In this 4-part lesson, students will design and 3D print their own assistive writing aid in the form of an attachable pen grip.
* This is a lesson that is part of The PrintLab Classroom lesson portal. To view details of the full portal, click here. *
In this 4-part lesson, students will design and 3D print their own assistive writing aid in the form of an attachable pen grip. The lesson begins with small-scale experiments called tolerance and flexibility checkers, where students design and 3D print various sized clips to determine the optimal shape for the clip. Students then go on to develop their concepts and design their writing aids in Tinkercad software. The final part of the lesson involves 3D printing, testing, analysing and suggesting improvements to their end-product.
Enrolling in PrintLab Classroom will give you complete access to the teacher training material and lesson documents. This includes content to help you prepare and deliver the lessons along with design tutorials so you become familiar with the process prior to teaching it in the classroom.
The lesson can be incorporated into the study of maths, biology, design technology and computing. The material can be adapted for ages 8-15.
In this project students will:
-Develop an understanding of tolerance and flexibility for 3D printed parts
-Conduct an experiment to explore the tolerance and flexibility of 3D printed clips with varying shapes and dimensions
-Use design-thinking and sketching skills to develop a concept for an assistive writing aid
-Use 3D modeling software to design their own assistive writing aid
-Use 3D printers to manufacture an assistive writing aid
-Analyze their work and the work of their peers to suggest improvements to their designs
Each student will require:
1 x laptop/computer with mouse and internet access to use Tinkercad software
1 x pen/pencil
1 x caliper measuring tool (students can share measuring tools)
The teacher will require:
1 x 3D printer and PLA filament
1 x laptop/computer with mouse, internet access and slicing software for the 3D printer.
5 x pens (different sized diameters preferred but not essential)
