This is a list of suggested titles for the elementary school library’s “Maker Space”.
Breen, Steve Violet the Pilot. New York: Dial Books, 2008.
Mechanically inclined Violet builds an airplane and enters an airshow in hopes of impressing her class mates. Included because the book contains paper airplane designs which can be copied and used for maker projects.
Mechanically inclined Violet builds an airplane and enters an airshow in hopes of impressing her class mates. Included because the book contains paper airplane designs which can be copied and used for maker projects.
- Diana, Carla. Leo the Maker Prince: Journeys in 3D Printing.
Leo the robot has the magical ability to create anything (in plastic)
that Carla draws. An imaginative fictional tale that is also
an excellent introduction to 3D printing.
Argueta, Jorge. Salsa: Un poema para cocinar. Toronto, ON: Groundwood, 2015
A boy and his sister make salsa while dancing to salsa music, imagining that each ingredient is a part of an orchestra. Included because it incorporates the art and skill of cooking with music and literacy, while encouraging bilingual learning.
Argueta, Jorge. Salsa: Un poema para cocinar. Toronto, ON: Groundwood, 2015
A boy and his sister make salsa while dancing to salsa music, imagining that each ingredient is a part of an orchestra. Included because it incorporates the art and skill of cooking with music and literacy, while encouraging bilingual learning.
- Fleming, Laura. Worlds of Making: Best Practices for
Practical strategies for designing a school-based maker space on any budget. Included as a reference for both teachers and librarians on a fixed or frozen budget.
- Doorley, Rachel. Tinkerlab: A Hands-on Guide for Little
Problem solving and hands-on experiments for the littlest makers. Included because of the array of projects that use everyday materials that young children are familiar with.
- Spires, Ashley. The Most Magnificent Thing. Toronto: Kids Can
A young girl learns to persevere while she struggles with her latest invention. This book will teach perseverance and the trial and error process to young makers of early elementary age.
- Ortiz, Raquel M. Sofi and the Magical Musical Mural. Texas:
A picture book story of a young girl drawn into a magical mural and the adventures that ensue. Included because it introduces students to community art and inspires community maker projects.
- Gabrielson, Kurt. Tinkering: Kids Learn by Making Stuff.
A guide for keeping the tinkering projects fresh and consistent for the littlest makers. Included because it addresses the importance of maintaining standards in a maker space as well as outcome-based learning strategies.
- Valk, Laurens. The LEGO Mindstorms EV3 Discovery Book.
A beginner-friendly guide to building real working robots. Included because of the popularity of LEGOs among elementary students and the extremely detailed instructions with large colorful illustrations.
- Todd, Sylvia. Sylvia’s Super Awesome Project Book: Super
This book combines all aspects of STEM, to teach rocketry, robotics, coding and electronics. Included because of the original and highly imaginative project ideas that are geared toward students who want to make musical instruments or rocket ships.
- Angleberger, Tom. Darth Paper Strikes Back. New York: Harry N.
An origami ginger puppet of Yoda comes to life and delivers excellent advice to a young boy. An imaginative fiction story about a popular maker space craft.