TinkerEDU

As schools, libraries and community centers become hotbeds for maker spaces, fablabs and tinkering zones, there is a real need to train and support the those who are delivering programs from those spaces. Your partners at Tinker Camp know that it is not enough to buy a 3D printer or soldering iron. There must be skilled mentors and a well thought-out curricular program behind it all, guiding decisions and implementation. It is essential that strong programming and curricular design is developed right alongside creative and cutting edge spaces.

Tinker Camp consultant-educators have the experience and understanding that comes from working in formal and non-formal learning environments, and currently support a variety of organizations that are in the same making and tinkering sphere as you. We provide individuals, schools and organizations custom coaching options for training, developmental support, and educational strategies. Our expertise is not just theoretical because Tinker Camp consultant-educators also practice in our camps and community enrichment programs. Not only can we develop your skills and in-depth understanding of how to use tinkering and making as an educational tool, we also can show you the power of Tinker Camp's unique narrative-based teaching philosophy.

Tinker EDU Meetup: Tinker Camp is sponsoring a meetup, through Meetup.com, where you can meet other teachers, educators and parents and informally chat about tinkering and making. Access to this group is free. Simply sign up and be a part of the group.

Tinkering Workshops for Educators: With over 30 years of combined classroom experience in pre-k through post-secondary environments, the Tinker Camp consultant-educators have a clear understanding of the needs and pressures that you experience every day. Our workshops are designed to inspire you and to provide real skills, ideas and strategies so you can easily make tinkering and making possible in any classroom or learning environment. These workshops provide a mixture of hands-on experiences, instruction and philosophical background, along with tools, materials and support. And whether your program is in a library, community center or school, your consultant-educator will be there to provide ongoing coaching.

Tinkering Program Design: Tinker Camp's narrative based tinkering experience provides an engaging context for children to learn and explore. Where some tinkering experiences focus on a particular product or skill, we believe that the reason or context for tinkering is just as important. By developing intriguing and dynamic narratives, your students will not only gain skills, but will also make deeper connections to the work and to their fellow campers. Tinker Camp consultant-educators practice this technique and can help you bring a program that fits the needs of your unique community and enriches the experience. We also use Design Thinking strategies to create the initial program and will back you up with ongoing program support.

Embedding: The embedded program is a little like a boot camp. We have, as you may have read, a mature program that allows kids to build essential mindsets, like tenacity and courage, so they can become successful in a STEM-intense future.We do this by offering a material-rich, open tinkering studio over which we layer a narrative or story. These camps also serve as a lab wherein we observe and refine our practice.

From our embedding program, you could come away with a better understanding of:

  • How to turn learning targets or sections into a narrative
  • The techniques of co-learning with children
  • The benefits of student-driven learning
  • The essentials of circular review
  • How to apply making to non-making instruction
  • How trust applies to empowering students
  • How chaos has a positive place in the classroom
    And
  • Like no other training you will receive, you will train with experienced educators in a classroom full of real kids.
Embedding is like boot camp because, although inexpensive, it requires a significant amount of time. Once you have committed to embedding, we ask that you attend the entire camp session -- up to 5 full days. You will also attend all of the post session reviews, where you will get one-on-one advice from the instructors. It can be very intense. Once you have completed your program, any teacher that you recommend (and hopefully mentor) will receive a 10% discount on their embedding. You truly will never have training quite like this.

Please contact us for free initial consultation.