TO-DO
How a Design Club works
We provide design thinking resources to run an after school design club for 9-13 year-olds. Children work on projects to prototype apps that solve problems.
How to start a Design Club
Register to review club resources
Our Resource Hub contains our design thinking curriculum, session plans, workbooks and certificates.
Find a school to run your club at
Contact a school well before the holidays to get things lined up before the start of the next term.
Agree a start date for your club
Speak with your main contact at the school to find a suitable day and classroom to run your club each week.
Get a DBS certificate
If you don't have a DBS certificate already, check if your school or workplace can arrange a DBS check. Email us if you need help.
Order your free Design Club kit
If you're in the UK and ready run a club, email us to request a free kit. The kit contains workbooks, pin badges, stickers and lanyards.
Join our Slack to get support
Once your club is confirmed, you'll be invited to join our Slack channel where you can get help and support from other mentors.
Our awesome mentors :)
My first @designclub session was super fun! The girls voted to design an app to help people save money. Gives me hope for the future!
So excited about starting @designclub again today after half term! I have missed my mini app designers.
Questions you might have
What's a good number of children for a club?
Depends on the age of the group and your experience. Generally, we recommend 12 children to 2 adults.
What help do I need to run a club?
You need a teacher or teaching assistant to be present. Mainly to help with classroom management.
What equipment do I need for a club?
Printed worksheets from our Resource Hub, plus a kit (see above). You need one mobile device or tablet for every 2 or 3 children, with Marvel App installed. And WiFi.
How much does the kit cost?
The kits are free for 2019, as they are being funded by our awesome Growth Supporters. We ask volunteers to pay £6.50 for postage and packing.
How much time will I need to give?
Roughly two hours a week for 10 weeks. That's an hour to run the club and an hour of prep.
What experience do I need?
Ideally you'll have some experience of working with design thinking methods and/or working with children.
How do I sell Design Club to the school?
We provide email templates and a short slide deck you can either send via email or present in person to teachers.
How do I promote my club to the kids?
We have a poster and flyer the school can print out. Some schools run club fairs or you can give a talk at assembly.
Our kit contains a mix of people and challenge cards to help children frame their design challenge :)
Design Club content is free for non-commercial use. See the licence.
Using Design Club resources
We'd love to know if you're using our resources and how. This helps us improve what we do and understand our impact, which we share with our supporters.