Print That!

with 3D-Dan

Hands-on 3D printing courses, from your first print to multicolor projects.

  • Videos
  • Lesson Plans
  • Student Worksheets
Explore Courses Meet 3D-Dan
An orange Benchy boat being printed by a 3D printer

Pick a Course

Each course combines step-by-step video instruction, an educator lesson plan, and a student worksheet with a hands-on project.

8 CoursesHow access works
  1. Course 01 VIDEO COMING SOON

    Your first printer. Your first print.

    Free courseComing soon

    Printers, Filaments, & Benchy's -- Oh My!

    Go from choosing a 3D printer to making something real. Shop for the right equipment and supplies, unpack your printer, set up your workspace, and bring your first Benchy test print to life.

    Your Turn to Print

    Compare printer options, complete a setup checklist, and document your Benchy. What worked, what surprised you, and what would you improve?

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Choose a printer for your needs, projects, and budget.
    • Shop for filament and essential supplies.
    • Unpack and identify printer components.
    • Prepare a workspace and understand hot surfaces, moving parts, and adult supervision.
    • Follow manufacturer setup and calibration instructions, then load filament.
    • Print a Benchy and inspect the result.

    For educators

    Printer comparison activity, purchasing and setup checklists, supervised first-print demonstration, safety prompts, and a discussion of the finished Benchy.

    Before you start

    A suitable 3D printer, compatible filament, manufacturer instructions, and appropriate adult help for setup and printer operation.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
  2. Course 02 VIDEO COMING SOON

    Find it. Slice it. Make it.

    PremiumComing soon

    Taking Control: Find, Slice, and Print a Model

    Take a proper tour of the slicer and discover where printable ideas live. Explore STL/3MF repositories, prepare a model, learn practical tips, and complete a small print with settings you understand.

    Your Turn to Print

    Choose a model, document its source, and explain your orientation, scale, and settings. Compare the finished print with your slicer preview.

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Find suitable models in STL/3MF repositories and check permissions and attribution.
    • Understand model geometry, project files, and printer settings.
    • Choose the correct printer and filament profiles; review imported settings.
    • Move, rotate, scale, and arrange models.
    • Preview layers and spot basic preparation problems.
    • Prepare and complete a smaller print.

    For educators

    Model selection checklist, repository and permissions discussion, guided slicer walkthrough, practical preparation tips, and a print-comparison activity.

    Before you start

    Skills from Course 1, a computer with a compatible slicer, internet access for model research, a configured printer, and filament.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
  3. Course 03 VIDEO COMING SOON

    Quality, speed, and strength

    PremiumComing soon

    Quality, Speed, and Strength: Understanding Your Settings

    What changes when you change a setting? Explore the tradeoffs between a smoother surface, a stronger part, a faster print, and less material—then put your predictions to the test.

    Your Turn to Print

    Print small comparison samples while changing one variable. Record estimates and results, test the samples, and recommend settings for a specific use.

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Explore layer height, walls, top and bottom layers, and infill.
    • Understand the roles of temperature and print speed.
    • Compare appearance, strength, printing time, and material use.
    • Choose settings for a particular purpose.
    • Plan a fair comparison by changing one variable at a time.

    For educators

    Controlled-test procedure, comparison samples, prediction and observation prompts, and an evidence-based setting-selection discussion.

    Before you start

    Skills from Courses 1–2, a compatible slicer, printer and filament, and small comparison models.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
  4. Course 04 VIDEO COMING SOON

    Tricky shapes and better fits

    PremiumComing soon

    Printing Tricky Shapes: Orientation, Supports, and Fit

    Some shapes need a different approach. Investigate bridges, overhangs, supports, and orientation, then discover why two parts that fit on screen may need a little room to fit in real life.

    Your Turn to Print

    Prepare a small two-part project. Explain your orientation and support choices, test the fit, and document any adjustment to clearance or settings.

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Recognize overhangs and bridges.
    • Choose orientation and bed-adhesion strategies.
    • Balance surface quality, strength, and support use.
    • Remove supports with appropriate tools and adult supervision.
    • Understand clearances and test how printed parts fit together.

    For educators

    Orientation and support comparisons, supervised finishing guidance, and a fit-testing activity that connects measurements with real printed parts.

    Before you start

    Skills from Courses 1–3, a two-part model, printer and filament, suitable measuring tools, and adult help for support removal.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
  5. Course 05 VIDEO COMING SOON

    A failed print is a clue

    PremiumComing soon

    Print Detectives: Troubleshoot, Maintain, and Improve

    Meet the unexpected side of 3D printing—and learn how to investigate it. Read the clues in a failed print, separate possible causes, care for your equipment, and make a measured improvement.

    Your Turn to Print

    Investigate example failed prints, build a troubleshooting log, and improve a small print through a controlled test. Complete a printer-care checklist.

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Recognize adhesion problems, warping, stringing, under-extrusion, and other common failures.
    • Distinguish model, settings, material, and machine issues.
    • Understand filament storage and moisture.
    • Follow manufacturer guidance for routine care.
    • Document changes, test one variable, and know when to ask an adult for help.

    For educators

    Failed-print scenarios, a systematic investigation, a one-change-at-a-time test, and a manufacturer-appropriate maintenance checklist.

    Before you start

    Skills from Courses 1–4, example print failures or reference images, manufacturer care instructions, and adult supervision for maintenance.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
  6. Course 06 VIDEO COMING SOON

    Your idea, from scratch

    PremiumComing soon

    Design It Yourself: From an Idea to a Printable Model

    Move from finding models to making your own. Turn a simple problem into a sketch, build an original design with beginner-friendly CAD tools, and print your first prototype.

    Your Turn to Print

    Design and print an original useful object, such as a nameplate, organizer, or simple holder. Submit your sketch, dimensions, model, and prototype reflection.

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Define a simple problem, sketch an idea, and take measurements.
    • Use beginner CAD tools to combine and subtract shapes.
    • Add text and plan dimensions and clearances.
    • Export a model and inspect it in the slicer.
    • Print a first prototype and evaluate the result.

    For educators

    Beginner design-tool introduction, a guided problem-solving challenge, project criteria, and assessment and reflection prompts.

    Before you start

    Skills from Courses 1–5, access to a beginner-friendly CAD tool and slicer, measuring tools, printer, and filament.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
  7. Course 07 VIDEO COMING SOON

    Test it. Change it. Build it better.

    PremiumComing soon

    Make It Work: Test, Redesign, and Build an Assembly

    A first prototype is the start of the story. Test a design against real requirements, improve how its parts work together, and plan a small assembly with time and material costs in mind.

    Your Turn to Print

    Design or refine a small multi-part object. Test it, revise at least one feature, and present the assembled result with evidence of the improvement.

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Test a prototype against requirements.
    • Refine fit, strength, and usability.
    • Design parts that work together and plan assembly.
    • Consider materials appropriate to the project.
    • Estimate print time, material use, and cost.
    • Use evidence to explain a design revision.

    For educators

    Design requirements, test-planning prompts, revision criteria, assembly guidance, and a practical time and material cost-estimation activity.

    Before you start

    Skills from Courses 1–6, a CAD tool and slicer, measuring tools, printer and filament, and a small multi-part design.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
  8. Course 08 VIDEO COMING SOON

    The multicolor finale

    PremiumComing soon

    Printing in Color: Plan, Prepare, and Produce a Multicolor Project

    Bring your printing skills together in more than one color. Plan a multicolor design, explore manual and automatic workflows, and make thoughtful choices about color changes, print time, and material waste.

    Your Turn to Print

    Create a multicolor final project using the skills you've developed. Submit a color plan, slicer preview, time/material estimate, finished print, and explanation of your design decisions.

    Inside this course

    What you’ll learn

    • Plan color as part of a design.
    • Compare supported manual layer changes with compatible automatic multicolor systems.
    • Assign colors and prepare multicolor files.
    • Preview changes, purge waste, print time, and material use.
    • Prevent common mistakes and evaluate the finished project.

    For educators

    Color-planning activity, equipment-dependent demonstration options, waste/time comparisons, and criteria for a cumulative final project.

    Before you start

    Skills from Courses 1–7 and equipment that supports the chosen color-change workflow. Automatic multicolor equipment is not required for every project path.

    Educator lesson plan / guideComing soon
    Student worksheet + projectComing soon
Daniel Bettencourt, known as 3D-Dan 3D-Dan

Meet your maker

From “what if” to “I made that.”

Daniel BettencourtKaizen 3D Prints

Meet Daniel Bettencourt of Kaizen 3D Prints. As 3D-Dan, he brings you into the experiment: asking big questions, making real things, and finding the useful lesson in a print that does not go to plan. Clear explanations, a sense of humor, and plenty of hands-on making come with the territory.

For classrooms, community groups, and anyone ready to give it a try.

Made for your classroom. Or your own curiosity.

Start curious. Keep creating.

Try the first course free. When the premium courses are ready, choose an individual course or the complete curriculum.

Start free

Your first print starts here.

Course 1, its educator guide, and its student worksheet are free. No account or signup required.

  • Watch online
  • Download classroom resources
  • Try the first hands-on project
Preview the Free Course
Go further

Keep the ideas coming.

License an individual premium course or the complete curriculum. Each purchase provides 12 months of access from the purchase date.

  • One educator. Their classes and groups.
  • No separate student licenses or accounts
  • Online videos + downloadable teaching resources

Complete curriculum license coming soon

A few things to know

Can I use one license with my students?

Yes. The license is held by the educator, who can present the courses to their classes or groups and print or distribute the accompanying worksheets to those students. Students do not need their own licenses or accounts.

How long does premium access last?

Premium access lasts 12 months from purchase. An account is required to access purchased courses and resources. Online access and new premium downloads end when the license expires. Any continued use of previously downloaded resources is subject to the license terms provided with your purchase.

Can I download the videos?

Videos are watched online. Educator guides and student worksheets can be downloaded when available.

What does Coming Soon mean?

The course or resource is still being created. Each video, educator guide, and student worksheet will be marked available separately when it is ready. Individual premium courses will be offered once their core materials are ready; the complete curriculum license will be offered when the curriculum is complete.

Print That! with 3D-Dan

What will you print next?

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