Tactile Technology

Project Objective

Tactile Technology

Requested for use with science, 3D pens are an affordable 3D printing option.  After the initial investment of the pen, they are an incredibly affordable tool for classrooms.  The pens allow students to illustrate – in 3D – concepts in math, history, art, design, and chemistry/biology, giving them a tangible means to explore complex ideas.  Such tools enable teachers to ask students for creative, visual representations of projects such as molecules, anatomy, etc.  The 3D pens can be an exciting artistic medium for any type of classroom by tracing 2D designs or drawing directly into the air. 

Among the first projects to use the 3D pens was a Biology unit on ecological biomes.  Students modeled these geographic areas that have multiple ecosystems in various ways, but utilization of the 3D pens to create plants, animal and landforms for their biomes was a valuable learning and design enhancement.