So You're Ready To Make Your Own Design Challenge?
Good for you! Here are 4 step-by-step points to think through before you dive in.
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1. The Focus
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2. The Tools
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3. The Level of Support
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4. The Design Space
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1. The Focus
In which direction are you going to have your students channel their creativity? Will it be:
Check out this great resource from EduTopia: Finding an Authentic Goal for your PBL Classroom
The opportunities are almost endless. Whichever focus you choose will shape how the students approach the challenge. Only you know your students and school community, so pick what's best for them! You may even want to poll your students anonymously to generate a student- directed challenge.
- a social justice challenge or environmental challenge? (i.e. a low flow water valve)
- a curriculum connection from a different subject? (i.e. the science connection of building a rocket)
- a trendy topic of interest for students (i.e. building a fidget toy or 'spinner')
- something to make life easier (i.e. a cable organizer or pencil case)
Check out this great resource from EduTopia: Finding an Authentic Goal for your PBL Classroom
The opportunities are almost endless. Whichever focus you choose will shape how the students approach the challenge. Only you know your students and school community, so pick what's best for them! You may even want to poll your students anonymously to generate a student- directed challenge.
2. The Tools
What primary supports/tools are students going to use in order to complete the challenge?
3D Printers - Obviously you will utilize any and all 3D printers at your disposal. 3D prints take a long time and thus iterative design will magnify this fact.
School Resources - Leverage other related areas/hardware and supplies that your school is willing to give you. Examples include:
Design & Slicing Software - It is probably in your best interest to limit students to one design and one slicing software. This is espcially true if this is the first time you are a novice at 3D printing.
3D Printers - Obviously you will utilize any and all 3D printers at your disposal. 3D prints take a long time and thus iterative design will magnify this fact.
School Resources - Leverage other related areas/hardware and supplies that your school is willing to give you. Examples include:
- Wood shop
- Mechanics shop
- Makerspaces
- Common school supplies
- Recycling material
Design & Slicing Software - It is probably in your best interest to limit students to one design and one slicing software. This is espcially true if this is the first time you are a novice at 3D printing.
3. The Level of Support
Depending on your students' experience with collaborative, iterative design, and their familiarity with the tools, you will need to tailor the level of support for your design challenge. Some classes may need a step-by-step guide that includes key reflective questions; other classes will be successful with instructions as simple as, "Here is the problem, solve it!" Regardless of the situation, remember to avoid "doing it" for them; guide them to the appropriate resources - many of them are linked here in this site.
At the bottom of this page, you will find two different design challenges that you can compare and contrast. The first intended for grades 5-7 with a medium level of support, the second for grades 7-8 with a lower level of support.
At the bottom of this page, you will find two different design challenges that you can compare and contrast. The first intended for grades 5-7 with a medium level of support, the second for grades 7-8 with a lower level of support.
4. The Design Space
The environment in which students approach this challenge can greatly change their experience, and ultimately their level of success.
Schedule - Are you going to give them a lot of time, say a module/unit in a specific subject? Are you going to concentrate time and have students work everyday for a week or two? Are you going to have them work on the challenge one time per week and have them reflect in between?
Physical Space - Will students be working in the classroom only? Will they have opportunity to work in environments more conducive to collaboration and iterative design (i.e. Makerspace, Engineering Lab, etc.)?
Independence - Are student groups able to 3D print whenever they want, or will they need to check-in with the teacher each time? Are they limited by the number iterations, by the amount of material they may use, or the time they are able to have the printer for?
In answering these four questions, your design challenge will start to take shape and develop into a robust experience for your students. Please check out the two examples below, both of which were started with these 4 questions in mind. If you happen to like what you see below, please use them and share your thoughts at the bottom!
Schedule - Are you going to give them a lot of time, say a module/unit in a specific subject? Are you going to concentrate time and have students work everyday for a week or two? Are you going to have them work on the challenge one time per week and have them reflect in between?
Physical Space - Will students be working in the classroom only? Will they have opportunity to work in environments more conducive to collaboration and iterative design (i.e. Makerspace, Engineering Lab, etc.)?
Independence - Are student groups able to 3D print whenever they want, or will they need to check-in with the teacher each time? Are they limited by the number iterations, by the amount of material they may use, or the time they are able to have the printer for?
In answering these four questions, your design challenge will start to take shape and develop into a robust experience for your students. Please check out the two examples below, both of which were started with these 4 questions in mind. If you happen to like what you see below, please use them and share your thoughts at the bottom!
Design Challenge - 3D Printing A Rocket
Please look through the 3D printing design challenge below. It is intended for a grade 5-7 audience that has previously completed an Air+Aerodynamics unit in Science. It guides students through the design process, giving some direction but also intentionally leaving out parts so that students are forced to be creative.
Design Challenge - Build A Better Water Bottle
This challenge was designed for an IB MYP or grade 7-8 class and has a strong theme of environmentalism.
This challenge meets the following MYP objectives:
Applying mathematics in real-life contexts
This Challenge meets the following Ontario Standards for Grade 8:
Measurement Relationships
Special Thanks to Andrew MacDougall and Gary Zuliani for sharing lesson materials and letting us support them in their first 3D printing challenge!
This challenge meets the following MYP objectives:
Applying mathematics in real-life contexts
- i. identify relevant elements of authentic real-life situations
- iii. apply the selected mathematical strategies successfully to reach a solution
- v. explain whether a solution makes sense in the context of the authentic real-life situation.
This Challenge meets the following Ontario Standards for Grade 8:
Measurement Relationships
- measure the circumference, radius, and diameter of circular objects, using concrete materials
- determine, through investigation using a variety of tools and strategies (e.g., generalizing from the volume relationship for right prisms, and verifying using the capacity of thin-walled cylindrical containers), the relationship between the area of the base and height and the volume of a cylinder, and generalize to develop the formula (i.e.,Volume = area of base x height);
- solve problems involving the surface area and the volume of cylinders, using a variety of strategies
Special Thanks to Andrew MacDougall and Gary Zuliani for sharing lesson materials and letting us support them in their first 3D printing challenge!
We'd Love to Hear From You!
Send us your design challenges to be featured on the website. Share your successes and failures with so that we can learn from each other and design better DBL and 3D printing lessons!