Calling all kid inventors, parents, teachers, and creators!

We’re excited to announce our new weekly webinar series, which is completely FREE, and will provide fun, educational, hands-on activities to bring learning to life in 3D.

Maxwell Bogue, 3Doodler’s founder, is excited to host topics designed to encourage young learners to create, build, and explore using three dimensional shapes. This series was created with flexibility in mind — join live or stream it anytime via our YouTube channel. Demonstrations, challenge prompts, and questions will spur learning. Take a look at the full schedule and the quick list of materials you’ll need.

Bonus: You’ll also have a chance to win a Learn From Home Pen Pack during the first webinar!

Schedule

When: Every Wednesday at 1pm EDT
Where: Join on YouTube

What will you create?

April 1: Explore the Seasons
What you’ll need: 3Doodler pen, 3Doodler filaments, Lesson plan, 4x sticks from outside, paper, pencil

April 8: Building Bridges & Learning 3D Structure
What you’ll need: 3Doodler pen, 3Doodler filaments, printed stencil

April 15: Creativity Shines with Upcycled Inventions!
What you’ll need: 3Doodler pen, 3Doodler filaments, Lesson plan, upcycling items (paperclips, egg cartons, cardboard, etc.)

April 22: Bring the Outdoors In & Get Doodling!
What you’ll need: 3Doodler pen, 3Doodler filaments, Lesson plan, 4-6 leaves from outside

April 29: Lifting Stories off of the Page!
What you’ll need: 3Doodler Start pen, 3Doodler Start filaments, Lesson plan, printed stencil

May 6: Abstract Concepts Realized in 3D!
What you’ll need: 3Doodler pen, 3Doodler filaments, printed stencil, balled up paper to use with catapult

Spread the word about our new 3Doodler EDU webinar series and share what you’re learning with us on social media. Tag Us: @3Doodler, #3Doodler, #3DoodlerEDU!

Do you want your next lesson to be the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?

If so, this is just for you!

Middle school teacher, Ellen Peterson, has put together an exciting lesson plan and memory game to bring some festive fun to your classroom this St. Patrick’s Day. Not only will it teach your students about the science behind 4-leaf clovers, but it will also bring some focused-fun to this festive holiday.

Teachers can follow along to the easy step-by-step instructions and print off the lesson resources for the game, which include the Shamrock Memory Game cards, a score sheet for the students, and 3-leaf and 4-leaf clover stencils.

Once the lesson plan is complete, you can use the Doodled clovers to decorate the classroom for the occasion!

Other teachers want to see what you’re doing in your classroom for St. Patrick’s Day! Share your classroom happenings with them on Twitter, and be sure to follow Ellen Peterson.

Tag Us: @3Doodler, #3Doodler, #3DoodlerEDU

Now that we’re all getting back into the school rhythm, we wanted to share some great quotes we’ve received from 20 different teachers.

Many of you have spoken of amazing experiences with 3D pens in your learning environment, and we wanted to share them with our community to help spread some inspiration for the New Year. You can share these quotes on Twitter directly from the blog. Just click, post, and spread the inspiration!

Engagement

"“I can’t say enough good things about the Start pen. It provides problem solving and perspective to students, which is very valuable. It’s another tool in the teacher’s toolbox to engage students in a new way, to engage learning in a new way.”"-Garrick Grace, District Technology Integration Specialist, Minnesota ISD 741, Paynesville, MN Share "“One interesting benefit is how engaged and focused my students who have attentional difficulties can be when doodling and creating their own designs. The 3Doodler pens have given some students a new way to learn about math, and have added a great deal of excitement to geometry time.”"-Mrs. Lounsbury, Wenonah Elementary School, Lake Grove, NY Share "“They were so engaged I heard a highly talkative student say, ‘Don’t distract me, I am working.’ This is every teacher’s dream! Do you have any idea how challenging it is to keep students on task at the end of the school year? Thank you for helping me find a wonderful, creative way, to keep my students engaged.”"-Mrs. Gardner, J W Seabrook Elementary School, Fayetteville, NC Share "“3Doodler pens are fantastic!! They keep my students creating for their entire session without breaks. Great tool for creation and attention building! 3Doodler pens are motivating my students to do so much more. They are easy to use and loads of fun.”"-Kirti Vyas, Brookside Elementary School, Monroe Township, NJ Share

Whole-Student

"“When using the 3Doodler pens, the students are quiet and happy Doodling. The 3Doodler pens are amazing tools for mental health and being in one’s own mind. Students are inspired to create by seeing other Doodles.”"-Velvet Holmes, District Technology Literacy Teacher, Oregon School District, Brooklyn, WI Share "“We started with basic 2D shapes like circles and squares. Then we moved on to cubes. Now they are inventing their own creations! It’s really neat to see them think about what will work and how they need to problem solve to make their creations come to life. They are so engaged when they are working with their 3D pens.”"-Ms. Smith, Woodford Paideia School, Cincinnati, OH Share "“It is our role as educators to support students. We can do this through facilitating the use of empathy and EdTech to improve our communities. This can be as simple as using a 3Doodler pen to create tactual artwork for someone with visual impairments, or as powerful as using artificial intelligence to better our society.”"-Steven Jones, Riverside School District 96, Riverside, IL Share "“Students used the 3Doodler pens in math class to build geometric models, base ten models, and more. The students who learn best through tactile representations really benefit from this hands-on option for showing their learning.”"-Mrs. Hubert, William Berkowitz Elementary School, Chelsea, MA Share

Creative Exploring

"“For every grade level, the 3Doodler Start is their favorite STEM center in the makerlab. They are relaxed using the Starts and they have fun being imaginative. Students aren’t afraid to fail with the 3Doodler pens. They are relaxed and social, and that’s the mindset you want.”"-Susanna Hite, STEM Teacher, St. Peter School, Geneva, IL Share "“Each student is responsible for drawing an organism in their food chain and making it 3D by using the 3Doodler pens. Along the way students have learned about trial and error and how designs are not going to be perfect the first time. This is a life skill that I’m constantly trying to demonstrate in my classroom. I want students to know that failure isn’t a bad thing and they can learn how to re-design and make it even better. This has resulted in some fabulous 3Doodler organisms!”"-Brittany Ballou, STEAM Teacher, Grange Hall Elementary, Richmond, VA Share "“These 3Doodler pens have made a tremendous impact on my classroom. Creating is the highest-order thinking skill, and with these pens, my students are able to create projects that help them visualize concepts they’ve learned in math, language arts, science, and various other subject areas.”"-Ms. Soriano, Waianae Elementary School, Waianae, HI Share "“The 3Doodler pens created opportunities to explore reading from a different angle. As a result, scores increased by more than 10% overall and students made gains. This project encouraged at-risk readers to re-compose as they read and respond to text through visual literacy, technology, and engineering. The 3Doodler pens are AWESOME!”"-Mrs. Epps-Primas, Best Academy 6-12, Atlanta, GA Share "“After some practice and learning the technique, they were drawing people, animals, cars, plants, and putting together helicopters. It was truly amazing to see their projects come to life with all sorts of objects and vibrant colors.”"-Ms. Obata, Dewey Elementary School, San Gabriel, CA Share "“Students love the instant gratification of Doodling. The 3Doodler pens are more exciting than markers, pens, or paper, and more accessible than a full scale 3D printer. 3Doodler pens are a gateway to technology. My makerspace is 50% girls at all times, and 3Doodler is a great way to get girls interested in tech.”"-Robin Fosdick, Makerspace Coordinator, Morse Library, Natick, MA Share "“I’d definitely recommend 3Doodler to other teachers because it helps teach students to build 3D shapes from 2D shapes. Students can create anything they can think of. Where they are limited with building blocks, 3Doodler pens can make any shape.”"-Roland Fisher, Owner/Operator, Engineering for Kids, Indianapolis, IN Share

Teamwork

"“These pens have helped the students harness their creativity and have really allowed some students that tend to struggle with relationships and peers to shine. They amaze the other students with their skills and creations and it raises their confidence. That has opened the door for them to begin to build positive relationships with others.”"-Mrs. O'Reilly, Pembroke Elementary School, Virginia Beach, VA Share "“My students have worked non-stop to figure out the best way to build in 3 dimensions with our pens. They are helping each other, experimenting with new ideas, and building onto each other’s projects. In short, they are thinking! The best part is that they don’t even mind doing the work because they have a new “toy” to work with. Everyone is happy!”"-Ellen Peterson, Smithfield Middle School, Smithfield, VA Share "“The students have loved using them to create sculptures, furniture, and prototypes for their projects. It’s been fun watching them create and teach each other tips and tricks on how to best use the 3Doodler pens. We are even finding ways to use the scraps and pieces that didn’t get used in finished sculptures.”"-Mrs. Kalcevic, Ardis Ann Middle School, Bentonville, AR Share "“The 3Doodler pens have been such a blessing to spark creativity in students that were otherwise stuck in a box. Bringing their 2-D learning into a 3-D world has brought basic learning and engagement into real life experiences they will never forget. As I write, my students are working cooperatively to develop 3-D models of their Simple Machines and then connecting them to create a new type of machine that can help the community.”"-Mrs. Smith, George Washington Carver Elementary School, Richmond Hill, GA Share

We want to express our sincere gratitude for all that each of you do to support the leaders of tomorrow. We are so happy that our 3D pens are a part of your teaching journey, and we are honored to be partners with you in the classroom.

Other teachers want to hear about your experiences with EdTech!

Share your story with them on Twitter.

Tag Us: @3Doodler, #3Doodler, #3DoodlerEDU

Students sometimes hold up a Doodle and ask me, “Does this look right?” I often answer them with the question, “What do you think?”

How far we’ve come from the days when our teachers were the keepers of all knowledge, along with the answer key at the back of the book. Those were limited times that yielded restrictive outcomes. Today’s teacher is a guide who facilitates instruction. Authentic questions arise naturally during the investigative process with students as the architects of their own learning.

I have found 3Doodler pens to be great tools that inspire growth-promoting questions among my students. You may wonder why questions are so important to learning. Here are six reasons students should ask questions.

1. Asking questions develops self-confidence.

While confusion may arise for a number of reasons, even the shyest or most hesitant student raises the proper questions when strongly invested in the outcome. As a result, students overcome their fears of social norms and pressures, developing their voices in the pursuit of a higher purpose.

2. No question is too silly to ask.

A question that may appear absurd on its face may only seem so in light of the current thinking. Students in my class are in awe of the historical thinkers who asked the “ridiculous” questions. Newton once pondered why an apple falls from a tree, but the Earth does not fall from the sky. His steadfast passion for answers, despite condescension from peers, led him to epiphanies far beyond the consciousness of his time. Students who ask “silly” questions become intellectual and visceral thinkers that strive for answers outside the current norm of expectations.

3. Students overcome bias when inspired to question why.

Beliefs and judgments are tested in concrete ways when designing hands-on solutions. The design process guides students to articulate new questions that test their preconceived notions. The results may alter their mindset, which influences the broader ways in which students think about the world.

4. Asking questions generates better questions.

In other words, the more we question, the better we become at honing in on the questions that guide us through our discovery. The first question is only the beginning. There is an art to crafting the subsequent questions that arise as a consequence. Each question unpacks a new one, like a set of Russian nesting dolls. From largest to smallest, students’ questions will eventually lead them to the essential core question lying within the heart of any discovery.

5. Questioning raises the consciousness of our society.

When we think we know it all, we cease to question. Discussions become close-ended monologues when individuals are steadfast in their beliefs. Questioning widens our thinking, allowing in fresh perspectives and generating an open-minded exchange of ideas, promoting the greater good, rather than the independent gain.

And the most important reason…

In life, there is no list of questions to direct your learning. That means that students need to be critical thinkers who can not only answer, but ask the questions that direct and inspire others. You cannot send your students off with a list, but you can present them with learning opportunities that make them seek answers to their own questions for a lifetime.

Want to bring sought after STEM innovation to your classroom? No matter the subject or grade, 3Doodler has you covered. With the NEW 3Doodler STEM Activity Kit, your students can bring their lessons to life!

The DoodleMolds are versatile and adaptable for any project, and are a great tool for open-ended, STEMulating classroom experiences.

From operational designs and opposable skeletons, to machine prototypes, geodesic domes and rollercoasters, students can use the STEM Activity Kit to create objects in real time with their 3Doodler Start or Create+ pens.

Each 3Doodler STEM Activity Kit includes 2 DoodleMolds, 2 project templates, and examples to inspire you, all of which enable endless possibilities!

We can’t wait to see your students’ STEM creations! Share them with us on Twitter and see what other classrooms are creating.

@3Doodler #3Doodler #STEM #3DoodlerStemKit

3Doodler is committed to providing you with the classroom solutions you need.

1. Do not emphasize perfection.

This is a life rule, too. As teachers, we should be modeling attention to the design process over outcome. You never want to stifle any student’s creativity, nor do you want to set goals so lofty that your students may refrain from doodling rather than fail.

2. Dare them to explore.

Consider your build area unlimited, both horizontally and vertically.Unlike 3D printers, the 3Doodler’s “build area” is infinite and can be directed up, down, left or right. Give students time to explore space in all directions.

3. Draw thicker lines.

Slimmer 3Doodled parts and details should be doodled a bit thicker or retraced. Due to the nature of the filament, you will want to keep finer details sturdier to increase the durability of your doodle.

4. Teach students patience.

Slowly count to 30 before removing filament from a stencil and then peel back gently. Although not a long wait, you need to wait long enough for the filament to harden. Otherwise, your students will stretch, tear and ruin their amazing doodles.

5. Hold stencils in place.

Tape stencil flat to table, so that it does not gap or curl under filament as you doodle. Rather than cutting out your stencil along its outline, leave a wider border around it, which can easily be taped down to a desk.

6. Allow access to the 3Doodler outside of instructional time.

This will give your students non-pressured, explorative time, during which they may come up with astounding new ways to use the 3Doodler! And, as in any new task, 3Doodling skills become stronger over time. *Model and praise persistence for the student who makes a mistake and figures out a way to fix it with his or her 3Doodler.

7. Different colors, different speed.

Note that different filament colors flow at different rates from the nozzle of the 3Doodler. In order to gain improved control of directional flow, allow students time to experiment with different colors, then record and discuss each color’s rate of flow.

8. Set reasonable goals.

Before beginning any new 3Doodler lesson with your students, try it yourself first. Know your students and their abilities, e.g., prior experience with 3Doodler and fine motor skills. Rather than set your students up for failure, offer students plenty of upfront practice time using the 3Doodler before diving into that very cool language arts lesson, creating figurative doodles.

9. Doodling on paper.

When Doodling on paper, choose filament and paper that contrast each other in order for students to clearly see the filament as it extrudes from the 3Doodler and down onto the paper.

10. For Teachers: Work backwards.

Create freely and then determine how what you’ve designed could be used to teach a concept within your curriculum. Give yourself time to try all sorts of ways to use the 3Doodler, rather than diving in with a specific lesson plan in mind. It’s much easier to begin wide and focus in, rather than vice versa. Furthermore, investing time in your own 3Doodling skills will make you a better doodler, too.

11. 3Doodle with your students.

Your enthusiasm for this tool and its endless possibilities will spread. Doodle alongside students during indoor recess. Offer 3Doodling as a class reward for good behavior. Hold a 3Doodling class birthday party. It’s a lot healthier than cake and a lot more fun, too!

Do you love bringing art and design into your curriculum? We have just the educator to show you how to achieve that A in STEAM!

For this Teacher Spotlight, we had the opportunity to connect with Susanne Firestone from Presentation Academy in Louisville, KY. Her students create amazing 3D pen sculptures in her Design Studies and 3D Art classes, and we just had to get the inside scoop from her.

Can you please introduce yourself, the school you work at, and your goals as an educator?

My name is Susanne Firestone and this is my 13th year teaching at Presentation Academy. I teach 2D Drawing and Painting, 3D Art (Ceramics and Sculpture), Intro to Art, Digital Photo, and Design Studies. I am also the moderator for the National Art Honor Society. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Art Education and Art History, with a concentration in Painting, and my Master’s degree is in Gifted and Talented Education.

Presentation Academy is a Catholic, college-preparatory school for young women seeking the confidence and skills to become 21st-century leaders. Exclusively for young women in grades 9-12, Presentation Academy accepts students of all racial, ethnic, socio-economic and religious backgrounds. My school enjoys a truly diverse population, attracting bright and unique girls from over 50 zip codes throughout Jefferson, Oldham, Bullitt, and Shelby counties, southern Indiana, and the continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa.

My goals as a teacher revolve around the students not only learning from myself, but from each other. I encourage my students to challenge each other, and to experiment with new processes and techniques in order to develop different results. At the same time, I expect them to teach me so that I can learn different methods of creating and thinking.

What subjects have you utilized 3Doodler pens in?
"In my art and design classes, the 3D pens allow my students to turn their ideas into tangible works of art that they can touch and view from all sides. It makes them feel like they actually created something from nothing." Share
I’ve used the 3Doodler pens in 3D Art and Design Studies, as well as in collaboration with our Spanish class. In my art and design classes, the 3D pens allow my students to turn their ideas into tangible works of art that they can touch and view from all sides. It makes them feel like they actually created something from nothing.

When we celebrated Day of the Dead, I taught the Spanish students how to use the 3D pens during a few classes and gave them 3D printed skulls that were printed off our 3D printer. The students then took the 3D pens and decorated the skulls like they were sugar skulls, and the filament from the 3Doodler pens was the frosting. They had a great time doing this as a form of exploring social studies through art and design, and of course they were able to keep the skulls. With 3D printed skulls, they will last and not deteriorate like actual sugar skulls!

How have 3Doodler pens and other EdTech enhanced learning in your classroom?

3Doodler pens have allowed my students to create in ways they haven’t been able to develop in any other capacity. The pens have permitted my students to add onto current projects, providing details they couldn’t get otherwise. The pens have enabled me to share specific topics with my students that they can explore and investigate further on their own, leaving more time for them to work in the studio on their actual artwork, but still allowing them to learn beyond the area of art-making.

"3Doodler pens have allowed my students to create in ways they haven’t been able to develop in any other capacity. The pens have permitted my students to add onto current projects, providing details they couldn’t get otherwise." Share

Do you have any thoughts on how Educational Technologies are influencing your students preparation for the jobs of tomorrow?

I think educational technologies provide my students with alternative tools for learning and creating. Educational technologies give my students opportunities to explore learning on their own. For the jobs of tomorrow, students will have to show initiative and responsibility for their work, and will have to take it upon themselves to figure out how to manage in their relationships and environments. Knowing where to look and how to find the tools necessary to communicate and create in their jobs will only bring about success.

Are you inspired by Susanne’s classroom?

Share your thoughts with us on social media, and be sure to follow Susanne on Instagram.

Inspired by Susanne and her students? Post your classroom Doodles on Twitter and connect with the 3Doodler EDU community!
@3Doodler #3Doodler #3DoodlerEDU

You may not have a rooster egging you on at dawn, but I encourage you to rise and shine because mornings are the best time to Doodle!

Scientific research indicates that our prefrontal cortex is most active during sleep, when we wake up, and shortly thereafter. It’s no wonder that we have the most creative thoughts at this time of day. You’re probably not a “sleep-Doodler”, so this leaves mornings. The early post-REM state is a time of open-mindedness that nurtures those “Aha!” moments which just might lead to great discoveries.

Here are four lessons we can learn from some of history’s most creative “morning” discoveries…

1. Keep a pad for doodling near your nightstand.

Dmitri Mendeleev, the creator of the periodic table, claimed to have seen a table in a dream where all the elements “fell into place as required.

Awakening, I immediately wrote it down on a piece of paper.” Mornings are critical for capturing dreams that often evaporate into the ether of our subconscious if we don’t actively build on them. Doodle your ideas on paper upon waking before they fly back into the recesses of your mind.

2. Creative thinking can clarify thoughts, leading to logical conclusions.

You could say that René Descartes was a morning person. He claimed that the idea for the Scientific Method came to him in a dream. Descartes felt that “Thoughts should be ordered, starting with the simplest and easiest to know, [then] ascending little by little, and, step by step, to more complex knowledge.”

Creative thinking can inform order that leads to further creative ideas and discoveries. Morning doodles can sort confusion into sense and order.

3. Doodling can express thoughts that go beyond mere words.

In that dream-like state between sleep and wakefulness, images can sow ideas never before spoken or written. You may not know the scientist, August Kekulé. Although not a household name, August’s morning discovery is one that changed the scientific world forever. In his dream, August saw dancing atoms moving around in a circle capped by the head of a snake. This led to his discovery of benzene molecules and their composition of circular “dancing” atoms. August didn’t wait for words. He began with an image. Morning doodles may help us express the sublime.

4. Doodles express thinking at the speed of light.

In dreams, our minds are open to receiving ideas and making connections. Edgar Alan Poe said that “Those who dream by night are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by day.” Einstein credits his theory for traveling at the speed of a light to a dream. He was sledding down a hill at a speed so far beyond the human experience that the stars appeared to transform. Meditating about what he had dreamt, Einstein was led to one of his most amazing discoveries. Doodling is a form of meditation that can promote deep reflection resulting in great epiphanies.

Morning Doodlers know that every new day can begin like Christmas morning, unwrapping the gifts of the previous evening’s inspiration, and unleashing the colorful swirls and lines that may result in great discoveries. So set your 3Doodler pen down right next to your alarm clock. For last night’s dreams may lead to some enlightening Doodles!

Calling all classrooms! It’s time to read across America!

Every year the National Education Association hosts Read Across America, a program that helps classrooms around the country embrace the wonders of reading. The NEA’s Read Across America Calendar outlines suggested books for each month to help you plan your lessons ahead of time. No matter what grade level, they have you covered! And as a bonus, they provide resources and activities to bring the stories to life with your students!

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one."-George R. R. Martin Share

So, how does 3Doodler help students read across America?

At 3Doodler, not only do we understand the importance of reading, we also know that learning takes place by reflecting on the stories that have been read. We’ve picked out two of our ELA Lessons for your Read Across America curriculum that will help your students lift the stories off the page!

Now, let’s have students explore what they’ve read in a fun and tactile way!

Elementary School

In this English Language Arts activity, students partake in a read aloud, shared or guided reading experience with the classroom, then work together to enact a scene from the story using Doodled finger puppets. Story retells are a great way to build language, speaking and listening skills. The students’ puppet shows will reflect an understanding of story structure, sequence, and reading comprehension.

Suggested Books

Pie is for Sharing by Stephanie Parsley Ledyard
Saffron Ice Cream by Rashin Kheiriyeh

Middle and High School

Students identify the theme of a fictional text, summarize a scene that best reflects the theme, and create a 3Doodler stop-motion animation to enact the selected scene. Creative thinking skills will be integrated into this hands-on project that will help you assess your students’ level of comprehension.

Suggested Books

Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

Be sure to share your Read Across America projects with the EDU community on Twitter! @3Doodler #3Doodler #ReadAcrossAmerica

While circling the room to assist and assess in a math activity using 3Doodler pens, I overheard one student say to his partner, “You’ve got a point there. Okay, let’s try it your way.” Although these words on the surface appear insignificant, the fact that these two boys who typically argued about everything were listening to each other gave me pause for reflection.

How many times over the course of the year had I observed beliefs, behaviors and attitudes widened by the art of Doodling? Yet none of these worthy attributes appeared on any of my instructional rubrics. Though these skills are valuable to students in all aspects of life, they are a part of what is known as the “hidden curriculum”.

There’s the core curriculum we teach directly through math, science, language arts and civics instruction. But dig deeper, and you will unearth the hidden curriculum. These are the emotional lessons that arise systemically from how we teach, rather than what we teach. What message are you sending to your students? And, how would you teach if you knew that the hidden curriculum would be subject to the same standardized-high-stakes testing as the core curriculum? Ironically, the hidden curriculum carries equal if not more serious implications to a generation dealing with an increasingly complex world.

Here are 4 ways in which 3Doodler pens enhance the hidden curriculum.

1. Behaviors:

Students who act out when they are lost or confused are displaying a reactive outcome to their frustration. The poor behavior is a symptom stemming from the problem. Doodling helps illustrate thinking in ways which touch us viscerally. We become interconnected with the learning, enmeshed in the process of creation. Endurance is sustained even in moments of rigor, as we are creating something unique that carries our mark.

2. Attitudes:

When students shut down, why persist in instructional repetition? Einstein said that the mark of insanity was repeating the same behaviors over and over again while expecting a different outcome. Using a 3Doodler pen opens up instruction to new ways of thinking and meeting goals. It is the fresh and creative air that can sometimes re-energize learning.

3. Beliefs:

When students believe that they cannot do something, it is a difficult task to convince them otherwise. The 3Doodler pen moves beyond words, illustrating an open array of ways that they may succeed in a task. They begin to believe in their abilities, and those of others, when activities are creative and open-ended to boundless possibilities.

4. Perspective:

Whether the task is to create a one-size-fits-all art project or essay, the unintentional results are conformity. And while, these types of results are much easier to quickly assess, especially on standardized tests, they do not allow students to explore who they are as individuals, nor do they afford them practice in listening and navigating the perspectives of their peers. The art of Doodling is a genuinely open and giving activity that embraces the innovative spirit. It shows us not only who we are personally, but also interpersonally.

It’s time to unearth the hidden curriculum inside our classrooms, and to look beyond the standard rubric to those aesthetic attributes that carve the human spirit. We must welcome it for its complex values and for the ways in which it enriches our students. Education should aim to teach more than facts, it should instill heart, as well.

Working with students in grades 3-5 has afforded me the opportunity to explore the gifts and wonders of Doodling across the curriculum. If you’re a teacher and haven’t Doodled yet, what’s stopping you? Could it be one of the following misconceptions?

“My students’ Doodles don’t look like the ones in the lesson plan images.”

This misconception is also referred to as the “all Doodles must be perfect” myth. It would be incorrect to believe that the Doodle is the main objective. The goal of Doodling is the development of rigorous thinkers who are unafraid to create, problem solve, make mistakes and try again within the course of an assigned activity or task. The clever teacher knows that Doodling is a means to an end, and never the end itself.

“Teachers must be excellent Doodlers to teach Doodling.”

How many subjects do teachers teach in a day? Are we expert mathematicians, scientists, biologists, counselors, writers, or literary critics? Probably not, but good teachers know that we don’t have to be the master of every subject we teach, we just need to be great teachers. That means knowing how to guide, encourage, direct, redirect and assess your students in order to enhance their growth in all aspects of learning.

“My students don’t have time to Doodle – I need to prepare my students for high-stakes standardized tests.”

This is the most dangerous misconception. Do not allow standardized tests to inform your instructional methods. The curriculum and standards are meant to outline “what” we teach. It is up to the master teacher to determine “how” to best teach this curriculum in a way that feeds the heart and mind. Short-term rewards come from short-sighted instruction. Long-term rewards result from practices that incorporate open-ended ideas and problem-solving.

“Students must always follow a template or stencil when Doodling.”

There are times when a structured format with stencils or templates will maximize your students’ results. But there are also times when students should be encouraged to explore their imaginations freely, and to color outside the lines and see what happens. It’s during these times that your students will develop new connections and fearlessly learn from their mistakes, as there are no expectations, only pleasant surprises!

“There’s not enough money in the budget to purchase 3Doodlers for all of the students in my classroom.”

A 3Doodler is much more than a solitary drawing tool. It is a wellspring in which communal learners dive, splash and play together. This culminates in a rich, diverse tapestry of ideas and talents. Skills like brainstorming, collaboration, compromising, problem-solving and creative thinking are all enhanced when Doodles are the results of pooled talents and joyful socialization. You don’t need a cart full of 3Doodlers to get started. Rather than a detractor, allowing students to share 3Doodlers in small groups enhances the learning experience.

It’s easy to get hung up on misconceptions. As teachers, it’s critical that we let go of these misconceptions if we want to create the best learning experiences for our students. Education should fill our students’ minds with the extraordinary wonders of the world. Doodling is a great way to do this.

The New Year has begun, and that means it’s time to start preparing lesson plans for the remainder of the school year.

Whether you’re teaching Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, or English, our 3Doodler Lesson Plans are FREE for you to use! We have highlighted some exciting lessons for you to launch the new year with.

As always, please reach out to us if you have any questions. We’d love to speak with you and offer specialized support for your unique classroom needs.

Kindergarten – 2nd Grade

Students explore subtraction and decipher a color-key in order to Doodle a dog, bones, and bowls using the appropriate colors.

3rd Grade – 5th Grade

Students research what causes the apparent brightness of stars and constellations, write on the topic, then Doodle a glow in the dark model of a constellation.

6th Grade – 8th Grade

Students create a poem based on pieces of published poetry. They use the 3Doodler to block out words and phrases, while adding 3D imagery relevant to the poem.

9th Grade – 12th Grade

Students Doodle a Rutherford model of an atom.

A few years back, I sat in on a teacher’s conference about the SAMR Model. SAMR is an acronym that stands for Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition.

At its lowest level, technology may be used as a substitution to accomplish something that we already do in the classroom. Therefore, a word processor might substitute for paper and pencil to write a story. We can augment the story writing process with text-to-speech. We can modify it by posting students’ writing on a blog. But at its highest level, we redefine the writing lesson when we can conceive of a task that could never have been accomplished before. At this repurposed level, students might conference with professional authors and editors from around the world via Skype.

The 3Doodler Start pen easily rises to the top of the SAMR model when used thoughtfully and effectively. Certainly, we can simply substitute crayons for 3Doodler pens. But, what if we could use the 3Doodler pens to redefine the learning experience in previously inconceivable ways that could make a profound difference in our students’ learning? What if weekly sight words, became weekly touch words with students designing dimensional and textural elements? Would this cognitively trigger a whole new learning experience? When we open our minds and refocus our objectives, we can clearly see how the 3Doodler pen opens unexplored possibilities for learning across subject areas.

A few years back, I wanted to teach my students about ancient artifacts of Western civilization, so, we went on virtual class trips to museums. I even invited a holographer to display holograms of artifacts that “appeared” to have dimension. We saved images of artifacts to sketch, but we could never actually touch or explore them. It was like looking at a delicious piece of cake, but being unable to eat it.

In Language Arts, students can move away from passively learning about idioms and other forms of figurative language, and move toward actively pursuing the roles of literary architects. With the 3Doodler pen, personification becomes concrete in students’ minds and hands. An actual potato can be doodled on to repurpose it as a “couch potato” complete with sunglasses and a couch. An open mouth can be doodled on a bar soap, transforming it into a singing diva in a “soap opera.” A personified compass becomes a graceful ballerina dancing on pencil point. Students who have a hand in their own learning become writers whose words inspire others.

In Science, the 3Doodler pen lends dimension to discovery as students design organs of the human body or fossils of the future. Real-time learning happens, too, when students realize that they have the power to solve everyday problems. The plants in our hydroponic garden were growing into the UV lights where they were habitually scorched. My students researched photosynthesis and designed various ancillary tools and attachments to reposition the plant growth away from the lights. Before the 3Doodler pens, students may have relied on market solutions. With the 3Doodler pens, students became independent, self-reliant problem solvers.

At times, the 3Doodler pen becomes the lesson itself. As students explore how 3D printers work, they became an active cog in the process of additive manufacturing, building layer upon layer to their understanding of design. Students sometimes run into problems as they charter previously unexplored design territory. A girl in my class was having difficulty adhering the filament to a scissor and wondered why it kept slipping off the metal. This raised a discussion about friction and ways to increase it. This type of real world problem solving is engaging because it is not conceptual. It is tangible. Students are learning by doing! They are designing products that solve problems that are meaningful to them.

Finally, the 3Doodler pen redefines the teacher’s role in the classroom. No longer is the teacher the sole arbiter and purveyor of all knowledge. When students ask me, “Why isn’t this working?” I will freely admit to them when I do not know. And so, I ask them, “How can you figure it out?” "When students are engaged, they are fearless. They are driven. They are persistent. This type of discovery promotes collaborative learning, social engagement and a pursuance of the larger online social network community where experts become guides. " Share

The 3Doodler pens can be the ends or the means by which students learn. It is all up to the teacher. But in the hands of the right individual, the 3Doodler pen is a powerful tool, redesigning education in a whole new way!

If you’re finding it challenging to pick the best activities for your class, here are a few of our most downloaded lesson plans for inspiration. These lesson plans are designed for elementary through middle school, and combine the use of educational technology and STEM to engage students in fun, hands-on learning activities.

Don’t forget to check our Lesson Plan Collection regularly to find new teaching resources for your classroom, all of which are available for free!

Geometric Shapes & Tessellations

Recommended grades: 3 – 5
Learn about: Geometric shapes and problem solving through design
Overview: Students will design a simple tessellation for a 3D shape such as a cube, a cylinder, or a cone using 2D templates. Students will enjoy seeing their 3D shape come together, and will even be able to use it as a functional item, such as a pen holder!

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Fibonacci Spiders

Recommended grades: 3-5
Learn about: Fibonacci numbers and patterns in nature
Overview: Students will learn what a fibonacci sequence is, then discuss how it’s present in the patterns in nature. Students will observe how the sequence affects the structure of a spider’s web, and then Doodle their own spider’s web in order to visualise their learnings in a 3D object.

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Geometric Collage Maker

Recommended grades: K-2
Learn about: Geometric shapes, how to calculate area and perimeter
Overview: In this lesson, students will have fun creating outlines for a collage of geometric shapes with the 3Doodler. They will then use crayon rubbings over their outlines in order to create a colorful piece of art.

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Construct a 3Doodler City

Recommended grades: 6 – 8
Learn about: City planning, geometry, area and perimeter calculations
Overview: Students will identify the structures that make up a city (e.g. roads, buildings, bridges), and then analyze the way in which these structures are composed of lines and geometric shapes. Students will design 2D shapes and then Doodle over them to construct their own 3D structures. Each group will design one part of a city, then collaborate to form a whole city. This real-world, hands-on project combines math, problem solving, collaboration and technology.

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Busy planning ahead for the school year? We’ve prepared something to help you out!

We’ve added tons of new Lesson Plans for elementary school level all the way up to grade 8, specially designed for use with the 3Doodler Start. These teaching resources are perfect for STEM classes, and some are so fun you could even use them as a first day of school activity! You can print them out to use in your class or for a project at home. All lesson plans are accompanied by presentation slides, reference images, and worksheets that you can use during your lesson.

Here are a few STEM lesson plans that we’ve handpicked for you. To see the full collection, click here.

Doodle-Trees and the Four Seasons

Recommended grades: K-2
Learn about: Seasons and changes in nature
Overview: Students will Doodle on four tree branches to create models of the four seasons. This is a fun STEM-focused educational activity that includes a short walk outside for students to collect branches. It also introduces students to the cycles of nature and gives them a strong visual representation of the changes in the trees and foliage throughout the seasons.

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Earth’s Structure & Beyond!

Recommended grades: 3-5
Learn about: Different internal structures of planets
Overview: Students will research our solar system and Doodle cross-sectional 3D models of the planets. They will learn about the makeup of the different layers and compare and contrast the likenesses and differences between the planets. Students will then assemble the planets into a solar system display of their own.

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Doodle-Wobblehead

Recommended grades: 6-8
Learn about: Research methods and design experimentation for a functional Wobblehead
Overview: This activity involves researching a historic figure and incorporating five of their characteristics into the design of a 3D wobblehead! Students will learn about exaggerating an individual’s most notable physical characteristics (similar to a caricature), and will be challenged to design a working Wobblehead by experimenting with Doodled springs, dowels, and more.

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