For weeks now, 5th grader Henry has been coming to the Open Lab to print out 3D models of a LEGO piece he is designing.  His goal is to model and print a working 2x4 block:

Henry is on his 5th iteration of the block.  Each design revision has taken careful measurement, calculation, and positioning in Tinkercad, an online tool provided by Autodesk that students in my 7th and 8th grade 3D modeling elective use.  TinkerCad provides enough initial framework for students like Henry and others who come at lunch time to the Lab to build simple models on their own and to gain confidence with the tool.  Henry's focus and determination have been impressive as he comes to collect his failed pieces, learning from their errors and continually adjusting his model:

Here are the models in order from left to right:

The fourth design has been the closest to an actual LEGO piece.  It fits onto and under an existing LEGO piece but isn't tight enough to remain in place well.  Stay tuned... I think Henry is very close to achieving his goal!

I spoke to Henry about 3D modeling and LEGOS and this is what he had to say:

Playing some laser-cut ukulele as they mull their own instrument design challenges!

The Marin County Office of Education held its second annual maker day for schools to showcase their work in STEAM-related endeavors.  We brought a wind tunnel built by David St. Martin and materials for visitors to create their own anemometers (wind meters) for testing in the wind tunnel.  This same activity was created for our second graders during their weather unit.  Our exhibit was busy the whole day as students from various schools including our own came and went and came back again to build and test their designs.  Several Mark Day School students helped out by explaining the activity, operating the wind tunnel, and answering questions.

— Tatian Greenleaf