Maker World Program

PS 56 offers a Maker World
program in grades PK – 5.

New in 2021 is our Makerspace/MakerLab. A Makerspace is a place and time for creative exploration, tinkering, engineering, inventing, and purposeful play. Students learn how to do something new, are challenged to explore, problem solve, collaborate with others, work with their hands and minds and think outside the box.  A Makerspace is learner-driven and allows students of all abilities to participate in an inclusive environment that supports individualized learning.

Our MakerLab is a well-appointed, fully staffed, dedicated space where all classes have a scheduled time to work in collaborative groups.  Individual students and small groups are welcomed into the Lab to pursue their own interests and explorations as well.

Walking into our MakerLab, you might see students working on an aeronautics project where they are challenged to make something fly. You might also see students working on robotics and coding, bridge building, weaving on a loom, Lego and K’nex constructions, creating “ball-runs” the length of the hall, electrical circuitry, “free build” projects with upcycled materials, deconstruction explorations, and demonstrations by visiting experts sharing their knowledge. Our MakerLab is an adaptable and dynamic space that is fluid and changing.

Each classroom fosters the “Maker Mindset” as well, by including a Maker area. Classroom challenges that correlate with the curriculum being worked on enables students to see and experience the interrelationship between curriculum areas. 

Educational makerspaces provide authentic preparation for the real world by simulating authentic real world challenges and stimulating opportunities. Our students will develop a wide range of 21st century skills that include flexibility, resiliency, collaboration, oral and written communication, information literacy, technology literacy, social skills, and leadership, in a safe “fail-forward” atmosphere. These in-demand skill sets will prepare our students for future success in a world that is challenging and ever-evolving.