Making in School
​The Neighborhood School uses Project Based Learning in every class. Making happens in classrooms and special fiber art projects are done in the Library. Using looms, students are learning about making and desiging fabric.
Cohort Member
Corinthia Mirasol-Spath
with support from Dyanthe Spielberg
Why did you choose a career in education?
I have always wanted to teach. I have known I wanted to teach since I set up a school in my basement at 11 years old. The way I taught at 11 years old, is not so different from the way I teach now either! The reason I chose a career in teaching is because to me, teaching and play are one in the same. I’m drawn to teaching because it incorporates my interests in play and experimentation. I see everything I do as a form of play. In fact, for me, teaching is the ultimate form of play. You play with materials, ideas and people.
What hobbies or other interests have your brought to your classroom?
In addition to play and experimentation, I especially love building and junk construction. It is a personal favorite from when I used to build my own dollhouses as a child. When I was ten, I built a house entirely out of paper and cardboard for my dolls. In my 11 years of teaching, I’ve built all kinds of structures at school with my students and at home with my daughters. I’ve also worked with kids on a variety of projects: writing stories, performance (plays, dance, songwriting, etc.), video game design, cooking woodworking, knitting, weaving, sewing, etc. Once I even worked with a student to make an airplane that actually flew. It crashed and burned, but for a brief moment it soared. Overall, I think I’ve just brought to my classroom a real appreciation of materials as well as an appreciation for the process involved in making something with one’s hands.
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How do you plan on bringing Making to your students this year?
At The Neighborhood School (TNS) everyone engages in many forms of creative making. For the upper grades (Grades 3-5) we have Project Time. What projects are chosen in each classroom is dependent upon each teacher’s expertise, materials and resources available, students’ interest, units of study or what is developmentally appropriate, among other factors. While Project/ Work Time is a formal time of the day reserved for the children’s own projects, there are also other times of the day in which making is a big part of the work we do— such as in other areas like Social Studies, Reading, Writing, Math, Science, Espanol, Music, Dance, Art, etc.
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Cheryl Wolf
with support from Dyanthe Spielberg
Why did you choose a career in education?
I chose a career as a librarian. I've always felt at home in school.
What hobbies or other interests have your brought to your classroom?
I have always been interested in the blurry lines between art and design, and the fact that everything that is not in nature was made by a human, and that decisions were involved in its creation. I'm especially partial to low-tech crafts, e.g., textiles. I like the idea of helping children cultivate an appreciation for good craftsmanship and beauty.
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How do you plan on bringing Making to your students this year?
I encouraged the students to construct projects using a variety of material based on the themes of our unit studies.
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