| MakeDo is a reusable cardboard construction system that students can use to engineer and perfect structures using plastic tools. 1. It’s open-ended and includes plastic screws, screwdrivers, and a saw. |
MakeDo is loved by many and serves as an easy-to-use STEAM tool in and out of the classroom. It is a collection of construction tools, including screws, screwdrivers, and a saw, that students can use for building with cardboard. They’re totally reusable, which often inspires and educates students on the importance of reusing and upcycling while creating. Most importantly, they’re totally safe, designed specifically for little hands, and conform to global safety standards. Students and children as young as four years old can use MakeDo with assistance from an adult and those over six can invent independently!
The ‘Safe-Saw’ has two edges for cutting both thick and thin cardboard and a hole puncher for inserting the ‘Scru.’ The Scru can connect up to three layers of cardboard together when paired with the ‘Scrudriver’ for easy turning. There’s also a ‘Scru XL,’ which is designed to connect up to six layers of cardboard together! With these components that come in the MakeDo kits, you’ll be able to safely cut, fold, punch a hole, and join cardboard together. And, you can find even more tools on Thingiverse, like an angle bracket and a hinge that you can 3D print!
MakeDo has put together lists of projects and design thinking ideas to inspire creation with their tools and cardboard. Project ideas include a tower, shelters, mazes, domes, costumes, bridges, mechanisms, machines, and animals! The design thinking ideas include something for students to build that they can carry, sit on, ride in, wear, or hide in. Once they get more proficient, they can graduate to inventing something that can move or fly or something that is living, soft. Super creative kids could even try creating something that’s needed in their home, school, or community!
One of our past EdTech grant recipients and Teachers of the Month, Mary Ledford, had her students build literary food trucks with MakeDo in her library! Students designed food trucks out of cardboard, MakeDo components, and other craft materials to showcase books centered around diversity and inclusivity. This is certainly one of the most ingenious projects we’ve seen, but, we encourage you to try to top it and share your MakeDo inventions with us on social media by tagging @Eduporium!
Whether you’re already using MakeDo or are looking for insight into whether it is the right tool for your students, we hope this blog gave you some helpful tips for moving forward! You can find the MakeDo product line, including the individual kits and classroom packs, on our store (below). If you have any questions or would like to make a purchase, please let us know! Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter as well for more EdTech Tips & Tricks!
