1. Maker culture in education¶
This week I worked on learning the processes or documenting with the fabcloud platform and using the vinyl cutter.
Vinyl Cutting¶
In the past, I’ve used Cricut vinyl cutting machines but this is my first time using a machine without it’s own design environment. I went through the process of creating artwork in Adobe Illustrator and setting the art itself up for use with the vinyl cutter.
Gallery¶
Reflection¶
How does this process relate to what you are teaching in the classroom? Students will be creating their own stickers to decorate their project storage bins.
How does this project inspire you? I noticed when grading some of my students’ portfolio websites that the ways in which they present themselves through design has a big impact on what I think about them. I feel as though my students will learn a little more about me when they look at the sticker that I’ve designed, and I’m inspired to give my students more opportunities to express themselves in my class.
Shortly describe an educational activity in which you could use a vinyl cutter. Explain how would you implement each one of the steps of the design process model explained in the Master Class. Do not forget to discuss about learning outcomes. In our Digital Design and Fabrication class, we will be decorating our project bins using vinyl. Students will first locate images that they feel represent themselves, then learn how to import that image into Adobe Illustrator. From there they will image trace if needed, and create outlines for any text so that the font is supported on the computer connected to the vinyl cutter itself. I really enjoy the process of making images from the internet work for our purposes because I feel like it builds digital resourcefulness.
In which part of the digital fabrication continuum would you feel more comfortable? Why? I feel most comfortable making with my kids. It brings me a lot of joy to help students work with new materials and tools for the first time. It’s also a personal joy to withhold my judgment beyond the technical details so I can give my students more agency over their final projects.