Weekend Website #129: 3DTin

Every week, I share a website that inspired my students. Here’s one that that students came in during recess to use:

Age:

3rd-8th

Topic:

modeling, programming

Address:

3DTin

Review:

Google’s 3DTin is 3D modeling in a browser. It goes out of its way to be user-friendly. It requires no installation as long as you browse in Google Chrome or Firefox with WebGL support. Just type 3dtin.com in address bar and start designing. Any operating system. All of its functionality is free. … as long as the sketch is shared under Creative Commons. On the right sidebar is a running list (with Browse command) to view what others have created in 3DTin.

Included are tutorials, categorized by beginner to advanced. Have students watch all of them. Make this as student-directed a website as possible. Premium members get private storage–everyone else: All sketches are stored in cloud. You can access them from anywhere and share with unique URL. Then, export to standard file formats–STL, OBJ, DAE–which can be imported in other modeling tools.

The interface is simple: Choose 3D shapes from a huge library of templates and add them to your sketch. All through an intuitive interface. If you still need help, check out the quick tutorial.

Here’s a good tutorial from 3DTin’s YouTube channel on creating basic cube:

Has anyone used it in their classrooms? Ive seen students try it out, but no teachers yet have used it for projects (unlike Sketch Up, Scratch, and a few others).

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Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-8 technology for 15 years. She is the editor of a K-8 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum, and creator of technology training books for how to integrate technology in education. She is webmaster for six blogs, CSG Master Teacher, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, Editorial Review Board member for Journal for Computing Teachers, Cisco guest blogger, a columnist for Examiner.com, featured blogger for Technology in Education, IMS tech expert, and a monthly contributor to TeachHUB. Currently, she’s editing a techno-thriller that should be out to publishers next summer. Contact Jacqui at her writing office or her tech lab, Ask a Tech Teacher.