What is a Makerspace?                 
           
To describe them simply, Makerspaces are community centers with tools.  Makerspaces combine manufacturing equipment, community, and education for the purposes of enabling community members to design, prototype and create manufactured works that wouldn’t be possible to create with the resources available to individuals working alone.  These spaces can take the form of loosely-organized individuals sharing space and tools, for-profit companies, non-profit corporations, organizations affiliated with or hosted within schools, universities or libraries, and more. All are united in the purpose of providing access to equipment, community, and education, and all are unique in exactly how they are arranged to fit the purposes of the community they serve.

Makerspaces represent the democratization of design, engineering, fabrication and education. They are a fairly new phenomenon, but are beginning to produce projects with significant national impacts.   

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Makerspace Playbook

The Makerspace Playbook by Makerspace.com guides those who are hoping to start a Makerspace at their school or in their community. 
Contents:
  1. Beginnings: what we’re doing and why; origins of the Maker movement
  2. Places: making a space more conducive to a community that makes together
  3. Tools & Materials: inventory, budgets, and strategies (see also High School Makerspace Tools & Materials: a companion document detailing the uses and costs of a fully stocked inventory for an in-school Makerspace.)
  4. Safety: planning for safety, signage, and common rules
  5. Roles: what teachers, students, shop managers, and mentors do in a Makerspace
  6. Practices: pedagogical approaches experienced makers use to support emerging makers
  7. A Year of Making: teacher Aaron Vanderwerff describes his experience making with students
  8. Projects: guiding novice makers as they build their skill set; sources for projects
  9. Startup: nuts and bolts of getting involved with the Makerspace network
  10. Documenting: sharing projects … and the stories behind their making
  11. Snapshots: four school-based Makerspaces in action
  12. Resources: helpful lists, forms, and templates
   by: http://makerspace.com/