MOBILE FAB LAB TO ENHANCE LEARNING FOR YOUNG STUDENTS
ox Chapel Area FOX CHAPEL AREA SCHOOL NEWS
The framing of the mobile Fab Lab was delivered in late April . High school students from the technology education department completed the construction and outfitted the inside of the mobile lab .
MOBILE FAB LAB TO ENHANCE LEARNING FOR YOUNG STUDENTS
Made Possible by The Grable Foundation
Fab Labs , developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ( MIT ), are digital fabrication laboratories set up to inspire people and entrepreneurs ( and students !) to turn their ideas into new products and prototypes by giving them access to advanced digital manufacturing technology . Thanks to a grant from The Grable Foundation , Fox Chapel Area High School students have designed and built a mobile Fab Lab that has been outfitted with the latest technological equipment . It will be used within the district for elementary students , as well as shared with other schools . Justin Papariello , Fab Lab manager , led Fox Chapel Area High School engineering and other technology education students in equipping the mobile Fab Lab in a tiny house in partnership with 84 Lumber Tiny Living .
“ We think the Fox Chapel Area School District is the first to put a Fab Lab in a tiny house ,” said Mr . Papariello . The frame of the house was prefabricated and was delivered at the end of April . The students worked on everything else , from windows to siding to electrical wiring . Additionally , while outfitting the Fab Lab , they were required to create unique solutions for space confinement . As a result , they built objects that can be used for other things , such as a table that can be converted into a chair and / or a desk . “ This hands-on , student-driven project
22 Fox Chapel Area is known as an ‘ authentic ’ learning experience ,” according to Mr . Papariello . The inside of the tiny house includes everything people would normally find in a Fab Lab – 3-D printers , CNC machines , laser engravers , vinyl cutters , computers , and other pieces of technological equipment .
Deputy Superintendent David McCommons , Ed . D ., recently visited the high school students while they were working on the mobile Fab Lab . “ Empowering students to utilize learning from all content areas to create something as powerful as a mobile Fab Lab is very special ,” he said . “ Our students were wiring , soldering ,
Students installed graphics on the mobile Fab Lab door .