Category: Tech Team

Tech Team – Quarter One Reflection

Sonoma on

What are some initiatives\things\volunteering you have been involved with this past term? Describe what you have done, and the time you have spent.

Some volunteering aspects that I have been involved with this past term was supporting people in the Maker Space with the Cricut machine, keeping the Maker Space clean, helping at the Wave, and assisting the new Grade 9’s during the Boot Camp. With the Cricut machine, I would stop by after school to help anyone who was having difficulty using, understanding, or even connecting to it. Anytime I am in the Maker Space, I am always making sure that it is clean before leaving and that everyone is doing their part to keep it clean for the next user. Whenever I can get to school early, I make my way to the Wave to work on homework or study for a test while I wait to help others. Finally, with the Grade 9 Boot Camp, I came on time and assisted in anyway that I could by setting up before, helping with any technical problems that students had, and I made sure I helped clean up afterwards as well.

 

What are some things you have learned? What are some of your strengths?

Some things I have learned this past term were how to better use the Cricut machine as well as how to use it confidently to help others. Now, whenever someone asks me about a problem they are having with the Cricut machine, I can help them with confidence in what I am doing without asking others. If I can’t seem to find a solution to their problem, then I can ask an adult for additional assistance to help solve it.

 

What are some of the challenges, aha moments, small wins…you experienced? What are some areas where you can grow? What are some stretches?

Some challenges of mine this term were using the Cricut machine for the first time and instructing others on how to use it. For instance, when using the Cricut machine for the first time, some hiccups I had were how the application wouldn’t load for me to start my design, saving my sticker online or on my desktop, and setting up the printer itself. When assisting others on how to use the printer, I didn’t understand what the initial problem was until I stopped and really noticed what was not working for them. However, a small win for me was when the issue was finally resolved, and the print came out amazing! Now, I can continue to grow in that area by working with the Cricut machine, helping others and working on my own personal projects.

 

Looking ahead…What are some things you would like to improve and/or accomplish? Is there something I want to learn or try?  Focus on technology, leadership and school culture. Provide a specific goal.

Some things I would like to accomplish in the future are to use the Cricut machine more for personal projects or in group settings with clubs, classes, teams, etc. Something I would like to try would be to use the 3D printer and being more comfortable with using it. Perhaps for the next term, I can incorporate both my use of the 3D printer and the Cricut machine in a personal project of my own.

 

Here are some pictures of what I have done this term:

Tech Team – Sticker Made with the Cricut Maker

Sonoma on

Here are some pictures of how I designed, created, sized, and gifted my first sticker made with the Cricut Maker:

     

Some thing that was challenging for me to accomplish was signing into the Cricut App because the app had consistent loading problems. Finally, when the app worked, I looked at a few design ideas before coming up with the the one I wanted. After, I printed it, cut around the design, and I got rid of any excess vinyl. Another challenging aspect for me was determining the size of the sticker, just to make sure it wouldn’t be too big or small. A good way to verify this for me was by looking at the design while connecting to the Cricut machine that I was using.

Some things that worked well for me during this process was choosing a simple design to print, picking a colour to use, and peeling any extra material away. To choose a design for printing, I decided to create a flower as a surprise for one of my close friends, so I looked up some simple ideas and found the perfect one to use. In order to pick a colour, I looked in the vinyl drawer for the one that I wanted to use as a sticker (premium removable vinyl), and from there I picked a colour that I knew my friend would like. Finally, when it was time to clean up the excess vinyl, I made sure that I didn’t scrap the design and made it look clean to gift.

What I learned during this assignment was how to use the Cricut machine on my own, as well as how to help others by sharing my knowledge and tips on how to use the machine. I can apply this by assisting others who want to use the Cricut Maker, showing them how to set up the machine, how to design, which vinyl to use, etc. After, I can assure they know how to use it on their own so they can help others too. In the future, I can also use the Cricut on my own for personal projects, club designs, gifts to others, and more!

 

Final Quarter Reflection – Tech Team

Sonoma on

Tech Team Reflection

This year as a member of the Tech Team, there have been many new experiences that I have had the chance to be a part of. Some examples are helping to welcome in new grade nines, being in the Maker Space in the morning before school, during lunch and after school to help with any assignments, assisting with welcoming in parents of future grade nines to our school, and coming in early to work at the Wave.

During this last term, some initiatives and volunteering that I have been involved with are coming in early to provide any assistance needed at the Wave, helping in the Maker Space during class time or early in the morning, and by helping with any technical problems in my classes. I try to help in my classes whenever I can to the best of my abilities and I was working in the Wave for 380 minutes during the month of April, 360 minutes in May and about 100 minutes in June.

Something that I learned during this term was how to use the 3D printer better with the help of Tinker Cad, Mrs. Henderson and Ms. Leung. My strength with 3D printing is how to create a design using Thinker Cad, then exporting it in as the correct file to prepare for slicing. With that, a challenge I had was not knowing how to slice as I have never done it before. At first, I was a bit unsure of how to slice my print, but after being shown how to do the process a couple of times, I now know how to do it myself and how to help others as well. Something small I learned about the 3D printer was that when printing, the printer will create a base for the print job, therefore it does not stick to the glass or plastic printing mat.

With the end of the year approaching, I am now hoping to continue to print projects next year using the 3D printer whether they are big or small, for school or for myself, then I can also improve and experiment with the knowledge that I have. Along with that, I hope that I can assist other students and teachers with using the 3D printers correctly, either with the Tinker Cad program, or with slicing on the Maker Space computer.