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Plan a Maker Event, Science Fair, or Entrepreneur Day: Engaging & Connecting Students to School Relevance

Inflexion January 16, 2021
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Three smiling, older elementary school students holding certificates and standing in front of their respective science fair poster-board displays.

All knowledge is connected to all other knowledge. The fun is in making the connections.

– Arthur Aufderheide

INTRO

Involving students in the process of hosting a school event (such as a maker event, science fair, or entrepreneur day) helps them make relevant connections between what they learn and school and how it applies to life outside of school. This also provides opportunities for cross-curricular activities and projects to also help students synthesize their learning across content areas.

THINK skills and behaviors are often grounded in critical thinking and inquiry. Examples include: ideation, creativity, innovation, and design thinking. Ultimately, THINK is about approaching situations and ideas with versatile and intentional thinking patterns.

OBJECTIVES

  • Brainstorm and start planning for how your school can host an event that connects what’s being taught in school with life beyond school

  • Involve students in the process to really ensure the event is relevant to them and that they’re engaged

RESOURCE LINKS

ACTIVITY

  • Host an event that is exciting for your students, reflects your school culture, and can become an annual process that students look forward to and take ownership in planning and implementing.

  • Plan and implement a school-wide or whole-grade maker event, science fair, or entrepreneur day, and have students develop projects for the event in a specific course.

TIPS

  • Key Moves are efforts that require a bit of planning, but can be implemented within the next 3-6 months
  • Like this activity? Check out Inflexion’s full-page THINK document for more ideas.
Categories: Rituals & Routines
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