Makers Empire Installation Guide and Logging In Options for Students
So your school has just embarked on its Makers Empire journey? Congratulations! We’re excited to be supporting you and your colleagues as you teach your students Design & Technology curriculum and Design Thinking via 3D design and printing.
This Installation Guide has been written to outline our recommended steps for installing Makers Empire on your school devices and logging in to Makers Empire with your students.
Our approach to getting started for school customers is covered comprehensively in the Getting Started Guide in the Teacher Dashboard that walks you step-by-step through trying Makers Empire yourself, setting up your school devices, adding classes and students, teaching your first class, finding and assessing student work in the Teacher Dashboard and creating your first 3D prints.
1. Install Makers Empire
Install Makers Empire on your school computers and devices using your preferred method. If your school IT administrator manages apps on your devices, you will need to ask them to install the app – they usually have a method to install apps on multiple devices automatically.
To install Makers Empire manually, download from the relevant app stores — App Store for iPad and iPhone, Google Play for Android, the Mac App Store for Mac. For Windows, download the installer.
Makers Empire 3D works on most devices: newer Chromebooks (2016+) and some older models are supported – see here. If you have issues installing Makers Empire 3D please see our Help Centre. If you’re still experiencing difficulties contact our support team by clicking on the message icon in the Teacher’s Dashboard (log in via the top menu) or via Instant Messaging on this site.
2. Add a Class
** If your school is integrated with Google Classroom, your classes will automatically be synced with Makers Empire, so you can skip this step.
Otherwise, login to the Teacher Dashboard via the login button on this website. You’ll need your login email and password to access the Dashboard.
In the Teacher Dashboard, click Classes on the left menu. Click +Add a class. Give your class a name, assign the grade / year level and click Create class. If you are teaching a specialist class you can click Additional, otherwise, leave Home selected.
3. Add Students
** If your school is integrated with Google Classroom, your classes will automatically be synced with Makers Empire, so you can skip this step.
Otherwise, let’s add some students. Remaining in the Teacher Dashboard, click Classes on the left menu. Select your class and then click +Add a student. You will be prompted to choose a Username, Password and Display name. You can enter student’s email address if your students have access to email, otherwise select Use my email.
Alternatively, if your students have a sufficient literacy level, you can probably let them create accounts themselves. In that case, you can skip this step and go straight to Individual Login.
4. Multiple Log In Options
- Makers Empire integrates with Google, Schoology, Clever, Apple and Microsoft. Our recommended Single Sign On (SSO) login option is Google as classes will automatically sync with the Makers Empire Teachers Dashboard, students and teachers can use existing login details, classes are already set up, and end of year rollover is simple.
- Individual username/passwords are ideal for older students with higher literacy levels. You can print out a Username/Password list in the Teacher Dashboard, print out Login Cards for students or have students set up their own accounts in the app.
- QR code posters are ideal for younger students.
SSO Login Options / Integrations
Individual Student Login Options
Whole Class Login Options
- If your class is already using Google, Schoology, Clever, Microsoft or Apple, students can simply press the relevant icon on the app login screen.
- Students will then be asked to enter their individual email address and password for their chosen login option.
- They will then return to Makers Empire and be asked to choose a Makers Empire username.
- See our Google Classroom help article and our Schoology help article for further assistance.
- Log in to the Teacher Dashboard.
- Go to Classes and find your class.
- For each student, click on the three dots to the right of the student’s name
- Select Student Login Poster and download or print it out for each student.
- Log in to the Teacher Dashboard.
- Go to Classes, find your class and click the three dots to the right of its name.
- Select Get Login Cards.
- Print out cards and distribute them to each of your students to keep.
- Log in to the Teacher Dashboard.
- Go to Classes, find your class and click the three dots to the right of its name.
- Select Username & Password List to generate a list of the students in your class, including their username, password and real name. Keep this secure.
- Log in to the Teacher Dashboard.
- Go to Classes, find your class and click the three dots to the right of the name.
- Select Class Login Poster and download or print the poster to distribute to students or display in the classroom.
- If students’ devices have cameras: students can scan the QR code on the poster and then select their avatar (they can customise their avatar later).
- If students’ devices don’t have cameras: students can use the login details on the poster.
Bonus: Best 3D Printers for Schools
We understand that choosing a 3D printer for your primary or middle school can be a difficult decision. While many will be great for high school students or a hobbyist, some are less suited for regular use in a K-8 classroom, Makerspace or library environment.
At Makers Empire, we’ve helped thousands of K-8 teachers in Australia, America, Europe and Asia integrate 3D printing and design into the classroom so we understand what works and what doesn’t.
With this in mind, here is a link to our current list of recommended 3D printers for Australian and the USA. To come up with this list, we evaluated more than twenty 3D printers, reviewed teacher feedback and assessed recent reviews from independent sources. We’ve spent weeks, months and even years testing printers to model expected classroom and school conditions.
Bonus: Health and Safety for Schools
3D printing and design offer elementary, primary and middle school educators countless learning opportunities for enhanced student performance, engagement and learning.
As with all new technologies used in a school environment, educators need to understand the technology from a health and safety point of view.
We’ve prepared a short article about health and safety for schools, which includes our recommendations regarding 3D printers and ventilation. We recommend you share this with the relevant leaders and teaching staff in your school.