At Benchmark School, our tuition-free charter school is known for its innovative learning environment. To get to know more about the people behind our school culture, we recently chatted with Benchmark’s Makerspace teacher Mr. Kyle Waltz (“Mr. K”). Here’s what he had to say!
What inspired you to become an educator?
A select few teachers in my past encouraged me to explore real world physics applications and convinced me to go into engineering. I worked on many projects growing up and I always wanted someone that could help explain the way things worked. I hope to encourage students from a young age to try to fix and build things themselves while teaching the basics of the engineering design process.
What is your role at Benchmark School?
I have a background in Computational Fluid Dynamics in Mechanical Engineering. My role at Benchmark School is instructing and providing for the Makerspace room and all of its students from kindergarten through 6th grade. The freedom, creativity, and ideation that comes from every student in an unrestricted environment is surely the best part about the makerspace environment.
Are there any big changes coming to the Makerspace this year?
There are some pretty big positive changes coming to makerspace starting this year! There will be more physical and spatial work than prior years with much more hands-on experiments and work with tools. Also starting this year, we will be starting a capstone robotics project for 6th grade that will greatly enrich their typing skills, understanding coding, and plenty more procedural skills over the course of the year!.
What do students enjoy about the Makerspace?
Students love the ability to express their interests and ideas however they see fit. In makerspace we employ the ability to approach each week's problem however the students see fit. While many materials are provided for each project we do, a student's unique idea for an approach will not be interrupted. Whether a student chooses to use a sewing kit rather than tape when putting together a bridge or they want to use items they see on the wall as a material instead of a tool, they will always be allowed to do so here in makerspace.
Any advice for new families considering Benchmark School?
If you would like your child to learn the basics of engineering while improving their confidence with coming up with solutions and fixes to problems they'll encounter every day, Benchmark's Makerspace curriculum is the perfect out-of-classroom experience. Your child will get to work with their hands and innovate with new ideas while garnering basic learnings of engineering and physics.
Are you interested in learning more about how Benchmark can lay a foundation of learning success for your child? Contact us and enroll today for Preschool and Grades K-6.
About Benchmark School
Benchmark School is a Preschool and Elementary School serving students in the Phoenix, AZ area. Benchmark offers tuition-free half-day K and 1st-6th grades, and tuition-based options for PreK and full-day K. Our foundational approach to academics inspires knowledge and develops character. Students are supported by a tight-knit community of caring teachers and staff and engaged families. Join Benchmark School today! Enrolling now.