This story originally appeared on KWBU.
Inside the library at Speegleville Elementary, about 15 kindergartners gather around a table for an activity. The children are working against a backdrop of familiar library fixtures: a collection of World Book Encyclopedias, A to Z, reading nooks, and a 3-D printer.
That’s right, a 3-D printer.
There’s also a wooden workbench filled with tools like hammers, screwdrivers and pliers – and don’t forget the tub full of kid-friendly wires and circuits. These hands-on materials are popping up in school and community libraries across the country as the so-called makerspace movement takes hold. Christie Hancock, a teacher and librarian at Speegleville who applied for a $4,000 grant to create the makerspace, explains.
“Makerspaces is kind of a maker-movement, where people are making things with their hands,” Hancock says….
