Let’s talk kindness! This collection is in honor of Fred Rogers from Mister Rogers Neighborhood. Mister Rogers taught children and adults emotional management, acceptance, tolerance, love and how to deal with the feelings inside that we just can’t put our finger on. He gave his advice to educators and members of the community to take a holistic approach to teaching the whole child and their spectrum of understanding. These lessons focus on expanding the educational topics of digital fabrication to social emotional ones as well.
3D Printed Mister Rogers Neighborhood Trolley
In this lesson students will design a 3D model of Mister Rogers Neighborhood Trolley. We will be looking at how he took a stand against racial inequality in 1969 when…
143 Pittsburgh’s Day of Kindness Vinyl Stickers
This lesson is a guided introduction to Mr. Rogers Day of Kindness. Students will create a vinyl sticker for their laptops, staff will assist in the design and fabrication of…
Mister Rogers Sweater Keychain
In this lesson students will design sweater keychains in honor of Mister Rogers. We will be looking at how his work in helping children develop socio-emotional skills inspired congress to…
about Wonderings from Pittsburgh
Mister Rogers spent his entire adult life teaching his audience racial justice, how to deal with difficult life events, and how to be kind to one another. I believe that it is our obligation as educators to democratize education to its fullest extent. The way I have found to do so is in bringing the life lessons that Mister Rogers taught me into the classroom.
IN THIS COLLECTION
These lessons are directly related to Mister Rogers and his ideological sensibilities on education and emotions. The first is a vinyl sticker that has the symbolic “143” on it. Mister Rogers always kept his weight at 143 pounds because there is one letter in “I”, four letters in “love”, and three letters in “you”. Next is a lesson outlining how to laser cut a keychain out of his beloved sweaters, which were all hand sewn by his mother. In the lesson we take a look at how he accomplished receiving 20 million dollars in funding for PBS just by discussing the emotional learning he did on his show with congress. And finally, a lesson to 3D print the famous trolley from his show taking the viewers into the “land of make-believe” while discussing the stand he took against racial injustice in the late 1960s.
FCH – Clayprinting
The “Clayprinting” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which supports young women to build skills, get inspired, and find opportunities in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and maths). In…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Earring bottle caps
The “Earring bottle caps” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which helps young women get inspired, learn new skills, and find opportunities in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Floating Light
The “Floating Light” is part of the FabConnectHer project, which supports young women in learning new skills in science, technology, engineering, art, and maths (STEAM). In this lesson, students make…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Glass Laser Engraving
The “Glass Laser Engraving” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which helps young women learn new skills in science, technology, engineering, art, and maths (STEAM). In this lesson, students…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Ozo and Dash bot plans
The “Ozo and Dash bot plans” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which helps young women learn skills in science, technology, engineering, art, and maths (STEAM). In this…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Perry the Platypus
The “Creating Perry the Platypus from MDF Wood” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which supports young women in learning new skills in science, technology, engineering, art, and maths…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Sticker
The “Sticker” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which helps young women build creativity and confidence in science, technology, engineering, art, and maths (STEAM). In this lesson, students design…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Design your own Tiny House
The “Design Your Own Tiny House” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which helps young women learn skills in science, technology, engineering, art, and maths (STEAM). In this lesson,…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Rocket Launching
The “Building and Launching Water Rockets” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which helps young women explore creativity and technology through fun, hands-on projects in STEAM (science, technology, engineering,…
September 17, 2025
FCH – Scanning and routing a human face
The “Scanning a Human Face and CNC Machining a 3D Model” activity is part of the FabConnectHer project, which encourages young women to explore creativity and technology through STEAM (science,…
September 17, 2025
Recreating the Past: Using 3D Printing to Explore the Legacy of Tiridates III the Great
This lesson bridges history and technology by using a 3D-printed replica of the crown of King Tiridates III the Great, the Armenian king who made Christianity the official religion of…
August 29, 2025
Fab-in-a-Box Automata: Deep Dive
This lesson introduces learners to the fascinating world of automata; kinetic sculptures powered by simple mechanical systems. Through hands-on fabrication using laser cutters, vinyl cutters, and 3D printers, learners will…
August 25, 2025
Fab-in-a-Box Casting & Molding: Deep Dive
Learners will design a two-part, two-step mold from scratch using a blank xDesign template.
August 25, 2025
Fab-in-a-Box 3D Printed Trick Dice: Deep Dive
Learners will be designing dice that roll unfairly, on purpose! They’ll be using xDesign to engineer internal features that shift the weight of a die, affecting how it rolls.
August 25, 2025
Fab-in-a-Box Spinning Tops: Deep Dive
Learners will experiment with physics while designing and fabricating a custom modular spinning top with interchangeable parts.
August 25, 2025
Fab-in-a-Box Botanical Press: Deep Dive
Learners will design a botanical press from scratch and create custom 3D-printed wing nuts.
August 25, 2025STANDARDS-ALIGNED
Community contributed lessons aligned with Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) offer formal educators innovative pathways to teaching content knowledge. The Fab I Can Statements are a resource to develop technology-literate learning progressions to align with content standards.
FAB TESTED
Periodically lessons are adapted and tested by the Fab Foundation team based on a call for submissions from fabbers, educators, and makers. Our inaugural set of lessons for the SCOPES-DF project were Fab Tested in 2016 and are tagged Fab Tested on the website.
OPEN-SOURCE VALUES
Lessons are distributed under a Creative Commons CC BY-NC license, that permits free use and re-purposing by others.