What is a Digital Maker Faire?

“All of us are Makers”                             

       ~ Dale Dougherty

In the spirit of the Maker Faire and DIY (Do it Yourself) movements, all conference participants are invited to collaborate on the making of artifacts and to write about and digitally document the process.  This will be fun, and it will allow us to explore the connections between making and writing through hands-on projects and shared reflection.  Conference attendees are encouraged to bring a digital camera or smart phone for documentation and sharing. 

But why do this at a conference?  What’s the take-away?

As documented in the work of Henry Jenkins, Jessica Parker and Mimi Ito, youth want to hang out, mess around, and geek out, and they are doing this increasingly through digital platforms.  Just check out youtube and you will discover an explosion of mash-ups, remixes and original compositions.  Our students want to learn, and they are most engaged as learners when provided with peer-driven and interest-driven opportunities to create content.

As educators, we need to engage with creative and digital experiences if we are going to integrate them into our teaching.  Fortunately, we’ll have some creative youth on hand to help us do this at the conference.

All artifacts from the Digital Maker Faire will be posted on this website, along with a documentary of the collaborative process. 

Register for the Conference