The St. Joseph Design-Build Studio, housed within St. Joseph Parish and School in Avon Lake, takes a different approach to learning, supplementing the traditional classroom model. RGI launched this project in 2016 to help develop a design thinking mindset within K–8 students. The Studio Coordinator, Marnie Louis, has been working with RGI since 2018 and is excited about the development of not only the space but the students over the years as well.
Finding the Right Design to Encourage Learning
In 2016, RGI painted the classroom that would become the St. Joseph Design-Build Studio, put up a green screen, and removed the traditional desks and chairs. “Our workshop tables have wheels, so they’re modular and easy to move around,” Marnie says. In addition to the stools at the workshop tables, there’s lower seating for students who prefer to sit closer to the ground. The tool storage area, shelves for holding projects, and built-in cupboards for materials are all pretty standard for classroom settings, but the geometric decor and plant life warm up the space.
“When I first got here, we had beanbag chairs, which is something a lot of schools have done,” Marnie explains. “It was this big movement starting maybe back in the early 2000s. But with COVID, people are more aware of purchasing things that are easy to wipe down.” The bright orange beanbag chairs the Studio had a couple years ago were all about accessibility—giving students a space to sit that wasn’t a traditional desk. But they got tossed around so much they decided to replace them with foldable cushions. More like chairs than floor pillows, these floor seats are made of microfiber cloth, so they’re easy to wipe down or wash.
“One of the biggest goals we have is we don’t want it to feel like a classroom,” Marnie says. “We want the students to come in here, feel inspired, and have a sense of calm so they can focus their minds in a creative way.” The St. Joseph Design-Build Studio does this by offering nontraditional furniture as well as DIY materials. “We keep experimenting to see what works and what doesn’t,” Marnie reflects on her four years working in the space.
The walls have major differences as well. Rather than typical classroom posters, there are photos of students creating projects with descriptions highlighting the academic areas they covered. “What I love about the project posters is that students will come in and say, ‘That’s me in 5th grade!’ It’s fun for them,” Marnie says. And there are plans to create a digital display as well in the near future.
Prompting Design Thinking Within All Subjects
Overall, the St. Joseph Design-Build Studio offers students a break from classroom learning—a chance to use their brains in a different way. Marnie explains:
“We’re not trying to make the students go into the design field or be artists or even engineers. That would be great, but more so than that, we really want to instill the idea that you have to use creativity in any profession. You have to be very nimble, think quickly, and know that oftentimes, things aren’t going to go the way you expected them to. It’s about being prepared to take another route.”
Even with perceived failures, the students are learning resiliency and persistence. But they’re also having fun. A green screen, a smart screen, and white boards all work toward innovative thinking. They’re used much like traditional designers would utilize them—writing ideas and keeping notes.
“Of course we have lots of building materials as well,” Marnie says. “We use a bunch of recycled as well as upcycled materials, helping students see all the things they can do with what already exists around them.” RGI sends over excess laminate samples, swatches of fabric, and anything else left over from client projects that aren’t needed. “We do different projects than what an art teacher might assign,” Marnie says. “While some of the items we have such as tempera paint can be found in an art room, there are also tools you wouldn’t see there.”
When it comes to tools, St. Joseph Design-Build Studio has no shortage: hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, vices, crank drills, and more. The tools are a favorite of students, and while they can use most of them, cutting is still off the table. “The teachers pretty much always handle the cutting,” Marnie explains. All of this is done with the hope that when they get to high school and start encountering more complex machinery, they have a solid understanding of how tools function. This design thinking mindset sets them up for success for future projects.
The tools they use might be familiar to them but they’re often using them in unfamiliar ways. For example, the Studio has a sewing machine. Parents might sew holes in clothes at home, but one of their projects was for students to make a dog toy. The students might never have made the connection that working on projects could be used to enhance their educational experience. And as they grow in their skills, they become less timid about attempting more complex builds.
Using Design Thinking Outside of School
The mental health benefits are there as well. “For me, if this is one more way of helping to educate them, helping them become stronger and more ready to take on the world, to take on life when it’s not what you expected it to be—that’s great. I hope that can be an outcome,” Marnie says. She wants the students to have memorable experiences that complement their school education.
“One of the things I get really excited about is when I have a student that tells me they’re going to remake a project at home,” Marnie says. “We made little arcade games out of cardboard boxes, and I had some 2nd and 3rd graders tell me they have a box at home so they can create it there too. Any time design thinking also happens outside of the Studio, I love to see that.”