks. 

I covered Cascade Park’s Preschool Story time on 10/22. 42 kids and their adults participated in a monster-themed story time where we sang spooky versions of normal story time songs. I pulled out the watercolors and let the kids explore this medium to design a spooky landscape. Many adults and children commented that this was their first time exploring watercolor art and they enjoyed the activity.

I worked with Three Creeks to fix their broken 3D printer. The printer stopped randomly during prints. Elizabeth tried to hook the printer up to her laptop, but the printer continued to fail. Aaron took a look at the computer when the printer initially broke. I took VA’s staff printer and tested it on TC’s computer and the printer worked, ruling out an issue with the computer. I left VA’s printer and brought TC’s printer to program services to work on it.  I was able to fix TC’s 3D Printer by flashing the firmware through my Macbook. TC’s printer and VA’s printer have been swapped back.

I worked with several branches in Clark County to create a schedule for the digitization scanner at the branches.  One of my goals is to create some in-depth training documentation.

Community Partnerships

Clark County Juvenile Detention Center: 12 students built scribble-bots using components scavenged from a Dollar Store electric toothbrush, cardboard, and masking tape.  The initial plan to use Unity had to be changed due to the lack of a sufficient quantity of laptops and inability to set up the laptops and have them retain their settings before heading out to the center.

I attended a makerspace librarian meetup on 10/28/19. The group includes Theresa Misenti from Hillsboro, Amy Petit from Portland Community College, Nicole Alger and Sarah Vandehey from Beaverton Public Library, and Desiree WOlcott-Cushman from Multnomah County Library.  We discussed working with laptops, machine maintenance, implementing new technology, and the challenges of driving interest in a physical space.

May 2019 Experiential Learning Round-Up!

Programming
I supported Cascade Park's Repair Cafe on Saturday, 5/4. I facilitated the demonstration of the 3D printer and information on accessing the technology at this branch.  I had great conversations with patrons of all ages about the use and utility of the technology, as well as how patrons can get access to the equipment. The public was very excited to learn about gaining experience with the 3D printer for their own projects. Many of the patrons I spoke to are already certified to use the 3D printer and excited to learn that Cascade Park now has their own Lulzbot Mini.

I partnered with LaCenter to support the monthly outreach visit to Green Mountain Elementary School in the hinterlands of Washington.

I led 6 virtual reality programs utilizing the Oculus headsets

GD: this was an adults-only program. The attendees were very enthusiastic about the technology and assisted each other with the headsets. The attendees had great conversations with one another and built connected communities through their shared interest and experience with the technology. 

Mall: We had our first wheelchair-bound patrons use the headsets during the Mall’s program. It was an interesting experience configuring the Rift for a seated perspective. Feedback from the attendees indicated that they came to the Mall specifically for this program and they chose the Mall location due to the Mall’s status as a transit center for C-Tran.  A patron with chronic pain indicated she enjoyed the headsets as they gave her a distraction from her pain and could have therapeutic benefits in her daily life. Similarly, a patron who was at the library to check out DVDs and stayed for the program indicated he would like an Oculus Go to watch movies on as he has limited mobility and movies are a big part of his life.

BG: We provided the headsets to the public as part of BG’s 10-year celebration. Many members of the community took part in the festivities throughout the building. A lot of seniors tried out the headsets. We did seated experiences in BG as balance was an issue with some of our attendees. Children were very interested in the technology, but most were too young to try out the headsets.  We had a lot of attendees interested in observing others in the headsets and asking questions about the technology and its utility in education and job training.

VA: We had a nice range of ages and experiences during this program. We received the suggestion to make the Oculus Go available for checkout or for in-library use after the formal programming wraps up.  I also made a connection with the Native American Youth and Family Center. We are working on scheduling something before the headsets return to the state library at the end of July.

VA-Medium: We had two participants try out sculpting in Medium. The rest were interested in just trying out the headsets, so we used First Contact. Feedback from Medium was difficulty in mastering the tools in the time available during the program.

WD: All attendees were teens ranging from 13-18. They were very excited and loved working together in the headsets and sharing their experiences with one another.

We hosted our first summer STEM program Mission Control: Mars Rover Challenge at Yale Elementary. Lu, Bonnie, and volunteers Tre and Mary assisted. We led this 1.5 hour program with all 46 students (K-5th grade). This was a great test-run for this program and the kids were engaged and enthusiastic throughout the event.

District Partnerships
The 3D Printing team published the On-Demand 3D printer certification training for the public! https://www.fvrl.org/maker-tools We have scheduled a follow-up meeting to discuss how things are going as a group in September 2019.

I am working with Vancouver to create a resource for patrons to access to learn more about how to use Cricut electronic cutter. Our hope is to get the Cricut out into a public space. IT is having issues getting the plug-in for Cricut Design Space updated on staff computers.

I am working with LaCenter to create engaging STEM-based opportunities for Green Mountain Elementary School. We hope to offer a quarterly STEM program starting in November 2019.

I received a request from Vancouver to support the Juvenile Detention Center Outreach program.  I am scheduling a meeting with the teacher that oversees the JDC program to discuss concerns and issues.

Community Partnerships
I met with the librarian in charge of coordinating the efforts of the Hillsboro Public Library makerspaces at Shute Park and Brookwood.  I toured her around OC and VA and discussed our on-going projects and activities, including our focus on staff-training on maker tools to support the success of our maker initiatives.

Out division met with Clark College’s MESA Program.  MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) is a program designed to increase the number of historically underrepresented community college students who transfer to a university and earn STEM bachelor’s degrees.  Our discussion included supplementing their book collection with needed physical and digital resources. They had an interesting discussion about Lynda.com and getting access to students and faculty. For my part, we discussed potential STEM opportunities for MESA students to gain volunteer experience by assisting at upcoming experiential learning programs. We also discussed upcoming experiential learning programs and providing them for MESA students. We are still working out the potential schedule for these activities.

I participated in the Vancouver School of Arts and Academics Senior Projects panel as a mentor. I met the student, during her time as a 2018 teen volunteer at the library. I assisted the student in making community connections to see her art vending machine project come to life. It was awesome!