I was chatting with the lovely Susan V. Cousineau yesterday. She's involved with an amazing group called the Meaningful Work Project (visit them here!) which encourages people to make real change in the world, ranging from rooftop gardens growing organic produce in major cities to using Open Space Technology to help groups and organizations get inspired in meetings and events.
That's not what we were talking about. We were talking about how to get girls started in building and making. That's my wheelhouse, to put it mildly.
There are issues with attracting girls to "hard-edged" making. Right from the get-go, children's toys are separated and labelled by gender. Boys get chemistry sets, girls get perfume-making kits. Boys get cars and trucks and tools, girls get dolls and playhouses. Yeah, there have been changes in this area recently, and some spectacular failures. (Don't even get me started on Lego Friends... grrr!) Let's cut that off at the root, shall we?
Simple, right? Buy kids things they're interested in. Feed their curiosity! Let them experiment with anything! Quit buying the sets of Lego that only make one thing. Okay, I know those sets are cool as all get out- I personally want the space shuttle set and the Lord of the Rings ones! The Architecture sets are brilliant too. But... the best Lego is still a plain bucket of blocks with no directions, no special pieces that only fit one build, and no plan. That's an open invitation to make ANYTHING!
See, whether you're a child or an adult, making is simple. Make the thing you need to make. Find an idea that you can't NOT make, and then learn how to do it. From Lego and cardboard to 3D printing or welding, that's the key: having a project you're passionate about.
These days, a lot of kids are passionate about pop culture. Movies, comics, anime, TV shows. If you want them to learn how to make stuff, cater to their interests. I often see government programs that are sparsely attended, in the vein of "We need women in the trades!"
Shrug. So what? If women haven't gotten their hands dirty working on something they care about, they're not going to base a career on some nebulous ideal of achieving equality through physical labour. It's not going to happen.
However, if that woman spent her teen years going to things like Comic Con or Anime North and being exposed to stuff like the Artist Alley that every convention features, seeing the really cool products designed and made by fans just like herself, she's already interested. Even if she doesn't know it yet. That kid who wants to do cosplay is going to figure out ways to make the things she can't afford. A replica of a famous movie weapon goes for hundreds of dollars. Making one yourself out of carved foam? $20 and your time.
That sort of stuff is like a gateway drug. Give them a little taste of what's possible, and they'll push the boundaries on their own. "Well, the wings I made out of a coat hanger and some old pantyhose were a bit flimsy and looked kind of cheap. Next time, I'm going to make them out of hard foam insulation carved into shape with a Dremel."
Which leads to "If I can do all this neat stuff with foam, what could I do with wood? Or metal?"
Bingo. The door's already wide open to all the trades. Getting that girl who's now confident in her ability to use tools to try out a trade is much easier. She's already a maker!
Here's my thought- if you have an organization that teaches girls building skills, scale them down and offer a two or three hour seminar applying those skills to fandom at a convention. Reach out to steampunk clubs (there are tons of them!) or LARPers and offer to run how-to classes. Get them to see where those abilities connect to their world.
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