A child-led innovation lab for your school

What is a T-LAB?

A T-LAB is a school tinkering lab and makerspace that children run themselves, built on the Natural Learning Model. Students choose real projects such as circuits, simple robots, 3D games, models, art and craft, and science experiments. Elected student teams handle planning, a bank and the materials. Children present their work, including unfinished work and mistakes, on a podium desk. MiniGuru is the digital side of the lab. Students plan projects, upload a short video of what they built, and share ideas with other labs.

What students do

• Choose their own project and plan the steps and materials
• Budget with a lab currency, and learn the value of resources
• Build, test, improve and present, including projects that did not work
• Film a short project video and share it on MiniGuru for feedback
• Help and encourage other students, and take on roles such as planning, bank and material teams

The role of the teacher

The adult is a facilitator and co-worker. Teachers do not hand out the answers. They ask questions, keep the lab safe and help children think. This is hands-on, experiential learning where the child leads and the teacher guides.

Skills children build

What your school gets with MiniGuru

• A school account that can register a whole class at once from a student list
• A login for every student, with the school always in control of its own list
• A way to see each student's projects, progress and level
• Videos reviewed by a person before anything becomes public
• A materials list for every project, so parents or the school can buy items on Amazon.in if needed
• Guidance for setting up the lab space and training a facilitator

Fits your existing curriculum

Child-led, project-based learning supports the experiential, hands-on and skill-based approach encouraged by India's National Education Policy 2020. It works alongside the school's syllabus, in CBSE, ICSE and state-board schools, as an after-school club, an activity period or a dedicated innovation lab.

How a T-LAB is set up in your school

A T-LAB is not a programme you implement. It is a community you grow, alongside children who elect their own teams and manage their own economy. The setup follows these stages:

1. Visit and first workshop. We spend time in your school, meet teachers, run a workshop with children so they become co-creators, and look at the space.
2. Design. A space layout, material list and session structure made for your room and children. Children help design their own space and begin collecting scrap materials.
3. Launch. The space comes together with shelves, tools, a planning board and a material bank. A 3 to 4 day tinkering workshop lets children elect their representatives and take charge.
4. Facilitator training. Your facilitator learns how to observe, question and trust, with a handbook and mentored practice, not a one-time lecture.
5. First year and beyond. Regular visits, events, reflection with your facilitator and a place in the wider T-LAB network, so that the lab runs itself.

A lab has zones for workstations, material storage, a planning board, a T-LAB bank, a sharing desk and a meeting circle. Costs vary by school size, space and materials, and the model has worked in government schools with small budgets as well as private schools with dedicated rooms. Ask us for a guide.

Tinkering workshops

Not ready for a full lab? Our open-ended workshops run from 1 to 15 days. Every participant makes a real project from idea to sharing, using real materials, with no kits and no instructions. Choose an introductory session for a school event or fest, or a deep-dive camp for summer or winter break. Workshops are available for students and for teachers, including facilitator enrichment programmes.

Join the T-LAB network

Every school that sets up a T-LAB joins a network of schools, facilitators and children building the same culture in their own way. Facilitators share observations, children see each other's projects on MiniGuru and schools exchange visits.

How to start

1. Talk to us. Write to connect@miniguru.in with your school name, city and the classes you have in mind.
2. Choose a space and a facilitator. A batch of about 25 students meeting at least twice a week works well.
3. Register the class on MiniGuru. Create a school account, paste the class list and get logins for every student.
4. Students plan their first project. The lab begins.

Plans and support options are shared on request.