NEWS$show=/search/label/news

Here's where you'll find all the latest news about technology for children. We love to follow cool new inventions on Kickstarter and we hunt out all the latest announcements about tech toys and gadgets for the coming Christmas holidays. You'll also get our take on children's technology stories in the media.

REVIEWS$show=/search/label/review

Our kids technology product reviews are intended to help you work out whether a toy, gadget or kit is a good fit for your child or family. There's lots of cool stuff available, but is it the right choice for the child or teenager that you are buying for? We'll help you make the right choices and get the best value for money.

GIFT GUIDES$show=/search/label/gift%20guide

Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends assemble. We create gift lists to help you make good choices for kids technology which helps them develop the right skills for the future. We research the best in Coding Toys and Games, Making / Craft Tools and Kits, STEM/STEAM related gifts, Programmable Robots, Electronics Kits and Gadgets for Tech Age Kids and Teens.

PROJECTS$show=/search/label/project

Get crafty with technology. Here we'll post all our ideas and projects using technology to get creative and making with kids. You'll find anything from making a lemon battery to a glow-in-the-dark Minecraft sword. Our projects are tried and tested on our own kids or at events we run, so we are sure you can have a go at home with your kids. Some of our projects use specific tech gadgets which we provide links for you to purchase.

STEM$show=/search/label/stem

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. In recent years there is an increased focus in these areas of study. We like to include Art and Design too, so we often talk about STEAM (A stands for Art). At Tech Age Kids we believe Coding is a new literacy and children need to understand how technology works, practice making skills and grow in their curiosity to make a better future for us all.

CODING$show=/search/label/coding

Coding is increasingly being recognised as an important skill for children to learn. Some will learn to code at school or at a coding club, but it's brilliant if they get support at home too.

ELECTRONICS$show=/search/label/electronics

We think it's really important for kids to get hands-on with electronics and learn how to make circuits and write code to control hardware. Younger kids can start with conductive playdough. For kids who like to combine craft and tech, littleBits are fab. And we love SAM Labs wireless electronics components for making it easy for kids to make Internet of Things inventions. Lots of electronics kits for kids have support for the Arduino microprocessor environment. The DuinoKit Jr is one of our favourites. Arduino is a fab skill for older kids and teens to develop.

ROBOTICS$show=/search/label/robotics

We love robots at Tech Age Kids, especially programmable ones. We've got lots of them and write reviews and projects that use them. Our programmable robots for kids buying guide is a good place to start if you're not sure what's available. Roby the mBot Meccano robot dog is one of our popular projects and has been with us to lots of events. Our Ozobot LEGO trailer is fab for kids who love LEGO and robots.

MAKING AND CRAFT$show=/search/label/making

We're advocates of the creative use of technology, but this needs to be balanced with developing physical skills such as papercraft, woodwork, clay modelling, technical drawing and soldering. If children don't develop these skills as they grow up then physical making projects can become frustrating rather than fun. The Maker Community uses the term 'making' as a broad term to include all sorts of artisan skills or craft activities. Being able to make things can lead to life-long hobbies or even careers. It's a great feeling to be able to take a project from an idea in your head to a real object that does something. We're particularly interested to explore products that combine maker skills with tech skills such as electronics but others focus purely on the physical making skills that are still important to modern making.

3D Printing - Modeling Tools for Kids, Teens and Beginners

Do you know a child who would like to create their own models to print on a 3D printer? There are lots of tools available that children and teens will be able to use.

In this article we'll look at a selection of 3D modeling tools that are available. There's actually quite a lot of variety including browser based tools, tools for the iPad and text based tools. I've tried to include a good variety of ways to create a 3D model for printing, this certainly isn't an exhaustive list, but it includes my current favorites.

The software for most 3D printers works with a file format called STL and 3D modeling tools suitable for 3D printing will typically output this format.

Note that just because you can draw something and output it as an STL file that doesn't mean it's suitable for printing using an additive 3D printer which builds up objects in layers. You need to make sure that each part of the object will be well supported as it prints (there are ways to support overhanging parts of objects, but that's a more advanced topic.)

  1. TinkerCad is a browser based 3D modeling tool which is easy to learn. You use drag and drop to place objects on the screen and then edit them using techniques that you can learn through the included interactive tutorials.

    It looked like TinkerCad would disappear for a while but it's now back and owned by AutoDesk.

    Note that you need to sign up to create models (though you can access the tutorials) and children need to be 13 of over to have an account. TinkerCad are working towards a solution for younger kids.

    Update: See our nametag keychain tutorial for Tinkercad.
  2. 3DTin is another online tool for 3D design. It's what we used to create our 3D printed ancient greek temple.  It has lots of shapes to work with and an option to build using cubes.

    You can try 3DTin out without logging in but will need to register to save models and this requires a Google, Twitter or Facebook account. Models created with the free version of 3DTin are placed in the public domain by default and are visible to others. I'd recommend that parents check the terms of the site and make sure they understand how it works.
  3. The PrintCraft MineCraft Server allows kids to create 3D models using cubes in the Minecraft game.

    You need a copy of the Minecraft world creation game and then you connect to the Printcraft server and create your model there. You can download the STL file to print of have it printed by 3D print-on-demand service i.materialise.

    This is a very cool way for kids to build 3D models. Of course you will be constrained to modeling with cubes so it doesn't work for everything, but its an excellent technique to have available.
  4. Pirate 3D's Smart Objects is another rather different tool. Smart Objects uses spline curves and rotational symmetry to create interesting 3D objects. If that sounds complicated, it really isn't. Imagine working with clay on a potters wheel.

    There's a Smart Objects online demo where you can try the tool out and an android app is in beta testing.

    Highly recommended. You can create some cool objects very quickly.
  5. Cubify Draw for iPad is a new app that allows you to draw 2D shapes and extrude them into 3D for printing.

    It works with the 3DSystems Cube printer and is also able to email you an STL file to print on another printer.

    This approach has major constraints but is a good way to get started and get a rapid result, especially for really young children and it works very well for some kids of object.

  6. Sketchup Make is a powerful 3D modeling tool which is a good next step for kids who have mastered the basics and are ready for something with more features.

    Sketchup Make is free for non-commercial use and available to download for Windows and Mac.

    Sketchup Make can be used for lots more than just modeling for 3D printing and is a good tool to learn.
  7. Open SCAD is a different style of 3D modeling tool, you create models programmatically using a textual language that allows you to create and position 3D objects. I think this makes a good introduction to text-based coding for kids. It visually shows you the output of your commands and is good for creating objects that can easily be defined mathematically but are fiddly to draw. If this sounds complicated, it's really not (though you can take it to advanced levels.)
  8. AutoDesk 123D Catch is an app that allows you to create a 3D model by taking photos of a physical object. This sounds easy, but actually it's quite advanced to turn a scanned object into a valid model that can be printed. But kids learn fast so definitely an interesting approach to try once they have mastered some of the other approaches.
3D modeling is a useful skill for kids to learn and they can have lots of fun creating objects from their imagination. I'd recommend letting kids try out several of the tools above and see what they prefer.
24 days of Scratch coding book cover and cute penguin
Name

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Tech Age Kids | Technology for Children: 3D Printing - Modeling Tools for Kids, Teens and Beginners
3D Printing - Modeling Tools for Kids, Teens and Beginners
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Tech Age Kids | Technology for Children
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