Hold up.  Before you ask me what kind of 3d printer to buy, I want to introduce you to something even better. Someone, actually.

Seymour Papert.  Let me guess, if you’re like me, you were NOT introduced to him in your college coursework on education.  Then one day, you discovered his work and started reading it.  Articles dated from around the year you started kindergarten, talking about empowering children to use their creativity and how technology’s role plays into all of that in a beautiful way.

Then you realize this Maker Movement unfolding around us?  It’s so NOT about products. It’s not about the flashy kits and lists of things to order.  In fact, that STUFF is an INSULT to what it really is.  You don’t need tons of expensive stuff or a special room where creativity is allowed.  You need to make the environment, wherever it may be, the kind of place that brings the makerspace OUT of each child.  And to do THAT? You just need to know your kids. What are their needs? What do they like? What are their passions? Empowerment comes out of connecting with kids and then letting them steer the ship.

Sometimes when I write something, a piece of my soul feels moved.  Like a “This is why you are here.”  And I feel like this is it. Creativity matters.  That’s the big picture.   The drones, the robots, the coding, the designing of bracelets that light up, the building of a Lego tower with a windmill that turns, the stuff. The ipad. The laptop. The app. The cardboard. The duct tape. The things.   The tools.    All tools that help us provide and empower kids with what they need to invent, explore, discover, design, make, and create.   And if we order stuff without ever thinking about we’ll empower our kids and our teachers?  We’ve missed out. I know I missed out for years not knowing the work of Seymour Papert.  I’m just glad I found it.  Because it’s never too late to learn.

• Seymour Papert’s Legacy Thinking about Learning and Learning About Thinking
• 30 Years Empowering Children to Be Creative Thinkers
• Teaching Children Thinking (An article from 1970) 
• Gary Stager’s Resources on Seymour Papert