St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Elementary School has created a dedicated makerspace to encourage creative experiential learning.
“Creating this type of space at St. Ignatius has been brought up before, and this year we were finally in a position to bring that to life,” said Michael Breadner, vice-principal of St. Ignatius. “We are envisioning a space that evokes creativity in students and feels like a learning lab. A place to create, to experiment and to try. To learn from our mistakes just as much as our successes. We also hope that this space helps support teaching staff from a logistical standpoint. Pivoting between a variety of subjects in once singular space can be a challenge and we hope this will ease some of that.”
The school community has come together to make this vision a reality.
“Students and family of staff have helped with the unboxing and assembly of items, organizing things etc.,” said Breadner. “The room is being repainted to help with two things - firstly, the room will become a brighter space because we are increasing the light reflection value, and secondly, we are incorporating a combination of school colours and a modern industrial feel to help get students in the mindset of making.”
With the makerspace coming together nicely, the room is already working well as a space for some STEM clubs and the staff members who have become involved in coaching these clubs and teams.