MakerBot launches hands-on 3D printing handbook for the classroom

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MakerBot in the Classroom introduces 3D printing to schools.

Desktop 3D printing giant MakerBot has published a handbook designed to provide educators with ideas to get started with 3D printing in the classroom.

Building on the Brooklyn based company’s education initiative which already counts more than 5,000 schools in the U.S. as users of its Replicator printers and several MakerBot Innovation Centres, the book titled “MakerBot in the Classroom: An Introduction to 3D Printing and Design” includes an introduction to 3D printing and 3D design lesson plans.

A recent survey revealed that 83% of teachers using MakerBot 3D printers encouraged students to design their own objects as opposed to printing existing designs. This shows that there is a need for teachers to deliver 3D design in the classroom in order to teach children to produce their own 3D printable designs.

The guide is available as a free download for registered MakerBot customers and a sample chapter is available to anyone who registers on MakerBot.com. To coincide with the launch, the company has also set up a new MakerBot Education Resource Centre which provides more ideas and resources to support the integration of 3D printing in the classroom though challenges, stories and videos.

“3D printing is a powerful tool in the classroom and provides engaging experiences that motivate students to excel. 3D printing can help teach many of the 21^st century skills that employers are looking for, such as STEAM literacy, collaboration, problem-solving  and applying knowledge to the real world,” explained Jonathan Jaglom, CEO of MakerBot. “We’re excited to launch MakerBot in the Classroom to help even more educators and students to discover the power of 3D printing to create original designs. This handbook is part of our broader MakerBot Education initiative, which aims to provide teachers, professors, librarians and students with access to the resources and tools they need to embrace 3D printing.”

Projects in the book cover all the basics of 3D printing from how the printers work to getting started and finally designing 3D printable files. Similar to Autodesk’s just announced 3D printing in education initiative, Project Ignite, the guide will introduce different types of 3D design software including TinkerCAD and 123D Design.