What is a Design Lab?
Design Labs are idea-slams, maker session, and creator space all in one! If you want to create a space for your UDL community to meet and create UDL designed content, Design Labs are for you. Get Started! Use the content below to start creating your own Design Lab.
Getting Started
- Download and review the UDL-IRN Design Lab Facilitator Guide Slide Deck
- Find a conducive space
- Design the space
- Choose your materials (suggestions)
- Markers
- Table tents
- Large tablets of paper
- Sticky notes
- A large wall chart for topics, ideas, and to update who’s working on what
- Fidgets, Legos, and other thinking “tools”
- A copy of the UDL guidelines
Next...
- Choose your music
- Decide on your Design Lab style
- Invite guests to drop in with a problem of practice
- Promote the sessions using traditional methods and social media
- Download and customize the UDL-IRN Design Lab rolling slide deck
What Facilitators Need:
- Computer for Google form sign-in
- Design thinking mini lesson
- Social Media
- Design lab slide show
The Slide Show
In the Drive folder there is a slide deck that gives participants the norms of design lab, the hashtags and padlet addresses, facilitator contacts, and link to the TweetBeam for visualizing the tweets of the Summit . Playing this on a loop throughout the design lab helps keep everyone energized and answers many questions attendees may have.
Social Media
Social media plays a HUGE role in Design Labs! It’s how we build buzz and share our work together. Try to encourage its use frequently. For the design labs we have a couple sites in the slideshow we are using.
Tweetbeam: collects all the Twitter & Instagram post tagged with #UDLIRN in a visual way.
What If's...
What if nobody shows up?
Part of the beauty of the lab is the open concept. Give it time, if it still isn’t filling up let an IRN person know and we’ll tweet it out.
What if people look bored?
Engage them in conversation or do a mini design burst about a topic you know about.
What if people don’t want to mingle?
Don’t force it but feel free to prod. It’s like a middle school dance. Nobody wants to be the first one to ask for a dance.
What if participants expect me to be the expert?
This is a definite danger. That’s why we have the slideshow that keeps playing. It reminds everyone what the goal is: Collective Wisdom
Resources
Google folder – This includes the presentation to run during the lab and a sign-up form (both electronic and paper)
Questions?
You can find me at bryan.dean@udl-irn.org or @drrevdean (Twitter)