Articles
- First Year with a 3D Printer: 17 tips
- 3D PRINTING MATERIALS: PROS AND CONS
- 3-D Printing Glossary The Lyndhurst Girls' STEM Club suggested this site that includes terms and other resources on 3-D printing
- Ten Tips for Getting Started with 3D Printing article=10+ways+to+get+started+with+3D+printing
- 4 steps to create a strong 3-D printing program
- Educational Use of 3D Printers
- How 3D Printing is Changing the World
- What the Heck Is All the Whoop-Dee-Do With 3D Printing?
- World's first 3D-Printed Office Building Completed in Dubai
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC
Printers
Lulzbot
Makerbot
Monoprice Select Mini - ~ $200; one color; can use a variety of filaments
Makerbot
Monoprice Select Mini - ~ $200; one color; can use a variety of filaments
- Simple 3D Printing Solutions to World Issues (Gr. 6 - 12) Video
LESSON PLANS AND RESOURCES
Although these lessons utilize various models of 3D printers, they can be adapted for most models
Although these lessons utilize various models of 3D printers, they can be adapted for most models
- 3D printing lesson plan: Make your own Moby
- 3D Bear
- Cricut Machine–to cut materials
- MakerBot 3D Printing Solutions for STE(A)M Education Guide to learn more about integrating 3D printing into STE(A)M curriculums — then use it when presenting to decision-makers and administrators the value of bringing 3D printing to your classroom or school.
- Introduction to 3D printing
- Makerbot in the Classroom: an introduction to 3D printing and Design Guide
- STEM Education Worksgo.stemeducationworks.com/free-3d-printing-success-pack has made a set of 26 3D printing lessons for K-12 available free. Although the lessons were developed to work with the Sindoh 3D printer, the company said they're universal and can be used with any 3D printer. Some lessons offer exercises that students can start at home and finish when they return to school. https://go.stemeducationworks.com/free-3d-printing-success-pack
- Educator's Guide to 3D Printing
- Projects
- more lesson plans, explore the MakerBot Learning Collection!
- MakerBot Educators program aims to unite teachers who use 3D printing so they can share content and best practices and further the adoption of 3D printing in schools.
- Thingiverse Education provides over a hundred free lessons that make teaching with a 3D printer easier and more effective for a variety of grade levels and subjects. It also provides a community where educators can exchange best practices or remix projects.
- Webinar: Explore a Thingiverse Education Project You Can Finish in Two Days or Less
- Ideas for 3D printer lesson plans
- Simple 3D Printing Solutions to World Issues (Gr. 6 - 12) Video
- 3D models and other STEM activities
- 3D printing curriculum
- 3D printed entomology
- Seven 3D Printing Lessons for Teachers Archimedes Screw, Catapult Launch Angles,
Minecraft Castle, Tessellation, Recreating Artifacts from History, Egyptian Heiroglyphics – Making a Cartouche, Roman Coin Replica - Smithsonian X 3D (SIx3D) offers a way for students to learn about artifacts from the Smithsonian museums. The site is the result of a collaboration between Autodesk and the Smithsonian Institution. More than artifacts are currently featured on Smithsonian X 3D. The artifacts can be viewed as 3D models that you can virtually manipulate. Many of the artifacts have accompanying fact sheets through which you can learn about the artifact's history and significance. A screenshot of the fact sheet accompanying the model of the Philadelphia (a gunboat) is included below.
- If you have access to a 3D printer you can print models of many of the artifacts featured on Smithsonian X 3D.
- Insects with 123D Creature
- 7 Fun & Easy Lesson Plans to Jumpstart 3D Printing in Your Classroom Cutaway Earth Model, Hurricane Patricia, K-12 Design Project: Freight Car & Train, Bridge Building, Snowflake Machine, Aztec and Mayan Structures, and Beast Belly: Fraction Game,
- California mission circuit map
- Tinkercad, 3D printing projects Tinkercad is the easiest and most robust option for introducing CAD to elementary students.
- Here is an article with a few Tinkercad projects linked from Keep IN
Learning - https://keepindianalearning.org/tinkercad-digital-prototypes-pbl-design-thinking/
- Here is an article with a few Tinkercad projects linked from Keep IN
- 3D printing club: Lesson plans and other documents
- MakerBot 3D curriculum materials
- Lesson plan models for 3D printing
- Hack to the future
- 3D lesson plan: physic-optics
- Prototyping a puzzle using 3D print techniques unit
- Autodesk 3D STEAM projects search page
- Grade 3-8 lesson plans
- 5 Free Lesson Plans For 3D Printing
- Education in 3D
- Design. Make. Teach
- Tales of a 3D printer blog
- 3D printing in education Facebook page
- Education in 3D
- Pinterest boards: 1 | 2
- Yobi3D: a 3-D model search engine
- Secondary 3D printing curriculum
- SeeMeEducate Curriculum
- New Matter: How to start 3D designing with Tiinkercad
- 3D Doodler Pen
- MakerBot PrintShop
- Onshape
- SculptGL
- Sketchup
- Tinkercad–create your own 3D print designs
- GrabCad
- Smithsonian X3D–download 3D print designs of Smithosonian artifacts
- Thingiverse–download lots of 3D designs, like an iPhone case
- Youmagine–find 3D print designs
- Additive manufacturing
- 3D modeling
- Create 3D Printing Designs
- 3D Doodler Pen
- MakerBot PrintShop
- Onshape
- SculptGL
- Sketchup
- Tinkercad–create your own 3D print designs
- Download 3D Printing designs
- GrabCad
- Smithsonian X3D–download 3D print designs of Smithosonian artifacts
- Thingiverse–download lots of 3D designs, like an iPhone case
- Youmagine–find 3D print designs
- Modeling and design tips
- Review and preparation
- Project modeling and design
- Modeling and design software
- Thingiverse: 3D models Webinar: Explore a Thingiverse Education Project You Can Finish in Two Days or Less
- Tinkercad: gr. 2 - 8 Online 3D modeling free software Good tutorials and hints as you create Tinkercad is the easiest and most robust option for introducing CAD to elementary students.
- Tinkercad, 3D printing projects
- Here is an article with a few Tinkercad projects linked from Keep IN
Learning - https://keepindianalearning.org/tinkercad-digital-prototypes-pbl-design-thinking/
- SketchUp (formerly Google Sketchup) is a 3D modeling computer program for a wide range of drawing applications such as architectural, interior design, landscape architecture,civil and mechanical engineering, film, and video game design—and available in a freeware version
- Easel free 3D carving software
Vector Drawing use to bring into 3D modeling programs
Inkscape free
Curriculum Resources
- The MakerHub http://littlebits.cc/projects is a tremendous resource. Kids learned how different bits worked together by replicating these projects. That provided them the skill set to design their own original projects.
- Propose problem/solution/vision/purpose
- Design
- Build, document, fail, revise design, iterate
- Create how to for others (communication skills and making thinking visible)
- Webinar Best practices for implementing 3D printing in a school
- MakerBot in the Classroom: An Introduction to 3D Printing and Design. Packed with resources, this free ebook provides the basics of 3D printing and design, as well as ideas, projects, and activities for integrating 3D printers into the curriculum.
- MakerBot’s Learning Lessons curates some of the best lesson plans. They include step-by-step ins tructions, photos, 3D design files, activity sheets and more. All of these 3D printing lesson plans are designed to keep students motivated and learning new STEAM skills. Examples below:
- Thingiverse’s education page resources for teachers on Thingiverse’s education page including lesson plans and inspiration for the type of items you can print.
- Tinkercad Students can design their own 3D printable items using tools like Tinkercad on a web browser.
- 6 Reasons I’m Super Excited About 3D Printing in Education
- CityX curriculum. Written to teach students about the design process, this free curriculum was exactly what we wanted. The downloadable Toolkit includes an instructor’s guide, printable student workbooks, Common Core alignment, and videos
- A Simple 3D Printing Project Improved Learning For Nishuane’s Second Graders: Donna McGowan challenged her class with a math lesson brought to life by 3D printing pie charts on a MakerBot Replicator. Download this case study to learn more.
- Flat Stanley 3D printing adventures – learn more here.
- Book: "The Invite to Learn Guide 3D printing in the Classroom"
- 21 Cool Things Teachers and Students Have Built With 3D Printers.
- Literature a list of books that can be used with elementary students to connect to inventing and 3D printing.
How to Bicycle to the Moon to Plant Sunflowers
The Big Orange Splot
Galimoto
Leo the Maker Prince: Journeys in 3D Printing
Skyjumpers.
The following books for any kind of curriculum in which creativity and invention are encouraged:
The Most Magnificent Thing
Rosie Revere, Engineer
Iggy Peck, Architect
Going Places
Weslandia
- Software that you can use for designing includes:
Sketchup (free, but must be downloaded)
Thingiverse great sources of inspiration, but may include
inappropriate materials.
3DC.io app (IOS and Android) lets users easily create 3D
models. Students can build, share, and even 3D-print their
designs. 3DC uses basic shapes (cube, sphere, cylinder, cone)
to create any 3D model.
- 3D Printers Use in Science and Education
- 3D Printed Hand
- Build Skills with 3-D Printing Teachers in the fields of design and manufacturing can now access a free curriculum on 3-D printing. Stratasys has launched a 14-week course designed to help students build skills in personal fabrication. The free curriculum, which includes a curriculum guide, presentations and 3-D models (in the form of STL files and grading tools), is available for download at Stratasys’s website. After completing the course, students will be able to produce a fully functional moving part in a single print; explain current and emerging 3-D printing applications in the manufacturing field; understand the advantages and limitations of each 3-D printing technology; evaluate scenarios and recommend the appropriate use of 3-D printing technology; and identify opportunities to apply 3-D printing technology for time and cost savings.
Click Here to Access Free Curriculum - HHMI BioInteractive – A through innovative science education programs that HHMI seeks to strengthen education in biology,and related sciences from elementary school to graduate studies and beyond. Educators will find a wealth of information and resources including sources from Biology, Chemistry, Physiology, and even 3D Printing. There is something for just about any STEM classroom that is ready to engage students.
- 3Doodler, a 3D printing pen, uses plastic to create different shapes and images that cool and harden instantly. This device allows kids to experience design and creation without needing any special software, computer, or even knowledge of computer science. Children can now have the tools of digital and physical imaging at their fingertips. The educational possibilities of 3Doodler will appeal to a large body of students and could be used in a range of different educational disciplines. In addition, the 3Doodler could be used by educators and parents to encourage young girls to engage with STEM subjects, which would help eliminate the gender gap in the education system
- Tinkercad is a browser-based platform for design and modeling. With Tinkercad, children can design and create anything they imagine. Tinkercad uses virtual depictions of shapes as the main building blocks for children to create with. Shapes can then be grouped into new models that are more and more detailed and intricate. Another feature of Tinkercad allows kids to create vector shapes and form them into 3D creations from their 2D designs.
Apps
- MakerBot PrintShop™ The app is an easy, and free way to create and 3D print all kinds of cool things on MakerBot Replicator 3D Printers. Create 3D designs without a learning curve with our easy-to use-tablet application, and wirelessly prepare your models for 3D printing on your Fifth Generation MakerBot Desktop 3D Printer.
- Blokify app
- 3DC.io app by 3D Creationist OÜ lets users easily create 3D models. Students can build, share, and even 3D-print their designs. 3DC uses basic shapes (cube, sphere, cylinder, cone) to create any 3D model. From the simplest design to the most complex objects, students can build their models by simply moving, rotating, and scaling primitive objects. They use the arrows around the shape to manipulate the object in the desired direction.
- Novo Modeler app
- Modio app
- Tinkerplay app
- Morphi iOS app (EDU version $)
- Thingiverse
- Blender is the free ( MAC - Windows )open source 3D content creation suite, available for all major operating systems under the GNU General Public License. Discover the wide toolset available in Blender, defining a complete pipeline (from modeling to sequence editing) controlled by a flexible and consistent user interface.
- SightSpace Pro (IOS and Android) a powerful mobile tool that allows you to see your digital models and designs in the form of real-life buildings using Augmented Reality technology. SightSpace Pro integrates seamlessly with major file formats such as .DWG, a simple export from all 3D modeling programs, .DXF, .DGN, .SKP (Trimble SketchUp), .KMZ and .KML, and .DAE.
- Autodesk 123D Design (Mac, Windows, iOS)
- Bld3r
- Shapr3D app (iPad Pro only)
- Pinshape
- Yeggi
- 3D Creationist (iOS) (Android)
- Youmagine
- STL Finder search engine
- VECTARY Create 3D models right in your browser and have everything saved in the cloud so you can access them from anywhere, at anytime. No install and no licenses needed’
- 3D Models Search Engine - Yobi3D This is a good way to search for 3D models. Type any keywords with the term '3D' or 'Model' on Google to also search from Yobi3D.com. Edit options to customize keywords that will trigger a search to Yobi3D.com
Projects
- 7 Hands-On Projects That Use 3D Printers
- 3D Printing Solutions to World Issues Video
"With an emphasis and focus on the UN Sustainability Goals, students were challenged to create prototypes or products that would be beneficial in assisting communities and countries in reaching the UN Sustainability Goals. Our first year of 3D printing has brought challenges, but we are learning a lot through problem solving and design. I’ll discuss our journey into 3D printing, the excitement of students in learning about “real-world” challenges and how 3D printing could play a role in solving these issues. Take ideas from our experience, make them your own and help save our world one 3D print at a time."
- lists of manipulatives teachers can make on a 3D printer.
- Sketchup book has dozens of step-by-step projects, showing how to create models in SketchUp and get these models ready to create in any printer.
- 3D Printable STEM Projects for Makerspaces
- SketchUp models into Minecraft? My friend, Paul Lee of DesignerDojo in Ireland, has released a new, FREE e-book that shows how to do just that.
Printers
- 3D Printer Guide from 3D Hubs - Compare and evaluate various 3D printers using these in-depth ratings and reviews.
- Best 3D Classroom Printers
- 7 innovative 3D printers for the classroom
- What is the BEST/LEAST EXPENSIVE 3D Printer I can buy?
- Comparison Chart
- My go-to printer is the PrintrBot Simple Metal ($540), and it gets lots of points on Make's shootout page:
http://makezine.com/2015/11/04/digital-fabrication-shootout-winners/ - A Guide to 3D Printers
- LulzBot Mini: https://www.lulzbot.com/ - easy to use, precise, great support, and built on open hardware principles...highly recommended.
- I personally bought the PrintrBot Simple Metal after doing a lot of research for a course that I was writing for 3D Printing in the Classroom. I know a lot of other printers might be flashy, or have cooler features, but sometimes: you want something that just works, specially if you are teaching, and you want to just hand it off to the kids.
The Simple Metal actually won several awards on the Make Magazine shoot out:
http://makezine.com/2015/11/04/digital-fabrication-shootout-winners/
Videos