Maker Journal
This is where classroom systems, tech experiments, family projects, and practical tool-building all connect back to the same workflow: make, test, refine, share.
After five years, I started thinking about what I'd actually built at my school and how much of it lived inside accounts I was about to lose access to. Clever, Chrome, Google. Here's how...
Read the postAfter a few years of running makerspace challenges with K-6 students, I’ve noticed that most of what gets labelled a “STEM activity” falls into one of two buckets: things that look impressive but don’t...
Read the postIn my last post I wrote about getting a used Promark P70 VR drone and going down a rabbit hole of FAA registration, the TRUST test, and whether drones have any business being in...
Read the postYour 3D printer can do more than make cool stuff. Here are six organizations connecting makers and students with people who need mobility devices, prosthetics, and assistive technology -- all free to the families...
Read the postSometimes the best maker projects start with someone handing you something and saying “here, take this.”
Read the postAfter ten years of babysitting open-frame printers, the Bambu Lab P2S is the first machine that gets out of its own way—and its enclosed chamber with air filtration makes it a serious classroom upgrade...
Read the postHow I used AI to build a complete de-extinction STEAM week project for grades 4-6, with editable worksheets and extension activities.
Read the postA teacher's guide to leveraging Claude AI for educational content migration. Learn how I updated an entire robotics curriculum in less than an hour.
Read the postDisclosure: I’m James Crawford, a K-6 technology teacher and dad of two. I built Pixel Studio myself — it’s free, and I made it because I couldn’t find a pixel art app I was...
Read the postWant to create awesome pixel art like the characters in Minecraft, Pokemon, and retro games? This complete beginner’s guide will teach you everything you need to know to start making your own pixel masterpieces...
Read the postHow a free CLI tool, Cloudflare's generous free tier, and some careful tile optimization turned nightly Minecraft backups into an interactive web map that 'just works'—and what I learned about static site deployment limits...
Read the postThis post has been merged into Fair Playing Time in Youth Basketball: A Coach-Dad’s Guide to Rotations That Actually Work.
Read the postI built the 4v4 Rotation Planner to solve a problem I had as a coach: keeping rotations fair during a fast-moving youth basketball game without losing track of who had played. It’s the same...
Read the postThis post has been merged into Fair Playing Time in Youth Basketball: A Coach-Dad’s Guide to Rotations That Actually Work.
Read the postI coach my kid’s youth basketball team on weekends and teach technology to K-6 students during the week. Both jobs ask you to think carefully about who gets access, who gets a turn, and...
Read the postWhat started as 'my kids want to play Minecraft' became a months-long meditation on building systems that fade into the background. Here's how a 500-line Bash script became the invisible guardian of a family's...
Read the postAs a tech teacher and parent, I spend a lot of time teaching kids that technology is a tool for solving real problems. But there’s a difference between telling students “you can build anything”...
Read the postOne of the best things about teaching K-6 technology is that some of the most effective engineering challenges cost almost nothing. The paper roller coaster is a perfect example. Students build a functional roller...
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