Ocean Avenue first graders partnered with Northport High School media arts students to have their robot designs 3D printed. The first grade art students each designed a unique robot, with their designs being sent to the high schoolers who transferred the designs into a computer, converted them into 3-D, and printed them to send back to their new friends at Ocean! 

Each student designed their robot to have a special skill, ranging from being able to cook their favorite dinner to help fix their Chromebook. Students also wrote letters to their high school “pen pals” to explain their robot design. Once the high schoolers created the robots, they sent them back to the first graders as a keepsake and memento of their hard work.  

First graders were thrilled to see their designs come to life, and high schoolers were able to gain experience with 3-D printing and design. Ocean Avenue art teacher Jessica Lindenmann helped students use basic shapes and creativity to develop their robot designs, while high school art teacher Jessica Signorello explained that students could use different methods to print their robots, ranging from basic coding to more advanced methods with additional design features. The entire process began back in January with students receiving the final products in early May.