Heart and Hands Lab: A Makerspace for Creativity and Connection
Help me give my students Legos, Magnetic Tiles, Marble Runs and other maker space items to help support creative thinking and social emotional awareness in the library.
$723 goal
This project expired on September 8, 2025.
This project expired on September 8, 2025.
My Project
While it’s easy to assume that high schoolers have outgrown play, the truth is they’re still young at heart—just kids navigating the world in almost-grown-up bodies. Their need for hands-on exploration, creative expression, and meaningful connection doesn’t disappear with age; it simply evolves. The items we’re requesting for our makerspace—like Magna-Tiles, marble runs, and other tactile, imaginative tools—are designed to meet students where they are. These resources will not only spark curiosity and innovation but also set our space apart by emphasizing two essential themes: creativity and connection. In addition to fostering technical skills and problem-solving, the Heart & Hands Lab will be intentionally structured to support social-emotional learning (SEL). Through collaborative projects, design challenges, and shared successes (and failures), students will practice empathy, build resilience, strengthen communication skills, and develop a deeper sense of belonging within our school community.
This makerspace also offers an exciting opportunity to promote literacy in a dynamic and expanded way.
Literacy today goes beyond traditional reading and writing—it includes communication, comprehension, and the ability to make sense of complex information across a variety of media. Whether students are reading design instructions, writing reflections, storytelling through digital projects, or engaging in peer-to-peer discussions, they’ll be practicing multimodal literacy in meaningful, authentic contexts. Through project-based learning, teamwork, and creative exploration, the Heart & Hands Lab will help students grow—not just as thinkers and makers, but as thoughtful, connected, and expressive individuals.
More than half of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
999 students impacted
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Etch A Sketch Classic Drawing Toy
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Joyn Toys Jumbo Lacing Beads - 360 Pieces
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Joyn Toys Connecting Balls Building Set - 140 Pieces
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Magnetic Tiles Kids Toys STEM Magnet Toys for Toddler Magnetic Blocks Building Toys Preschool Learning Sensory Montessori Toys for 3+ Year Old Boys and Girls, Safe Creativity Toddler Kids Toys 40PCS
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LEGO Classic Medium Creative Brick Box 10696 Building Toy Set - Featuring Storage, Includes Train, Car, and a Tiger Figure, and Playset for Kids, Boys, and Girls Ages 4-99
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ThinkFun Gravity Maze Marble Run Brain Game and STEM Toy for Boys and Girls Age 8 and Up: Toy of the Year Award Winner
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Calm Strips: Original CLASS 30-Pack Sensory Tools (fidget toys, social emotional learning, mental health stickers, calming corner fidgets for teens)
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Juboury 1054Pcs Building Toy Building Blocks Bars Different Shape Educational Construction Engineering Set 3D Puzzle, Interlocking Creative Connecting Kit, Great STEM Toy for Both Boys and Girls
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$20.98
2
$41.96
Brain Flakes 500 Piece Set, Ages 3+, Interlocking Plastic Disc Toy for Creative Building, Educational STEM Learning, Construction Block Play for Kids, Teens, Adults, Boys, and Girls
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$16.99
2
$33.98
Schylling NeeDoh Original - Sensory Fidget Toy - Assorted Colors - Ages 3 to Adult , 1 Count ( Pack of 1)
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$3.44
4
$13.76
Materials cost
$538.48
Vendor shipping charges
FREE
Sales tax
$37.96
3rd party payment processing fee
$8.08
Fulfillment labor & materials
$30.00
Total project cost
$614.52
Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
$108.44
Total project goal
$722.96
Our team works hard to negotiate the best pricing and selections available.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Dickerson and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
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