The Makers Empire Difference

If you are looking at introducing or expanding 3D design and printing in your school, Makers Empire can help ensure a successful and rewarding experience for your teaching colleagues and students.

Without the right tools, resources and training, teachers can find it hard to maximise 3D design and printing’s learning potential. Plus, learning a new technology can be prohibitively time-consuming.

Luckily, Makers Empire includes everything you need to integrate 3D design and printing efficiently and effectively. Our solutions include easy to use 3D design software, lesson plans aligned to standards, professional development, management tools and 3D printer options.

Even the most experienced, tech-savvy teachers love Makers Empire’s pioneering approach. Take Karie Huttner, the K-5 educational technology coach for the Verona Area School District. She’d been teaching 3D printing for 4-5 years but it wasn’t until she tried Makers Empire with her students that she realised how powerful learning with 3D could be.

To begin your Makers Empire journey, start by asking a few questions.

Question 1. What Are Our School's Current Needs?

Current Curriculum. Where, when and how well do our students engage in problem-solving, designing solutions, creative thinking, collaboration etc.?
Teacher Pedagogy. How well placed are our teachers to help students develop these types of skills?
Student Engagement, Skills and Dispositions. Where are our students now?
Current set up. How do our current facilities, equipment and structures support students and teachers to develop these skills etc.?
Champions. Who are the early adopters and champions in our school (teachers, students, leaders, community members) that can take a leadership role?
Support. What support and training do our teachers need to be successful teachers of 3D design and printing?

Question 2. What is Our Budget?

Use the following examples as a guide:

With a budget of $2,000, schools can fund online training, Maker Empire 3D design software, professional development, and curriculum aligned lesson plans for all teachers and students for 12 months.
With a budget of $3,000, schools can fund one 3D printer, filament, online training, Maker Empire 3D design software, professional development, and curriculum aligned lesson plans for all teachers and students for 12 months.
With a budget of $5,000, schools can fund two 3D printers, filament, online training, Maker Empire 3D design software, professional development, and curriculum aligned lesson plans for all teachers and students for 24 months.
A budget of more than $5,000 allows schools to fund three 3D printers and 36 months full Makers Empire access for all teachers and students!

Question 3. Is Makers Empire Right For Us?

To help determine Makers Empire’s suitability for your school, please watch this short tour video.

Question 4. What Do Teachers Think Of Makers Empire?

“Makers Empire is a fantastic project that provides multiple benefits to students, teachers and schools. One of the most amazing things I saw was a non-verbal (by choice) student in year five, (being) involved in multiple, on-task conversations and actively involved in the problem-solving process. This student now says hello to me every day.”

Teacher

Queensland

“…our staff were genuinely impressed… The Makers Empire 3D printing iPad app exceeded our expectations. The design and creative elements of this software have been carefully designed to engage children while opening up numerous educational opportunities and learning experiences. We loved the Teacher (Dashboard) with its support, ideas and integration of the Australian Curriculum. A great way to expose our students to this rapidly emerging technology that will have a significant impact on their lives.”

Stephen Corcoran, Director of Digital Learning

St Stephen’s School, WA

From the beginning, the students had no trouble. They absolutely loved it… The students’ favorite part was going from the computer screen to something they can hold in their hand…It’s always better if you can give students an authentic reason to communicate.”

Sandra Wiseman, Library Media & Technology Integration Specialist

Woodsdale Elementary School, West Virginia, USA

“This has been a wonderful new way to teach and motivate my students. They are so eager and excited to learn in this new way!… They are beginning to see real-life implications to what they learning to do in class and how they could develop prototypes of objects that they could develop and then produce to sell… At first, I preferred Tinkercad because I knew this software better. However, now that I have had some time to work with Makers Empire it is so much better. It does a much better job of showing you how to build and create. The challenges help tremendously!…The overall enthusiasm towards school and learning has increased tremendously. Students who are typically reluctant learners have come to life. One student was chronically absent and has now improved his attendance. He asks me each morning if he can get on the computer!”

Robin McGinnis, District Gifted Education Presenter

Mt. Healthy City School System, Ohio, USA

3dprinting with no experience? No cad modelling skills required? Anyone can create a 3dprintable design in under 5 minutes? Sounds like a dream come true and that is now reality with the release of Makers Empire 3dprinting software … Makers Empire allows users with no experience of 3d design, to create models from scratch in a matter of minutes… The teaching resources have been written to meet both the (US) and Australian national curriculum with clear and concise lesson plans that are easy to understand and have easily achievable learning outcomes. This is the most important feature of all, it’s clear what the students will learn and it’s clear how they will learn it! Also, this app is fun! It has its own personality and gives users instant feedback when you have successfully achieved something new… Overall this app, and the teachers portal that supports the app, is truly a game changer. Every child can succeed regardless of ability and they can embark upon a 3dprinting journey of a lifetime.”

Phillip Cotton, Design & Technology Teacher

United Kingdom

“I was trying to start 3D printing in our school for a while, but I found it very difficult to start from nothing. I needed a lot of resources and easy access to resources. This program has provided everything that I needed. It was wonderful!… All of my students learned how to use Makers Empire design software during my STEM classes. I used Makers Empire lessons: “Let’s Get Decorated” with 5th-8th grade students and “Mazes” with 8th grade students. They all loved learning about 3D printing… I enjoyed teaching this, observing their enjoyment, learning and looking at their awesome designs,”

Meltem Albayrak DiLeo, Teacher

Holy Trinity Catholic School, Pennsylvania, USA

Question 5: How Will We Implement Makers Empire?

Who. Decide who will be involved. Will you start with specific teachers and/or grade levels?
Where. Decide where the activity will take place. Will teachers teach 3D printing and design in their classrooms, a dedicated Makerspace, a Science laboratory or the school library?
When. Decide when you will implement 3D printing and design. This term? Next term? Makers Empire can provide a detailed implementation plan to help with planning.