3D Pens and Printer in Math

3D Printing Tech in Math Centers

Today in our math Centers, we used our 3D pens to practice doing transformations. The kids used task cards to identify what transformation they  needed to complete, and then used the 3D pens to draw the shapes. It was a really low-prep activity, but the kids loved using the pens and were really engaged in practicing their translations, rotations and reflections. 

We have also been using our 3D printer to create math manipulatives. This week, we made fraction dice. I just found the design online and then downloaded it- it's amazing what you can find for free online! But students can also use a program called tinkercad to design their own prints. This is something we will work more on during some of the down-time near the end of the year. The design program makes use of many mathematical concepts, such as angles, measurement, 2D and 3D shapes, transformations of shapes, spatial reasoning and so much more! 

Digital Tools to Engage Learners

Here is some Monday morning Tech inspiration :) 

This morning as I was driving to work listening to my Monday podcast from Google Teacher Tribe (Kasey Bell & Matt Miller), they were speaking about practical  & engaging ways to use Google drawing in the classrooms. I love Google drawings for things like graphic organizers, digital posters, etc. It is nice because the students can interact with them, they can be saved as an image and inserted into Google Slides (think background you can't move for story maps or other graphic organizers that kids can add text over top), and it is a tool that is really easy to navigate and use. By editing the page size, you can make them printable as well on a regular sheet of paper. Below is a link to a really good list of ways to use Google Drawings in the classroom if anyone is looking for some inspiration: 

Google Drawing Manifesto

Also, the same author (Matt Miller) wrote a really great e-book called "The Digital Pirate: Adding Techno-Wizadry to Teaching with Passion and Engagement" which has some really amazing ideas for integrating different tech tools meaningfully in the classroom. I have attached the link below to that as well.

The Digital Pirate