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Make Your School

Make Your School

Hackdays at schools — spotting problems, building solutions.

With Make Your School, we come to your school and run hackdays together. In small teams, you figure out what could work better at your school — and build prototypes that solve the problem. With sensors, microcontrollers, and plenty of creativity.

KidsLab and Make Your School – Working together for digital education in Augsburg

About Make Your School

Make Your School – Eure Ideenwerkstatt is a project that reduces apprehension around technology, sparks interest in programming, and builds digital and technical confidence. This nationwide (German) education project was initiated by Wissenschaft im Dialog and is funded by the Klaus Tschira Stiftung and the Vector Stiftung.

Over two- to three-day hackdays, students identify challenges in their everyday school life and develop digital and technical solutions in teams. The teenagers work with microcontrollers, sensors, tools, and various programming languages to develop creative solutions — so-called "hacks." Mentors support the teenagers with expert input and help them help themselves.

KidsLab as a regional network partner

As a network partner of Make Your School, KidsLab organises four hackdays every year in and around Augsburg. This way, KidsLab actively contributes to promoting digital education and technical skills in the region. Events take place at the following partner schools:

What happens at the hackdays?

The hackdays span all school types, have a low barrier to entry, and are accessible to a wide range of students. The process is divided into several phases:

  1. Ideation: students identify problems and challenges in their everyday school life

  2. Developing solutions: in small teams, they develop creative approaches

  3. Prototyping: using the provided materials, they put their ideas into practice

  4. Presentation: finally, the teenagers present their hacks to the press and the school community

Projects range from automatic irrigation systems to smart bins to digital wayfinding systems. The principles of "helping people help themselves" and "trial and error" are essential here, supporting the development of problem-solving skills, creativity, and self-organised work.

Lasting impact

The hackdays foster not only technical skills but also important soft skills like teamwork, creativity, and perseverance. Many participants report increased self-confidence and a newfound interest in STEM topics. 85 to 90 percent of participants rate the hackdays as good or very good, and over 70 percent of teenagers say their knowledge and interest increased at least somewhat, if not strongly.

Through the collaboration between KidsLab and Make Your School, a lasting network for digital education is emerging in the Augsburg region, helping students become active shapers of their digital future.