Organization for Classroom

[coffeechug]

I am working on a new piece for my blog to help educators with organization of parts and pieces. In almost every workshop I do with physical computing and coding this question comes up,

"What methods of organization have other teachers used to keep all of their equipment organized in a manner for easy access and so students are integrated without losing everything?"

Curious what your methods are? Pictures would be great if you have them as well!

[kcl1s]

I have been doing stem programs at our local public library as a volunteer for over 3 years. I teach Arduino wiring / coding and 3D design and printing along with other stem topics. We do the programs in a multi-use room so storage and portability are key. We picked up 2 of these wood topped mobile workbenches at Home Depot https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-46-in ... /206839475 They are sturdy, easy rolling and have lots of storage. They are easily rolled to a storage room when they interfere with other programs.

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I have more photos and more about organizing but they have a photo per post limit so I will add posts.

Keith Lohmeyer
Volunteer Tech Instructor
Bridgeville Delaware Public Library

[kcl1s]

In the Electronics cart we have components for 10 Arduino labs. Rather than have experimenter style kits with all the parts in a box we have bulk storage for the components and only pull out the parts for that class lesson and put them in little bins. It is a little extra work getting the parts out but it is less distractions for the students and easier to keep parts from walking out the door.

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Keith

[kcl1s]

We only use 2 values of resistors in our Arduino labs ( 220 and 10k ). We teach them how to read the resistor values using the color bars but for convenience I found bulk resistors with different body colors (tan and blue) to make it easy for troubleshooting and putting them away.

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I designed 3D printed stands to hold the servo and hobby motor. It makes a stable platform for the moving parts. A little 3D printed cap hot glued over the motor wires keeps them from getting broken off.

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Keith

[kcl1s]

The rolling workbench holds all of the Arduino lab parts as well as room for parts for follow-on projects the student make after learning in the labs.

The bottom drawers can each hold 6- 15.6" laptops along with power supplies and mice. The laptops are not charged while in the drawers.

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Other drawers are used based on what fits.

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Keith

[kcl1s]

When we first started the Arduino labs I tried using an Elmo/Ziggy style cam to project my breadboard onto the big screen but the breadboard wiring was not really visible. I now use Fritzing http://fritzing.org/home/ to model the wiring virtually. This is a hit with the students.

The 3D printer is screwed to the top of the 3D printer cart. The laptop just sits on top. All the filament and tools fit easily in the drawers. There is a power strip fastened to the cart so we only have to pull one plug when we have to move the cart.

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A little thought in your organizing will pay off.

Keith

[phystcher]

Hi, I teach Physics, Chemistry, Engineering and Programming. I have my classes build large robots in the style of First Robotics (about half size) using some upgraded VEX parts with a raspberry pi for a brain. Lots of parts. It means that my kids must pick up quickly and not leave their materials out to burden the next class. I found a unique way to store small parts for my classes. I got one of those shoe racks that are on wheels that has horizontal rods that would normally hold the shoes. It will hold the little red bins if you make the rods a little closer by redrilling the hole for one of the rods. For nuts and bolts I use the lazy susan tiered trays you can get at Harbor Freight. I limit the hardware to m3, m4 and m5 nuts bolts and washers. Bins are where I store the large structural parts we need. When they start their project, I give their group a large bin for a project box. It is actually working fairly well. However they are still teenager and we must have a purge to recycle excess parts in the project boxes once a month.

Hope this helps.

[tkinsman]

The general strategy I use is:

1. Clear plastic boxes for as much as possible.
2. Label everything with a Brother Label maker.

I'm not a generally organized person, but to survive here you need to be. If you cannot find the part or tool you are looking for, it can completely derail a project.