Alternative 3D Education for Children

Abstract

New forms of extracurricular programs on creativity in primary schools are bound to emerge in the near future due to the popularization of 3D printing technology. This paper acknowledges the current situation of development of the extracurricular creative programs in China's primary schools, underlining the importance to introduce 3D printing and rapid prototyping technologies in the extracurricular activities. To sustain this argument, the activities of several creative 3D printing courses will be explained and discussed in the paper. Moreover, it will be shown how the particularity of the courses came from the combination of 3D printing technologies with culinary arts, bringing together traditional recipes with immersive and unexpected culinary experiences. The paper is divided in three parts. In the first part the state of the art of the extracurricular activities in primary schools in China will be shown. The second part will introduce the educational action research as the main methodological framework used in the teaching activities. In the third part the examples will be presented emphasizing on the importance and advantages of experiential learning. The conclusion will present the level of satisfaction of the students, and the benefits of introducing rapid prototyping technologies in the primary schools.