3D Printed Ant: Standard Version

 

Challenge: To create an original and correct insect student (nine year old) designed 3D Print.

Background: As per the last few number of prints on this blog this is in preparation for our 2026 Pet Day.

As per the post from yesterday we experimented with using the P1P Bambu Printer and the Bambu H2D.   With the experience yesterday we printed on the Bambu H2D first and then followed up with P1S when the Bambu H2D didn't print the leg at the back.

As we suspected the print needs to be slowed down, by printing on the P1S we printed an identical design, an identical file but this was successful.   If we were using the Bambu H2D we would slow the process down.

Resources used to complete this print: iPad, Tinkercad App, Bambu P1P, Bambu Blue PLA.

Size: The print measures 55mm wide across at the front from the tip of each leg.   The print has a length of 70mm and the print is 55mm high.  The student (who is nine years old) deliberately introduced the legs and antenna to ensure that they survived the printing process and were not too weak, although it did leave them looking decidedly oversized and blocky.

Cost: To produce this print the project used 38g of regular PLA.   This gave the project a price point of $0.38c.

Timeframe: To complete this print the printer was running for one hour and ten minutes.   This is typical for designs in this run of creations with these dimensions.

What we would do differently/Next steps for the students: The ant when compared to others in the series does not have the facial definition that the others have.   The legs were increased in dimensions and size to ensure that they survived printed but now look somewhat comical and also are identical.   Finally the colour matching or the decorating, spraying etc of the print could be considered to enhance its presentation.   We still have a week of school before the Pet Day (which is in Term Four, the first week back after another week of holidays) and given the size of the print a reprint is a distinct possibility.

3D Printed Ant: Advanced Version

 

Challenge: Create a unique and detailed insect using Tinkercad to define and detail the features.

Background: Its been detailed on this blog for several weeks about the insect project which came from a focus on our 20206 Pet Day Art Display.

As part of the art display we've got a small 3D Print to go back and put on display with our art projects.   The challenge is based around shared literacy tasks - last term we researched, investigated and wrote about insects and analysed their characteristics and features.  This design was influenced by some of the earlier ants in the series that had the form and character correct but were lacking somewhat in some of the more detailed features.

When you view the face of the design you can see the student has opted for antenna, eyes and also the mouth has been based around viewing close up and magnification of various ants.   This student also went further making this a 'fire ant' and was able to adapt the colour palette on Tinkercad to do so.

There was a technical error that occurred with the printing of this design, one we are going to investigate further.  The student designed this as per our usual process - and one of the legs, at the back left, did not print successfully on the Bambu H2D - although it did on the P1S.    We believe based on a quick investigation that the speed of the H2D in this instance was too quick for the design, and the shaking and the movement of the printing process caused the fault in the process - this is the potentially the case as the smaller, cheaper machine was able to print the design successfully without any error.

The student who designed this print spent time to ensure the legs were shaped and had segmented detail on them.    There are grooves in the mouth of the ant and additional small details throughout the design.

Resources used to complete this print: iPad, Tinkercad App, Bambu H2D, Bambu Blue PLA

Size: The print at present is 80mm long, is 40mm from the base of the feet to the stop of the segments.   The biggest body segment is 30mm by 30mm and the middle is 20mm by 20mm.

Cost: The print uses 67g of PLA to complete the print which included rafting.   This gave the print a price point of forty one cents to complete.

Timeframe: To complete the print the Bambu H2D was running for one hour and eight minutes.  A switch to a Bambu P1S would not significantly alter the timeframe.

What we would do differently/Next steps for the students: It is our clear intention to print this on the slower, smaller printer as we believe the print will be successful (we could also slow down the H2D).  The intention was to print a fire ant with a red base obviously the PLA used was red although potentially we could have made a two coloured print using the dual nozzles of the machines.   The legs also at present have the same pose on both sides the student has the ability and the skill to pose these differently and produce a design that is reflective of a more natural post.   As noted as well the width of both the legs and the antenna reflect the students desire to create a robust print that would survive handling.

This entire project was undertaken and completed (independently) by a nine year old cohort two student.

3D Printed Insect: Ant Example

 

Challenge: Student to complete and produce a unique and original design of an insect as a 3D Design, as an AR/VR projected creation and as a physical 3D Print.  Information report writing in term.

Background: This is the end of term project for our students to work in conjunction with our term focus on insects to produce an example that will compliment the art display that will make up part of our Pet Day 2026.  We have produced and published a number of examples that have come in this project task from our classroom.  We spent time for our literacy (writing) looking at the characteristics of insects in the form of our information reports.   This gave students ideas of the different sections and the language used to accurately describe each section of the insect.   

Initial designs from the students were then tested for viability and the balance between realism and a workable 3D print was addressed - an example shown left is the legs in this ant, while they are deliberately blocky in this instance to ensure that they were robust enough to remain in place when printing was complete.

Resources used to complete this print; iPad, Tinkercad App (for AR/VR), Bambu P1P, Bambu PLA - Blue.

Level of Difficulty: Medium this design is going to be refined and reimagined and will require some additional adaption of this design.   It has the recognition factor that we are looking after for the project however aspects of it need to change.

Size: The body of the ant is 40mm long and the sections were 10mm high.   The ant is 20mm high and the antenna are a further 20mm high.

Cost/Price: This print used 6.7g of PLA to complete the print.   This meant that this print cost $0.13c to produce.

Timeframe: To complete the print the printer was operating for thirty three minutes.    This also included a six minute time for the P1P to warm up.

This is the example of the same project being AR/VR into a location to make it 'outstanding'.   In this example the ant has been 'super-sized' and place onto the school field.   The 'gian't ant also had the student adding a naming font behind the ant, which can be seen in the screenshot and is red.

What we would do differently/Next steps for the students; As noted the ant needs further refinement.  The first pair of the legs need to be brought back into the abdomen of the ant.   There has been some parts of the face/mask of the ant that require more details.

3D Printed Insect: Pet Day 2026

Challenge: For a junior school students to create a unique and original 3D CAD model of an insect, suitable for an art display.

Background:   We are a school of 170 students in rural South Taranaki, New Zealand,.  One of the biggest events that we have each year at our school is our Pet Day.   On these days the students are able to bring calves and lambs for show and we also have additional sections including 'Most Loved Pet'.   As well as all of these events, detailed in Mr Bloor's amazing school videos we also have our art displays in each of the classrooms.  It was these displays that we've also used in the past for 'Tinkercad Hunt', which you can view by clicking on the link here.

Each of students has a range of art based activities to complete - one of the junior ones is to turn a tin can into a creation.   To complement this the students have to create an original insect to be part of this display.   The students were using Tinkercad and the Tinkercad app to complete this process.  This is a classroom challenge our students making these designs are eight and nine years old.  

For our English writing this term we have been focussed on information report writing and one of the categories that we investigated and the students wrote about was insects, where they spent time researching the characteristics and features of an insect.   We used 'chat GPT' as a resource generated which created the sheet top left, cross referencing Tinkercad and creation, this generated a checklist and ideas to support students.

We also used as a reference point some images of insects that had been 3D generated and created from a range of sources - we looked at examples online, what was available as a Tinkercad research and examples that have previously featured on this blog.

The students were encouraged to use the Tinkercad main interface and the shapes that were available form there.

One highlighted is the example of the ant shown left.  The student was able to create this in a single session by working and manipulating basic shapes.   We had spoken to the students about the criteria that we wanted to see on the designs from the antenna to the thorax, head and abdomen - and this was check listed via the chatGPT resource.

When the design was completed we also tasked the students with AR/VR of their design into an outside location and an inside classroom location in the school.   We have detailed this in the past and explained how with our classroom of twenty five students this allows all students the opportunity to publish something, without having to wait for a potential delay while the prints might be accessed.

The image shown left is the AR/VR via the Tinkercad App of the ant super sized and placed on the school playground to provide it with a scale.

Once this had been completed and the students had been given the opportunity to review their print and design, check against the checklist and receive some peer feedback we then moved to the process of starting to print a selection of the designs.

Resources used to complete this print: Tinkercad App, iPad, Bambu H2D, Blue Bambu PLA

Level of Difficulty: Medium.   This task challenged the students, this examples is one of the earliest stand out ones to come from a class of twenty five students and was used as a way to encourage others to think about the design.   Further details of course could and will be added but it was also important to have a student complete the process to use as a talking point for others.

Size: The print as it stands measures 70mm in length, is 30mm wide and currently stands 60mm high being 50mm in length from the foot to the shoulder.

Cost/Price:  The print as it stands uses 16g of PLA to complete the print - this has a price point of $0.40c.

Timeframe: To complete this print the printer was operating for one hour and six minutes, which included a six minute machine warm up time.

What we would do differently/Next steps for the students: The leg at the front left, facing the ant, did not survive the removal of the rafting, it needs to be repositioned.   The ant itself could benefit form more details on the face.   The ant could of course be spray painted to represent a particular colour or kind of ant and then a paint pen or similar item could be used to create additional detail.