News

Internships for High School

January 19, 2018

With the start of the new year, Lighthouse is putting together a list of official internship and volunteer sites.

As they have done for the past 11 years, this spring at Lighthouse, all of the 11th grade students will complete a volunteer internship at a local business, organization or youth development program in the community. The school’s internship program is one of the most unique and potentially impactful learning opportunities provided to the high schoolers, and it hinges on finding placement sites that both interest and support over 50 students each year. Hosting an intern is a tremendous service to our community, and it can also be incredibly rewarding. It is important to recognize that Lighthouse students have a variety of skills and a unique perspective and energy that could benefit local workplaces.

The importance of placements for the students is ever-growing, as gives them an opportunity to apply their personal and academic skills, and to experience first-hand a professional environment. Internships tie into the Making, Art and Design’s previous events such as Portfolio Day, and underscore the commitment to integrate into the curriculum work-related scenarios and projects.

Along with Lighthouse’s Director of College and Career Success, the Creativity Lab has forged some connections among local schools (involved in Making), creative writing organizations, digital video and culinary arts groups, and cultural centers.

For more information, contact us at creativitylab@lighthousecharter.org.

Stop Motion Animation Station!

December 12, 2017

For the past few months, Lodestar had the opportunity to partner with the Wonderful Idea Co. (WICO), a local organization that hosts trainings and develops interactive, hands-on exhibits for makerspaces and museums. With the help of a generous grant from Cognizant, we’ve been able to offer our school as a testing location, where WICO can put their latest prototypes in action. Just before winter break, WICO brought over one of their recent projects – a stop motion animation station! More information on the creation of this project can be found here. More

Piper Play-Test

December 8, 2017

We were fortunate enough to have the Team from Piper visit our 4th grade class this week and conduct a play-test with their amazing products.

The Piper Team brought over several of their Computer Kits and had the students, in groups of 2-3, play-test them for about 30 minutes per group. In this small amount of time they were able to complete an exercise which consisted of creating simple code, wiring a LED to a breadboard and running the code to switch the light on and off. Some groups even managed to get up to three LEDs programmed to blink intermittently.

 

The students were totally engaged and seemed enthusiastic about the product and being able to code a LED to light up! We were definitely impressed by the simplicity yet broad potential of the Piper Computer Kit, and are hoping that it got our students excited about coding and programming. Having a team of professionals present and explain their work and expertise to a 4th grade class was very inspirational, and we hope to have them in our classrooms again with more amazing products!

Anna Milada Grossi is currently an Americorps VISTA Project Coordinator, serving through MakerEd at Lighthouse Community Public School. She is assisting in the Making, Art, Design and Lighthouse Creativity Lab Programs.

Lighthouse Students Shine at East Bay Mini Maker Faire

October 24, 2016

Lighthouse Students showed off their work and maker skills on Sunday at the East Bay Mini Maker Faire! We showcased robot animals, LED pictures, scribble machines, and cardboard hands with the local Oakland Community. It was great for students to share what they had learned and to connect with the local maker community. We can’t wait until next year!

Creative Commons License

Make Like an Egyptian: Tour of the Lighthouse Creativity Lab

October 12, 2016

 

Today we hosted a group of 10 international emerging leaders selected by the U.S. Embassy in Egypt to travel to the U.S. for a professional exchange program with the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP).  For an hour we talked about how the Creativity Lab got started, how we currently support making at Lighthouse and Lodestar, and of course got to see some of the cool making projects Lighthouse students have been working on this year.  We also connected over our mutual passion for making and recognized that by handing over learning to students, making empowers them to affect change in their communities.  

Maker VISTA, Tobie Irvine, answering questions from visitors of Creativity Lab

Maker VISTA, Tobie Irvine, answering questions from visitors of Creativity Lab

 

It’s always exciting to learn about making that is happening outside of Lighthouse and particularly outside the U.S. We wish our new friends from Egypt the best as they work to empower their students through making, and we encourage everyone to take a tour of the Lighthouse Creativity Lab!

 

Woodworking and Scribble Machine Project Guides are Here: News

October 3, 2016

Awesome news! The Creativity Lab has just published project guides on woodworking for kindergarten and scribble machines. We have tested these projects out with teachers and students, and we have seen first-hand the rich learning experiences for adults and children alike. Check them out!