3D "Doodling"

We've been having fun in the STEAM Lab lately, messing around with some of the cool new tools we've gotten through our Donors Choose grant (if you missed donating to the first one, and still want to support us, we've got our second grant ready to go here!).



Our latest activity was constructing little boxes with our 3Doodler Create 3D printing pens.



Unlike a traditional 3D printer, these pens are free-form 3D drawing tools (3D 'doodling'!), which allows students the creative freedom to create free-hand, without needing to wade through a CAD program first.

 Little projects like this box are a good way for students to become familiar with the materials and the tool, so they understand how it works and what the tricks are for making projects come out smoothly. An understanding of what a tool is capable of means they can unleash their creative side when it comes to designing and producing projects for their classes.

The 3Doodler Create can use ABS or PLA plastic, and also comes with a neat flexible plastic that stays bendy even after being printed. Because it uses the same plastic type as our 3D Printer, this means we can combine more traditional 3D printed products with a more free-form 'doodled' product, expanding the range of what students can do.

Isn't this just a computer lab with junk in it?

Now that the STEAM Lab is open to students and classes, people have been passing by and asking a lot of questions. One of the themes of people's comments has been surprise that the STEAM Lab looks...  not that different from the old computer lab.


It's true that we've kept a healthy number of linux desktop computers laid out in a lab arrangement. These will come in handy for graphic design, video production, programming Raspberry Pi computer kids or Arduino electronics, etc. But the real thing is that people seem to expect heavy woodworking machinery, or a bank of 3D Printers.

While many school and municipal makerspaces have tools like these, what makes a makerspace or STEAM Lab successful is how it's used, rather than what's in it. Would it be handy to have a chop saw or a power drill? Sure! But can we do the work we need to do, and support the creative tinkering of our students, with only a handful of basic tools and supplies.