DesignMate Elementary

When we first started the BVS³D case study in Boulder, our fourth grade teachers were functionally limited to a narrow range of topical lessons in the areas of math (symmetry, estimation, place-value cubes) and science (the solar system, moon phases, photosynthesis, and trees). That’s not very much content, given a broad and varied curriculum in the 4^th grade. 

Now, in a long-anticipated move, DesignMate released a collection of 79 stereo 3D animations focused on the elementary school market. Until this release, the lion’s share of available stereo content for K-12 education has chiefly settled in at the secondary level (that is, content for middle- and high school-level schools). Elementary students have largely been “the forgotten learners” in 3D.

The good news is that the new DesignMate content fits the paradigm teachers often like and use. It consists of short three- and four-minute animated vignettes tightly focused on specific topics that are difficult for children to learn or understand without the assistance of rich, immersive 3D visualization. The new DesignMate content significantly widens the availability of stereo 3D resources specifically supporting STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) initiatives in elementary schools.

This new collection includes a variety of immediately usable elementary 3D animations. This new content covers such fields as physical science (light reflection, the three phases of water, gravity, floating and sinking, and heat energy), life science (body systems, parts of a flower, food chain, the atmosphere, forests, trees, leaves, and roots), earth and space science (day and night cycles, solar energy, the sun, earthquakes, erosion, water cycles, and seasons), and even environmental science (recycling, rubbish and litter, and saving energy). For a complete listing, refer to the document below: