Teaching 3D Design and Printing

It was just a week after our new MakerBot Replicators arrived that teachers started bringing their classes in for 3D design instruction and printing projects.  In particular, our Theology Department has been quick to jump on board with this new technology and incorporate it into their classes.  

We decided to use Tinkercad, because it was the easiest application to use for those new to 3D design.  Over the summer, I tried out a variety of Autodesk applications, but found that while many offered more features than Tinkercad, they required a significant amount more time to learn how to use them well enough to make a final product.  In Tinkercad, you make your design using geometric shapes, lettering/numbers, and objects uploaded by other Tinkercad users.  It's easy to grab a shape, drag it on to the workplane, and adjust the size and position. 

Tinkercad

After a short intro showing them various features, students were encouraged to spend the time playing with it. 

Tinkercad instruction

The ease of use and colorful features encouraged them to be creative, and most of the students seemed to enjoy designing their objects.   The results were impressive:

Student designs

After seeing the success of the Theology classes, other teachers are starting to incorporate the 3D printer into their class.  Students in Spanish were given the opportunity to 3D print their sugar skulls.  While most students downloaded a file off of Thingiverse, one actually designed hers in Tinkercad, shown here:

In our Chinese classes, students will be using Tinkercad to design their Chinese name, and then given the option to print them.

Sample to show students

Because we only have two printers, we have run into logistical issues meeting the demand to 3D print objects by faculty and students (not that it's a bad problem to have).   In order to meet due dates, we have teachers schedule students over a period of days ahead of time to print.  We also have given them strict guidelines related to the size of their objects due to the amount of time it takes to print.  All students and faculty must be certified before they can print their own objects, and it's especially helpful when teachers give us a class period to get kids certified.  We are definitely learning as we move forward with integrating 3D design/printing into individual classes.

Happy Making!