The Last Stand - Thank you and Goodbye for 2024

 

The intention was to conclude this blog this year, with it marking ten years since it had started and also reflecting on a change in circumstances.

Due to a change in, a change in circumstances this blog will be continuing next year as well, at least in the short term.

We have finished for the school year in New Zealand and are currently on our school holidays - we will start school again at the end of January 2025.

There will be some project work from our students who are in holiday, but some of the students will continue to produce work, which we will continue to print.   We also have some work that was completed in the lead up to Christmas.

As always if you would like to contact the teacher who supervises the site you can do so via email at myles.webb@gmail.com.    The teacher is still on Twitter/X (just) @NZWaikatp).

Gyro Keychain - Junior Christmas Print

 

We are always looking for designs and prints that we can modify particularly those that are relatively straight forward to print.  We are always looking for adapting a print, particularly if something can lead to it working for a large number of students in a short space of time.

The example shown left is a good illustration of a process that is deceptively simple.   The design is called amongst other things a 'gyro keyring'.    The student in this case needs to alter the lettering at the centre of the design, the basic design of the print can then be spun, leading to a gyro effect.

In this example, while the student has personalised it, the design was created elsewhere, so there is not a full post about it - the other issue is the printing time, which is thirty eight minutes with no rafting or waste PLA.   With this timeframe it is realistic to consider that a a class set could easily be created, and again it would have the potential to be a Christmas print with the initials of another person put at the centre of the design.

Using the Versa Sign Maker

 

For the end of year our students have a group of leavers who graduate from our school before moving on to High School.  As we want as a school to gift them something special, we have had a group of our students, working with a staff member to produce a personalised sweatshirt hoodie for each of the graduating students.

Crucial to this process was the transfers that were crated and printed using the Roland Versa Sign Maker.

The transfers were printed on specific paper and the paper was then pressed onto the material.

The designs were transferred onto the sleeve, the front of the sweatshirt and a detailed label on the back (as shown top left).   The names of the students that were in the group is contained within the numbers to represent the year.

This allowed our school to produce something unique for the students.

Laser Cut Tree - 3D Printed Additions

 

3D Printed Additions to Laser Cut Tree

We detailed on a previous post about using the school laser cutter to produce a range of Christmas Trees with a short space of time for decoration.   Once this was completed the next question was what can we add? What could we make that would work in conjunction with this?

An example is shown left.   The original design is the large Christmas Tree featured on this blog here.  There is a star which was designed very quickly independently by a Y3 student.   The student used a basic design template to produce a star, inserted a letter into the base of the star and inserted a line into the middle so that it could sit on the tree.  None of these elements took more than one minute to produce.

The student is now looking towards the next steps - what else can the students design using Tinkercad to add to the tree.  In the case of the star the entire print was fifteen minutes to print.

The student wanted to look at decoration ideas - one of the ideas was to dye the MDF green and then to use a small set of battery powered set of Christmas lights to illuminate the tree (this would also work if the student had a set of three trees that were in a row.

Christmas Decorations 2024: Ten Years of Student Projects

 

3D Printed Christmas Tree - Junior Development and Evolution

 

Challenge: For a novice designer to be able to successfully produce a Christmas Tree.

Background: We have mentioned this challenge for students in the past, detailing the process by which they select a design and refine and develop it further.

The process shown left started with the smallest design.  It was a basic tree with small decoration.  The initial tree took only thirty minutes to print and measured just over 50mm.   The design base was not centred correctly and there was no option to hand the tree.  Not satisfied with the size of the design the student was able to simple reshape the design and doubled the size.

This increased the printing time significantly which then came in at two hours.   The size of print now measured 130mm from the base to the top, the student also centred the base again and added several other designs to the shape.

The student responsible for this is seven years old.  He is using Tinkercad for the first time this year in the classroom.

The issue of hanging of the tree was not possible so the student wanted to ensure this was possible.  As shown left in the screenshot from the Tinkercad design page with the inserting of a tube at the top to allow the print to be completed with an obvious place to tie.

The student also further attempted to balance the base of the tree.  The concept of the base being wider or larger was not something that he was able to consider.

The print time for this is two and a half hours.   This design was in similar to other with this set of projects and is being included in the slideshow that features ten years of Christmas Themed designs.  You can click on the link here and please feel free to share it with as many others as possible.

Laser Cut: Christmas Decorations

 

We have always encouraged students to look at unpacking their ideas and creations including locating and working out how an item was made.

Recently we had students who attending a local craft market, as part of the market one of the students purchased a cartoon-ish reindeer which is shown in the left of the group photo.

The student purchased this item, brought it into school and this created a situation where we were able to look at how it had been put together.  This became a situation where we asked our students - how was this made, what did it take to create and where was the use of technology.

We then decided to pose the question - is this something that we could make? What might it look like - and what else could we produce.

We started by using a basic search engine but then included in the search the phrase laser cut template and Christmas decorations.

The students located the tree shown left.   This temple included a base and a mid point, and the design was freely available on a site as a free template download.  The file was duly downloaded and the laser cut was completed.

The actual laser cutting took approximately six minutes- the 3D Print version of something this size would have been considerably longer.

The next step for the students is what can we add to the design, what can we use to decorate this further - how can our students potentially use a 3D Printer or other material to finalise the decoration for this project.   The potentially to produce a run of class prints (a set of twenty five or so).

3D Printing Ides Bucket!

Recently on Twitter there was a discussion about ideas to enthuse students for 3D Printing - as a way to encourage amazing designs but also ways to look at getting students to have the 'wow' factor.

We are very fortunate to have a wide range of projects that have occurred over the last ten years, which are of course detailed on this blog.   When we have projects that we find innovative or interesting one of the things that we like to do is to create an additional print and add it to the bank that we are working with.

We have a tub in the classroom with a range of examples, and we let students explore these.   They are all robust, and not all of them have printed successfully however we have used them to create a discussion point with the students about design.

In a similar manner while the tub has the long term projects in the current projects or project that we are presently working on, which we want to be more accessible with the students - contained in this chest.

The chest is the laser cutter treasure box that was created using our school laser cutter.   The details of this project can be found here.

One of the things that we point to is the robust nature of the 3D Prints.   The earliest prints date back nearly ten years and are still in a workable state, we have had hundreds of students handle and maintain these prints 

Junior Masterclass - Pushing a Tinkercad Design

 

We have spoken at length about a number of reasons why our students use Tinkercad (on iPad) as part of class designs and challenges.   We have used it, in its free form, for ten years with a range of students, which date back to the very first posts on this blog.

We continue to find it manageable and creative - and an example of this is shown left.  This has been created by a student using Tinkercad to design a significant Christmas project.  

This student opted to design a Christmas Sleigh themed design.   He wanted to build the entire design by using Tinkercad to include the main shapes and the complete design.    The student has worked on this over a considerable period of time, refining, reworking and adapting to the design until he was happy with it.

This student has worked on a number of projects this year, which is his first year working with 3D Printers and CAD (Tinkercad) design.

We have yet to print this 3D Design - we have used Tinkercad to create an AR/VR version of this project, which has been placed outside our classroom.   The student has determined that he wants to create a Christmas Card based around this design.   He has begun the process of using different filters with the image that Tinkercad design created.

An example of the process of using filters, as supplied on Pic Collage, is shown left.

The student is continuing to experiment with this - ultimately we would like to experiment with the process of using the design, although the question is whether or not this will make the process of printing remains to be seen.

We are nearly finished for the school year in New Zealand we will be completing our final run of prints prior to school completing on December 16th 2024.

Using the Sticker Machine for General Labels

 One of the local groups that we are working with is the local people who are opening a new Wharekai (Kitchen/Dining Area) as part of their Marae.   As part of this we have been looking for opportunities in how we might use our technology and share the projects and share the ideas, resources and what we can make with others.

This use of the sticker machine fits several of those criteria.  We have allowed others to design projects to encourage them to engage in the school.  In this case these labels while straightforward and would be used typically as labelling for material at the site.   We would be confident once the vinyl was applied to the resource that it would not fall off or weather, even if it is exposed to water.   We can point to the outside poster which has remained outside for over a year without any weather damage.

The stickers were printed 70mm by 50mm and were designed using Pic Collage.   The designs were then imported into the software that is part of the machine, and printed via the LCD panel with the software that was part of the machine purchase.

The machine has a variety of medium to print on including t-shirt transfers.

The print time for a sheet this size was just over twenty five minutes, which would be standard for a sheet of this size.

3D Printing: Junior Projects Ongoing

We have students looking for opportunities to complete individualised projects that are not otherwise available.

In this case shown left a basic design was created by a student, using a previous available tutorial on Tinkercad.   When the design was completed it was then passed to a senior student with which to complete the spray painting of the design.    The student was extremely pleased with the results.

There were a point that the hole for the attachment of a cord or drawstring was slightly too big or too close to the edge of the design, however the student opted against a reprint.

The print took five and a half hours to complete and was 140mm high, was 100mm wide and was 10mm thick.   It was designed to be as robust as possible as it was for a gear bag.

We have continued to allow students to experiment with the develop ideas related to Christmas Decorations.  This is something that we have done each year as it has allowed each design to be created and also has a realistic print time for the project to be completed and allow each student to progress from a concept, to an idea, to a design and then refine the design as required.

In the example shown left the students basic block shape has been further refined by inserts for the name and shape and a ring inserted in the top left to allow the decoration to be hung easily from a tree.  The design measures 90mm by 90mm and was then subsequently spray painted by a senior student.   The print time was two and a half hours.

You can read a presentation about ten years of Christmas Decorations Projects.

Christmas Gifts/Unique Designs/Earrings Business for Students.    When we held our School Market Day last year we created a range of business that featured and used all of our technology opportunities for our students.  The laser cutter was used for various market day projects, the sticker machine was used for packaging and labelling and we had several 3D Printed based businesses.   One of which being run by a Y3 student was based around 3D Printing Earrings.  This student is now a year older however we have made the decision to feature some of these designs for sale from the school office for Christmas gifts given that they are unique and we can produce them at a rate that is achievable and quickly (typically the pair of earrings as shown in the photograph can be printed in thirty minutes or thereabouts).  We will be featuring these in an area adjacent to our school office with the intention that they can be designed. created and marketed by our students.

Christmas Projects: Something unique, something personal and something created by a student.

This was a relatively straight forward design from a Y3 student in the classroom who was creating and designing for one of the first times.   

It was easily achievable to complete a Tinkercad design that the student was intending to complete with spray painting.

The student was extremely proud of this intending to use it to label for the family pet.    The design was 120mm long/across, was was 10mm high and was 50mm wide at the ends and 40mm wide in the middle for the print.

3D Printed Junior Tinkercad Progression Design

 

Challenge: To produce a label that is suitable for a adult to use to attach to a gear bag, designed, reshaped and redesigned by a junior.

Background: One of the things that we like to do with the 3D Printer is to try and get the students using Tinkercad and revising, remodelling and improving their design until it has changed significantly or served its purpose.   An example with the process, involving a seven year old (Y3) student designing independently without the input or supervision of a teacher.

The task was straight forward and relatively easy, involving creating a tag for a bag.  We actually took a photograph the cow tag (shown above left, yellow) and used Markup to draw the design.  This gave us a starting point for the student to take the design and bring it into Tinkercad.  We also had the object to refer to the student to ensure that the size was correct.   While he did use the measurement aspect of Tinkercad clearly when the student created prototype (shown above) was compared to the original object in terms of size it was clearly not the correct dimensions - It was 60mm long and 30mm high.

The second design, when revised came from the feedback that was created for person who wanted to use it.   The tag design was more clearly evident and also the top of the design, with a narrow neck for the first one wasn't considered robust enough for a high use object.  Again as can be seen by the example shown left, the dimensions again were not as intended and therefore the shape was requested to be redesigned.   The student was again able to redesign the shape - it should be mentioned that the redesign here is very basic as the student is grouping different designs with lettering and the basic shape with a hole inserted - three basic steps.

The final form of the design was then created by the student.  Again using the tag as the guide this produced a result which finally reflected the dimensions that were originally intended.

The final completed version is as shown left.  In this example the dimensions are correct, while not exactly perfect these were close enough in the range to ensure that the person the design was intended for was happy.

Size: The final design measured 60mm across and was 80mm high.  This design was 5mm thick which significantly allowed a number of the final designs to be published.

Timeframe: Forty five minutes to complete the print.  This allowed multiple versions of the same print to be printed.

What we would do differently/next steps for the students: This print was able to be reshaped and redesigned several times and was shown to the student as a way of having it in their hands to ensure that they understood the changes that needed to be made.   Tinkercad is perfect for junior students to use in this instance to work independently on design - we didn't AR/VR this example before printing it but of course this is something else that could have been done.

Gala Day Signs - Using the Sticker Machine

Using the Versa Sign Maker to create signage for the School Gala Day/Event.  We are always looking for practical examples on how we apply our technology.  This is a simple example of one of the games that we used for our School Gala Night.   The machine was used to print a vinyl sticker - the sticker was printed large, that is 50cm by 1 metre.    The sticker was then applied to a sheet of corrugated cardboard.   In this case we used a real estate agents sign, which was supplied to us by a local agent that they no longer required.  This allows our students who were running this event to have signage that was labelled with the school details (mascot and name at the bottom) with the graphics completed on a Mac.   In the event of there being any rain during or before the school gala we were safe in the knowledge that the sign would not get wet (as it is essentially a large vinyl sticker).

The second version of these posters was created by a student using the Pic Collage app.   This was a design that was created in a short time-frame and as a result the student was able to produce signage for their school fundraiser that took place during the school gala night.

This produced a robust large sign that could be then used (and potentially used again in the future, there is no evidence of any colour running or fading of the design.   As a further note an example of this use of the machine has been created for advertising a local event.  The event poster was created by a local sports club, this poster has been placed outside in a location that was visibly prominent but also exposed to the elements.  This has been in place now for nearly a calendar year and there is no evidence of any damage to the sign, no evidence of fading etc.  This has been in place during a New Zealand winter and was exposed to a full range of elements.

Junior Evolving Christmas Print: Decorations

Challenge: To produce a unique and original Christmas decoration.

Background: Again this year we have challenged our students to create an original Christmas decoration - which we are printing in time for the festive season.

As an overview we have published a slideshow which shows ten years of Christmas based Tinkercad designed prints which is located on this blog here.

One of the things that we have challenged the students with this project to do is to think about how we might be able to change the print or reshape or design it and include it into something else.  In this case the design shown above was created as a tree with the intention of it being used to hang from a traditional tree.  As can be seen from the photograph the design is missing a hole.  There was an insert put into the design, however the student did not make the hole in the design big enough and as a consequence it was not successfully printed.   

The design took fifty minutes to print - and a pair was printed as the student was interested in investigating the potential to convert the design into a pair of earrings.

Previously we have students who have produced an entire range of 3D Printed unique earrings - these were initially created for various projects but have proven popular when we have our school Market Days.

The other aspect of the project that has proven to be positive is that the student concerned has completed a project, it has had a very reasonable print time and has then adapted and developed this idea, this project and this work (completely independently) further.

The final earring design is shown left.   Again while the details are clear they have been created by the main Tinkercad interface and designed by a student in a very short space of time.

Size: The first version of the tree was slightly larger being 50mm tall, 30mm wide and 5mm thick.   The finished earring shown left was slightly smaller to make it a more realistic earring size - 30mm high, 10mm with and 5mm thick.

Timeframe: The original print was forty five minutes, as this was intended as a ornament the revised version which was the earring was twenty five minutes which reflected in its reduced scale.

What we would do differently/Next Steps for the students: The student has already indicated that the design maybe refined slightly, the circles to represent the baubles in the middle of the tree are not refined enough and the student really wants to explore the use of metallic PLA so they don't have to use spray painting with the design.   Examples of how this has been used to produce finished work can be shown here.

3D Printed: Pencil Sharpener Holder Challenge

 

Challenge: To produce an original 3D Printed design that would be suitable to hold a pencil sharpener.  Student is restricted to create an original design from scratch and not use an existing or pre-made print.

Background: We have attempted variations of this challenge before, where the students have been tasked with taking an object and building it into a 3D Print.  You can see examples of this here on our blog.

You can also see a version of this design which incorporates a VR/AR version and one that has various filters applied.

This design came out of the process while this student is a student from the junior school this student has proven consistently to be someone who has grasped the concepts and ideas of 3D Printing and 3D Printed designs utilising a variety of techniques and excelled with her ability.

The scale of this print is larger than some of the smaller concept ideas of this version are smaller than a students finger.

The 'Dog' themed design was an original for the student.

Level of Difficulty: High - there are a number of component pieces that need to work in order for this print to be considered a success.  The legs need to balance, the tail needs to be feasible and the facial features of the dog are particularly important.  While importing many of these aspects would have been possible such as previous examples here, in this example we wanted the student to design them for herself to ensure that they were unique and she pushed herself with the design concept and idea.

Size: The print measures 140mm in length, was 50mm wide for the majority of the base and 80mm wide with the ears.   The design was 40mm high for most of it.  While the dimensions of this print is rather large it was intended to be this way.

Timeframe: This print took four and half hours.  Given the dimensions that were expressed above there was little that we would do to reduce or increase this time.  There was limited 'rafting' that took place at the base of the design.

What we would do differently/next steps for the student:

The student is happy with the overall design, aspects like the tail but she felt that the details in the face, which is conceivably the hardest to reliably create, she has stated that she wants to develop this particular aspect of the design further to make sure that it reflected a design that she was happy with.    Once this first print was created she felt she could have included additional details into the print to ensure that it would hold extra material such as a USB stick or a pencil.  Usually students are content with their prints, this is an example when a student wants to spend time and care to create a print that she is happy with. 

3D Printed Junior Christmas Projects Summary

 

Two copies of a basic Snowman design, created by a Y3 student.   Features oversized and exaggerated features and large loop in the head for attaching to a tree.  

This design was completed independently by a student in their first year of TInkercad designing using the main interface, selecting a predetermined snowman and then manipulating the design to add the features.

A small thirty minute design and print which was 40mm high.  Printed in metallic (shown left) and marble PLA (shown right).

Left another snowman - this was created again from the main Tinkercad interface.  The student used the top hat to add a whimsical feature to it.   The student also wanted to include an 'M' for their name on the base of it as well (which can be seen in profile).

This design was completed independently by a student who is also Y3 however has shown an aptitude to create and design using Tinkercad.  They were able to brainstorm the idea come up with the design, complete it all and submit it for printing in under thirty minutes.  

The print was completed in forty five minutes and is 50mm high to the top of the hat.   

The print shows an example of what can be created using a rainbow or metallic PLA which created the stripes that can be seen.   As we have noted on this blog we have opted not to spray paint the design further with any of these designs.

"Elf on the Shelf" original design.   This student was inspired with and then worked in conjunction with the student who was working on the Christmas Angel.   The student has used a series of original objects and designs that are available from the main Tinkercad interface.   By manipulating and altering and adjusting the basic shapes that are available an "Elf' was developed.

While the ring was inserted to allow the design to be hung from a tree it also had a base created that allowed the design to stand and be placed in a variety of locations.  The student wants to focus on an issue of redesign, related to the face of the creation as the definition the student considered not completed.

The design was completed using the metallic PLA print took two and a half hours to print and was 70mm high with a 40mm base/wide.   Other than the facial issues as noted the student is not intending to redesign this print.

3D Printed Christmas Projects: Overview 2015-24

 

This slideshow is a summation of various projects that have featured on this blog over the past ten years. We will be adding to this slideshow over the next few days featuring a number of other posts.

3D Printed Christmas Trees: Mini Class Project Juniors

Challenge: For every student in the classroom to create a unique Christmas tree for the classroom, where everyone in the classroom of twenty six Year Three and Year Four.

Background: While we have already completed a series of prints from this sequence - as detailed on this blog including Christmas ornaments, Christmas Angels, Snowman and large scale trees.

The next step was something that we have been asked about in the past, how can we produce a series of prints realistically for a class of students, when you are running one printer.   Essentially we are running just the one - at this school we are so lucky to have three main printers that are available for use - one of the awesome things this year has been having new staff members to school who have also got on board with 3D Printing projects and this also has meant that the printing project time has to be managed carefully.

Early this year we completed a series of prints based around the students creating earrings - this worked extremely well as the print time typically was under half an hour per project, and for a classroom of students was achievable.

We have detailed in the past some of the aspects related to Tinkercad and in particular the main interface.  In the example shown left are some of the pre-created shapes that can be imported easily into the students design screen.   Once the shape has been imported the students are able to add additional shapes, as has been shown in previous designs such as the star, and the bobbles for the tree.

This potentially is something that could be completed by the younger juniors - our classroom is going to put these designs to students from our Y1 classroom, as we would rate this as an 'easy' for them to complete with the assistance of our older students (again as noted in the past we have a classroom of seven and eight year olds).

Level of Difficulty: Easy.   This is something that we are going to work on with our classroom of juniors working with a classroom of Y1 students on a peer basis - these students have never used Tinkecad before, and we are confident given the scaffolding and work from the students in our classroom that it will be successful.   We want to very much involve our students in using the AR/VR option for iPads to check for potential printing errors and design flaws.

Size: We targeted this print with the intention of making it small, to make sure printing is feasible in the case of completing it for my classroom and also with a number of other students.   The examples shown left is 40mm high and 20mm wide at the tree portion of the print and the trunk measures 10mm across and a further 20mm high).    It has been suggested that this would also make a pair of novelty earrings.   

Timeframe: One hour for the example shown left.  This is ideal for the print and we would likely redirect students who would create something larger than this.   This creates a print that is unique and would be suitable for hanging from a tree.  Again we wanted to allow for the creation that could be realistically produced for a class set before the end of the term.

What we would do differently/Next steps for the students:

This option has proven already to be successful task for the classroom which a number of students have completed.   The size and timeframe were realistic, and the skills required are something that our students have proven that they have developed using Tinkercad during the year.

3D Printed Exemplar Junior: Christmas Decorations

 

Challenge: To produce a unique and creative Christmas decoration that would be suitable to hang from a tree.

Background: As per the previous descriptions of the project at the moment, the challenge for the students is to create something that could be considered festive.

Ultimately this design has been part of a range of activities that have come from the junior classroom since the start of term four.   Previously there has been an angel, a range of Christmas trees, the Christmas Angel to top the tree.

One of the aspects of the design that has worked well is it has allowed students to use the design template and by using repetition and basic shapes, combined in this case again with the 'shimmer' PLA (which does not require spray painting).

This student is a Y3 student who is a seven year old who has been designing and creating using the 3D Printer for the first time this year.   The design shown above left is deceptively simple - it consists of one main ring design which is placed on a block which then links with the chain as shown.   

Once again we opted for the shimmer PLA which meant that we would not be required to spray paint the print once that it was completed.

Level of Difficulty: Low - this is deceptively simple involving three different shapes or items with one repeatedly significantly to create the affect.   The screenshot in the bottom left hand corner shows some of the shapes that are available from the main interface.

Size: The design is 90mm high and 80mm wide at the main points of the design.   The image shown in the photograph is of course upside down as the top of the design is where it will be attached to the tree.

Timeframe: Two and a half hours.    The dimensions of the print were created to ensure that this is a significant print that would stand out when on display.  It was also considered that a version of this print could also make an interesting pair of earrings, but not with the size of this print.

What we would do differently/next steps for the students: The student could potentially look at a more organic design (although in this case it is taking pride of place at the Christmas Tree).    A earring version of this print is possible but would need to be reduced in size.

3D Printed Christmas Tree: Junior School Exemplar

 

Challenge: To produce a unique, original Christmas decoration, suitable for display or a tree.

Background:   Its a current classroom challenge, involving our Y3 and Y4 students with a design brief to create something unique for Christmas.  The students are using Tinkercad in their student classroom accounts.   Previous designs in this series have included the Christmas Angel as posted on this blog.

This students is a Y4 student who has been using Tinkercad for a relative short time, since half way through the year.   The design was completed in a short space of time using the main interface.   The details were added to the tree.

Level of Difficulty: Medium - the main interface was used and manipulated and the design that as created was done so quickly and creatively by the student involved.   The timeframe for this original design was under five minutes from the start to the completion.   There was no teacher input.

Size: The tree measured 80mm high and was 70mm wide at the base of the tree, narrowing as it reached the top.   The star was added to the design to signify the tree and also had an insert to allow it to be attached to the tree.

Timeframe: On the basic default settings for the print the time was two and a half hours.  The student wanted this to be successful and an eye catching design as it was.

What we would do differently/next steps for the students: The star at the top of the tree had a narrow point of contact, which needed the teacher to remove the gap, ideally if it had been structured differently the student would have been able to pop it out himself.   The trunk/base of the tree as you can see from the design shown in the photograph is not centre, the student wanted to shift its position.   Finally the student wanted to print it out using the filament that had the shimmer affect.

Finally as per usual with a design like this there is opportunity for it to run through a range of filters to alter its design and display.  We have been doing this in both the original Tinkercad design, but also using additional web based programs such as Pixton and iPad Apps such as Pic Collage.

3D Printed Christmas Angel Junior Exemplar

 

Challenge: To create a unique Christmas Decoration.

Background:  The current classroom challenge is for the students to design a Christmas themed decoration.   While it is early this year we finish school in early December and we are looking for the students to refine, rework and improve their designs and have them completed, printed and ready for display for Christmas this year.

The classroom at our school that is completing this task is a junior room, the students are Y3/4.   The students have either one classroom years experience using Tinkercad to design various items and projects.  This design has been created by the student independently.   The brief was make something amazing, creative and unique.  

The student wanted to use the wings (which can be seen clearly in both the final print left, and the original design as put through a filter from its Tinkercad creations.) and wanted to then design the rest of the print from scratch.  The student has shown creativity and inventiveness using the different aspects of the main Tinkercad interface.   Some other previous examples of this students work can be seen here.

We again opted for the shimmering design provided by the PLA that is described as rainbow or sheen.

Level of Difficulty: High.  This design was creative and inventive and the elements of it needed to balance together, with a import of the wings.    This student was able to do that and produce a stunning design.   The student is eight years old.   This was rate as one of the most effective Christmas Designs/decorations that we have produced.

Size: The wings of the design measured 70mm across the back.  The design was 90mm high and was 50mm wide at the base.   The idea was to use shapes to create a cartoon affect with the design.

Timeframe: Three and a half hours.   The dimensions and the size of the print were keeping in mind with the intention of the project.   The angel is going to be placed on a tree.

What we would do differently/Next steps for the students: One of the aspects of the print that needs to be addressed is the connection with the head of the design and the shoulders.  By using a cone to create the body the point at which it joins the head was quite narrow and needs to be addressed.  While it did not mean that the print broke it was obvious that this needed to be very carefully handled.  The student is attempting to remedy this by redesigning the 

3D Priting: Christmas Decorations 2024

 

Challenge: For a junior student to design, create and print a unique Christmas decoration that could hang from a tree.

Background: This is the latest classroom challenge for my junior class of students.  The students brief was to have something that was original, had a aspect of personalisation and was able to be realistically hung from a tree.

The first example shown left was produced by a Y3 student (a seven year old) in under five minutes.   The student took a design element from the Tinkercad main interface page (the snowflake) and then applied their name on the bar linking the snowflake and the ring.  All of these three features were available from the basic design template and the student was familiar with using them to create something.   They were able to submit this to their individual student Tinkercad account.

Level of Difficulty: Medium - the student created something using three basic interface tools to create the design, then link them all together and group them.   This student while new to 3D Printing this year has now spent nearly twelve months in the classroom using Tinkercad to design this.

Size: The print was 140mm long.   The snowflake measured 60mm across, the name bridge aspect of the print was 10mm wide and the design was 10mm thick at the snowflake and the lettering for the name was 15mm high.  The student is going to look at these dimensions moving forward.

Timeframe: Two hours - this was something that would be improved (ie shortened) by refining the design to ensure that it was all consistent with the size.  Although the link bridge with this design is narrow it is something that is intended to be hung from a tree for display and not something that needs to be robust to be handled.

What we would do differently/Next steps for teh students: As noted the design is currently a little uneven in places - the design could be improved that way.   The name of the designer could potentially have each of its letters flipped so that it could be read down the spine of the linking pin.   

The design was printed using 'sheen' PLA which we are continuing to experiment with, so was not spray painted.  You can read additional Christmas designs from previous students by clicking on the link here.

3D Printing Term Four in New Zealand

 

In New Zealand the final school term of the year has started, with a finish time of early December for most schools.  At our school we are starting to wind up the year with various projects.

One of the lessons that we have learned over the year, particularly when looking to have a class set of anything completed, when we are running on a school set of printers, is to start early.   Hence we have started looking at Christmas themed decorations again and focussing on smaller designs that can be mass produced easily by the printers at school.

Firstly we have tasked the students with looking at a typical decoration that might hang from a Christmas Tree.   The criteria for this is something that the students might design, have some level of personalisation on it and have elements that the students have created.   We have inserted this requirement because some of the students using Tinkercad were aware that they would be able to use a design tool like the search bar and locate an element like the snowflake shown below.   

This by itself can be printed directly, but the student in this case has opted to introduce their name to a bar and link that with a ring to allow the design to easily be hung from a tree.

We are also looking at creating labels such as the one shown in the photograph above.  In this example the student has taken their name, used a basic text design and added a linking ring.  This student was a Y3 who is using Tinkercad for the first time and was able to do this independently.   They add to add some blocks into the design to ensure that everything was linked (in the example between the capital A and the o you can see it in the bottom right hand corner of the A.

These labels are 60mm by 25mm and 10mm thick and currently taking just over 45 minutes to print.   We are currently using a 'marble' filament which has produced the affect shown.

There are many, many examples of Christmas Decorations from the last few years on this site, you can locate them by using the search bar icon or clicking on this summary post.   We also have examples of the labelling

Sensory Fidget Stars - Unpacking the Design

 

Designs shown left include a 3D Printed design, made on one of our schools Snapmaker machines.   The second toy, shown on the right is a commercial available from a stationary supplier company.

While the two objects are identical we have seen the larger 3D Printed star start to appear as a fidget toy which is available online from online retailers.  We have seen considerable variation in the price - some price points have the object on sale for $16.00 (NZD).  

We were able to locate the plans, the .stl code for this print from Thingiverse and found the code freely available.    This then allowed the students to print the design.  As a fractal star as shown, the design was printed as a single piece with no waste PLA that is created as a result of completing print.

We have posted about this topic in the past and identified that we are looking for students to be able to understand the design process, understand the making an production process (such as working out exactly a price point for an object like this) and look to encourage and inspire students to create their own projects an items such as this.   Realistically they would also be something we could produce as a fundraiser for our school or for a potential school market day or event.

3D Printing Interrupted

 

This issue relates to the use of the Snapmaker 3D Printers that we currently use.  We are very fortunate that we have three that we are running at our school, which are being run virtually non-stop.   We started using these machines in 2022 after many years of using Ultimaker Machines.

One of the aspects of the machines that are particularly pleasing is that there is an ability from the machines to stop the print at mid point, and then restart the print at the exact same point.

An example is shown left, this print which was considerable and featured a large figurine of Stitch from the Lilo and Stitch Disney Movie.

This print completed three quarters of the print prior to the PLA that was being used to print running out.   A second roll was then inserted into the machine and the print was restarted, at exactly the same point that the print had stopped.

During the process where the new roll (marble) look which is shown clearly left was used to complete the print.  No red was available, however hence the use of another colour, but the intention is to spray paint the entire design purple/blue to match the design of the character.

What actually occurred was that twice during the new roll of filament being used the roll fouled or became twisted when it was printing, in both instances the teacher then cut the PLA so that it continued to print, and when it reached the point when the PLA on the shorted roll was exhausted the print then stopped, and additional PLA was loaded.

Our experience prior to this with machines that were not as robust was that every instance of a power cut, a print stopping due to PLA running out etc would result in a blocking of the machine which at times would take someone coming and fixing the problem a considerable amount of time.