It’s no secret that we’re passionate about leveraging 3D printing as a tool to transform education. When we learned that the Great Lakes Science Center (GLSC) wanted to enhance their summer program offeringswith 3D printing, we jumped at the opportunity to collaborate.

With their multi-site program of 180+ week-long camps covering a wide range of STEM education topics, GLSC is an innovative leader in STEM education.

In order to provide GLSC  students with the chance to expand their curiosity and build critical 21st century skills (all while having a good summer camp time), MakerGear provided several M2 3D printers, and the students wasted no time in bringing their ideas to life.

As every educator and parent knows, sustaining the interest and focus of students is no easy task.  But with CAD software and MakerGear M2s at their fingertips, the classroom buzzed with energy as middle-schoolers raced against the clock to prototype organ transport containers for the Organ Transport League challenge while 4th and 5th graders blended biology and design thinking to build hermit crab habitats for the Engineering Animal Habitats camp.

We love seeing the gears turning in these young minds and seeing the creativity that emerges when they're presented with fun ways to design solutions to real-world challenges. The combination of hands-on learning solutions offered by MakerGear paired with GLSC’s camps’ Problem Based Learning model make for engaged learning that fosters critical thinking, resilience in the face of challenges and innovation in the next generation. We can't wait to see what they come up with next!