Maker Station/STEAM Supplies

Collecting, organizing, and caring for supplies is important to successful STEAM study and classroom success.

What supplies do you collect? How do you organize those supplies?

A good first step in this process is to simply list the supplies. Next, begin collecting as much as you can from recyclables, second-hand stores, and building/supply companies.

Also, you'll need a place to store all these supplies.

I drafted a list of supplies below. I've also collected four main storage units including rolling metal shelves, plastic file drawers, rolling plastic bins, and other plastic containers. It's great to choose supplies with wheels since you often have to reconfigure a classroom when working on big projects.

It takes lots of time upfront to organize the supplies, but it's worth the effort. I find that separating the supplies a bit gives the materials different definitions. For example the typical classroom supplies will be stored in one area while math materials and STEA/Maker supplies will be in two other locations in the classroom. Students will be able to use all materials when needed, but by separating the locations you ensure that there's not too much material confusion, intermixing, or crowds

Classroom Materials: STEAM, Maker Station, and Learning Supplies.

Classroom Learning Supplies
thick markers	pencils	colored pencils	scissors
thin markers	pencil sharpeners	paper clips brass fasteners	stickers labels
index cards	lined paper	graph paper	notebooks
clip boards	white boards	erasers

Math Manipulatives, Tools, and Paper
rulers	measuring tape	protractors	compasses
pattern blocks	unifix cubes	cuisenaire rods	drawing templates
coins	fraction models	dice	calculators

Adhesives and Building Materials
blocks	k’nex	legos	cardboard
glue sticks glue guns	clear tape	duct tape	screws and nails
liquid glue	packing tape	paint tape	masking tape
tools

More Maker Supplies
balloons	plastic bottles	wooden skewers	clay
Makey Makey	little bits	wire	plastic containers
paint paint brushes	beads and shiny objects	fabric	old toys (for deconstruction)
Stickers	old electronics	tissue paper	colored paper
balls (big and small)	plastic/ cardboard tubes	straws of all sizes	plastic jar lids of all sizes

Naturalist Supplies
plastic bags	magnifying lenses	iPad Packs (made w/duct tape)	guide books
seeds	pots	soil	notebooks
water testing kits	thermometers