Cannon’s robotics team, the Brainy Yaks, recently competed at the FIRST LEGO League Championship in Houston, representing both North Carolina and the United States alongside top teams from more than 40 countries.
Out of 32,000+ teams worldwide, the Brainy Yaks finished in the top 100 in robot performance and once again ranked among the top teams in innovation project, robot design, and core values, marking their second consecutive year achieving results at this level.
Congratulations to the Brainy Yaks and thank you to the coaches, faculty, and families who supported this incredible journey! The herd keeps growing!
Read more at link in bio.
#cannonschool #youbelonghere #robotics
We’re just about ready…
The EDU Maker Summit at @cannonschool is almost here and we could not be more fired up. This is NOT a conference. This is a crew of educators coming together to make, learn, share ideas, and push what’s possible in our classrooms.
Sawdust. Epoxy. CNC. Lasers. Soldering. Conversations that matter.
We’ve got an incredible group of makers coming in from all over, and we’re ready to build some awesome stuff TOGETHER.
Huge shoutout to our sponsors for making this experience possible — can’t wait to get these tools in educators’ hands.
If you’re watching this and thinking “I need to be part of this”… you’re right.
We’re already thinking about 2027 — drop me a note.
Let’s go.
#MakerSummit #EDUMaker #HandsOnLearning #MakerEducation #CNC LaserCutting Woodworking STEMeducation FailForward MakeSomethingAwesome
High school makerspace life means the equipment works HARD… and when it doesn’t, I get to play detective. This week: epoxy pump TLC, a couple of 3D printers that needed some attention, and the nice feeling of getting things humming again. The figuring it out is half the fun!
#makered #makereducation #makerspace#
Cannon’s rebooted high school robotics team, Cannon C.R.A.S.H. (Coding, Robotics, Automation, and Scripting Herd), competed in its first regional qualifier this weekend and delivered an impressive debut: finishing 5th out of 21 teams, captaining a playoff alliance, and concluding the event as one of the top three alliances in the finals.
Since September, this rookie team has met weekly to design, build, and refine their competition robot, developing technical skills while learning collaboration, perseverance, and adaptability through real-world challenges.
Congratulations to Cannon C.R.A.S.H., with big thanks to coaches Mush Hughes, Eric Ruddy, Beth Smith, and parent mentor Jeremy Jay. We look forward to their final qualifier next weekend in Winston-Salem!
#cannonschool #youbelonghere #robotics
#innovators
The Brainy Yaks are coming home as back-to-back North Carolina State Champions!
Competing at the Greensboro Coliseum, Cannon School’s team finished first among more than 500 teams statewide for the second consecutive year, an extraordinary achievement. The Yaks posted the highest robot score in program history (410 points) and impressed judges with an innovative research project focused on preserving ocean-recovered artifacts.
This victory earns the team a spot at the FIRST LEGO League World Championships in Houston, with potential invitations to compete internationally in California, Canada, or Australia. The Brainy Yaks were also selected as an official FIRST Robotics Ambassador Team, representing North Carolina as a model of excellence.
We are incredibly proud of our students, our robotics program, and our dedicated coaches Leigh Northrup, Aidan Smith, Mush Hughes, and Lisa Nussbaumer. We can’t wait to follow the Brainy Yaks as they take on the best robotics teams in the world this spring!
#cannonschool #youbelonghere #robotics #firstlegoleague
We solved a small but mighty user experience problem today: kids kept losing USB drives and adapters for the 3d printers, so I mounted dual-ended thumb drives to retractable ID badge holders. Now they snap back into place after every print. Elegant, simple, and way fewer “uh, can I borrow your adapter?” moments!
#makerspace #designthinking #uxdesign #teacherlife #makereducation #3dprinting #classroominnovation #edtech #problemsolving #littlethingsbigimpact #makersgonnamake #makestuffbetter
It’s been a week since rolling home from @themakercamp , and I’m still replaying the memories. Grateful for the amazing photos from @markadamspictures that help keep those moments alive, and for the incredible people who make this community feel like family.
Having @stanfieldworks on our @thestorytellerstavern crew and being part of the @totalboat family means the world. Couldn’t ask for better friends or a better tribe of #makers. ❤️
And I love the cameo from @grazmakes !
@themakercamp
#MakerCamp #TotalBoat #StorytellersTavern #MakerCommunity #FailForward #MakersGonnaMake
Maker Camp 2025 — what. a. weekend.
Massive thanks to @cant_handel_it and the Handle family and everyone who pours their heart and soul into making this event what it is. Huge shoutout to all the makers, presenters, and dreamers who shared their craft, knowledge, and energy.
Maker Camp isn’t just an event — it’s a family reunion for the Maker world. The laughter, the sawdust, the late-night stories by the fire… it’s all part of what makes this place unforgettable.
Counting the days until we’re back at the Blackthorne for round SIX!!!!
#MakerCamp #MakerCommunity #FailForward #TheTinkerTeacher #BlackthorneResort #MakerFamily #Arbortech #Kutzall #TotalBoat #MakersGonnaMake #MakerMovement #EpoxyAndSawdust
What happens when you give a group of educators eight minutes, a pile of prototyping supplies, and the challenge to design a ridiculous animal trophy? A lot of chaos, plenty of laughter, and a real glimpse into how adaptive expertise takes shape. Round one is never the final product: listening, iterating, and reimagining are the real wins.
#DesignThinking #AdaptiveExpertise #MakerEducation #InnovationInEducation #Makerspace #Prototyping #CreativeLearning #HumanCenteredDesign #FailForward #IterativeDesign #HandsOnLearning #TeacherPD #ExperientialLearning #EducatorLife #STEMed #STEAMeducation #FutureReady #LearningByDoing #InnovationMindset #CriticalThinking #CollaborationInAction #TeachDesign #MakerMovement #DesignForLearning
Had an epic time at #STLinSTL 2025 with an amazing crew of educators who are all about pushing boundaries in the classroom. Loved sharing the power of Maker Education, from wild epoxy pours with @totalboat to next-level power carving with @arbortechie and @kutzall —plus some awesome creative coding with @microbit_edu ! Can’t wait to see how these tools ignite creativity in makerspaces across the country!
#MakerEducation #STLinSTL #Makerspace #Microbit #CreativeCoding #PowerCarving #EpoxyArt #TotalBoat #Arbortech #Kutzall #STEMeducation #HandsOnLearning #InnovationInEducation #MakerMovement #TeachTheFuture #EduMakers #STEAM #TechEd #TeacherPD #MakersGonnaMake #FutureReady #MakersOfInstagram #DesignThinking #BuildMakeLearn #DigitalMaking #MakeItMatter
