My Child's 7 Year Journey: Learning Design Thinking And Resilience
Maker Faire Bay Area 2026
September 25th-27th
What happens when you give a five-year-old access to a laser cutter and stick with it for seven years?
Join xTool's John Burns for a candid, story-driven talk about raising his son Micah through the lens of making. From wobbly first projects at age 5 to confident, self-directed builds at 12, this is a real look at what it actually takes to grow a kid's creativity and resilience, You'll get the overly ambitious experiments, the meltdowns, breakthroughs, and moments Micah surprised everyone (including himself).
You'll walk away with:
• Practical ways to introduce kids to design thinking without overwhelming them
• How to turn failure into fuel instead of frustration
• Age-appropriate tools and projects that grow with your child
What changes (and what doesn't) as kids move from "playing with tools" to owning their creative process
Whether you're a parent, an educator, or a maker thinking about the next generation, this talk is a hopeful, honest, hands-on case study in what's possible when you give kids real tools and real trust.
Schedule
John Burns with xTool
xTool expands what’s possible to create in the physical world. From a spark of inspiration to something real you can hold, xTool empowers people everywhere to rediscover the joy of making and express who they are through our ecosystem of laser engravers, cutters, apparel / UV printers, and metal fabrication tools. Our speaker, John Burns has worked with library, school and non-profit makerspaces for the last 9 years and is the co-owner of Creativity -> Applied, a small business creative consulting company. We wanted to bring his love of teaching to the forefront as he shares the lessons he has learned through his son's early maker journey.
