Casey Mills, an educator in Westhope, ND, wanted to bring life to the STEM program at his elementary school. After discovering some unused printers in his STEM room, he reached out to community members to gain experience using them. The printers were unreliable and old, and could not successfully print student designs. That is when Casey applied for a new, functional 3D printer to boost student engagement and turn their ideas into reality.
As soon as Casey received his new Bambu 3D printer, his students got to creating. The classes quickly learned how to measure with calipers, troubleshoot, and improve their creations. To keep up with the demand for filament, students designed items for a fundraiser and made enough money to replenish their reserves and get a second 3D printer!
“Inspiration came from our first successful print.” – Casey
One of Casey’s students found so much success with 3D printing that he nominated him for North Dakota STEM student of the year. Casey wrote, “He was making inventions to solve problems in the classroom, and only six students K-12 are selected in North Dakota – and he won!”
In the spring, things really took off. Casey said, “After learning about the printing press – we MADE one. Shakespeare unit – Print the Globe Theater. Learn about Leonardo’s sculptures? Yup – we PRINTED sculptures in MARBLE filament.”
It was no surprise that Casey was then selected as Bottineau County’s Teacher of the Year, and THEN as North Dakota’s STEM Teacher of the Year!!!
“My first initial inspiration was after we had learned about Michelangelo’s Pietà. I thought, ‘Can I print that, and have a tangible item to place in their hands instead of relying on a book’s photo?’ I bought marble PLA, so it would look more stone-like. Once printed, students carried it, protected it, shared it with staff, other students, even subs in the room. I followed it up with other prints, and I was floored with how much knowledge they retained from the reading and were able to use terms and names to describe what we had learned. Suddenly, I realized I needed to expand and continue this process. The more we printed, the more evident it was that learning was not only occurring, but the retention of said topics was extremely high!”
Over the summer, Casey started a new program. It was so successful that students were asking to extend it – they wound up doubling the number of days they met! The program focused on local business owners and what could be made to support them, such as paper clip trays, shelving, hair accessory organization for a salon, and center pieces that could hold napkins for a local restaurant. Casey even recently spoke at a State Literacy Summit, presenting information on how he brought learning to life in his classroom.
When asked if he had advice for educators looking to bring new technology into their classrooms, he said, “When using technology in your classroom, pick tools that help make learning fun and peak interest. Make sure these tools match what you’re teaching. Check often to see if the technologies are helping them learn more. Let students work together and be creative with the technology, as they will be able to teach you along the way!”
It has undoubtedly been an incredible year for Casey and his students, discovering new ways to let creativity shine.
Casey reflected, “The grant that was awarded allowed us to bring our ideas to life with a 3D printer! It sparked a flame that I couldn’t contain. It was no longer my classroom that was ablaze, but the community had joined in a movement to inspire and engage, allowing me to reach state and national educators about an innovative way to incorporate STEM into their daily instruction.” We are so excited to see what Casey and his students are able to do this coming school year!
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