Brandy Hale, Coal Creek Canyon.

Students at Coal Creek Canyon K-8 had their last 3D Printing after school class of the year on Thursday February 8, 2018. The program was inspired by a news story about a bald eagle in Idaho whose top portion of beak had been shot off. With the help of a 3D printed replacement from a designer and dentist, she was re-fitted with a prosthesis that has enabled her to feed and prune herself as she had previously.

Fourth grade teacher Jennifer Norris was able to pool resources to have equipment and materials provided for the program in response to suggestions from students inspired by the story. A Sindoh 3D printer, valued at around $1500, was donated to a teacher from a school parent who was gifted the machine by a South Korean company while on business there. Additionally, five 3D pens have been loaned to the school by CU Boulder. The only cost is the $10 each student has to pay for filament and printer refills, but they get the chance to make their own objects come to shape. Due to the limited amount of equipment, both computers and pens, Norris has had to limit the number of participants, but says that the popularity of the program has led her to turn students away until the next term’s classes.

On a website called Tinkercad, kids get to first design their own objects, choosing shapes and colors, and then send the file to Ms. Norris who plugs the design into the printer. A medium sized object can take five hours to print, while smaller ones can be done in an hour or two. Using another site, Thingiverse, students can get free plans to make things that have already been designed. The classes help develop STEM skills, with architecture, design, basic geometry, and use of emerging technologies at the forefront of the classes. “The pens are more popular with the younger students, and the older ones like to explore designing printer objects with Tinkercad.” Students hovered over pieces of blank paper onto which they were drawing with the pens, figuring out that adjusting the pen’s temperature can affect how filament behaves when moving horizontally or vertically, for thinner lines or thicker ones.

All sorts of things have been made in the program. Thursday’s group made a toothbrush holder, a cat-shaped phone prop, phone cases, a yarn bowl, and at the school’s silent auction last year, every one of the 3D printed fidget spinners were purchased, helping raise funds for Chromebooks used by the students in other classes. In addition, a school parent who was planning a family camping trip but couldn’t find the tent stakes, was able to print off a set and ensure that the trip went without flapping tents. While there, Norris started a heart-shaped gift one student designed for his girlfriend.

Next year’s classes are expected to be just as popular, as more students get a chance to learn to use and design tools and objects using this technology. Interested parents can register their children through the CCC K-8 PTSA website.