Interested in bringing joyful, hands-on design activities into your classroom? Looking for ways to challenge yourself and your students to think collaboratively and creatively? Join us for our second-annual Day of Design! This year we’re focusing on three design mindsets that are important when we think about our students adapting to a rapidly changing world: “beginner’s mind,” “flexible thinking,” and “bias towards action.”

Read more about 2025's inaugural event.

Details

October 28, 2026 from 11-4:45, at the MIT Museum.

This event is free, but attendance is by application to ensure a balanced mix of perspectives and subject areas.

Who should attend?

This day is for classroom teachers of all subject areas in grades 7-12 (from the humanities to STEM and beyond), OST (out of school) educators, and members of the MIT community who are interested in bringing joyful hands-on activities into their classrooms. No experience in design or making required!

Why bring design to your classroom?

We have seen our students offloading the ability to think for themselves, and challenge themselves, in order to get a quick result. We have seen this in ourselves too. Design thinking brings the challenge, the joy, the creativity back to thinkers in an authentically collaborative way.

What will the day look like?

• Two hands-on design experiences you can adapt for your own classroom or learning environment
• Collaborative working groups focused on implementing design activities across disciplines
• Lunch and snacks with fellow participants
• An interactive panel featuring an MIT expert, an industry professional, and a classroom teacher exploring how design skills and mindsets shape learning, innovation, and careers

PDPs

This event is eligible for Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Professional Development Points (PDPs) in Arts, Mathematics, and Science & Technology/Engineering (grades 7–12) when combined with additional PD hours. If you'd be interested in PDPs, please note this on the application and we'll follow up with more information.