High school robotics team mentors bring 3D‑printing curriculum to Catalina Foothills third graders

High school members of the Pioneer Robotics team this month demonstrated a student‑designed 3D‑printing curriculum that Sunrise Drive third graders used in their science unit on animal adaptations. The showcase, presented during the Catalina Foothills Unified School District governing board meeting on Sept. 30, highlighted cross‑grade mentorship and community support for classroom technology.

The program pairs high‑school robotics mentors with elementary classrooms. "A big part of Pioneer … is we have to have, like, a service project," said Christian Pearson, identified in the meeting as team captain of Pioneer Robotics. "We were big on 3D printing and robotics, and we use that for all of our prototypes and to develop a robot. So we thought about how we can take out what we know and our process of it and kind of simplify it and teach it to the elementary schoolers." Owen Kantragulner, introduced as president of Pioneer Robotics, and Ethan Lin, vice president, also described two years of iteration and classroom pilots before broader rollout.

District staff and teachers said the curriculum was developed deliberately to fit existing standards. "Being able to really come up with something that has a real use in the curriculum was the key thing for us," said the teacher identified in the meeting as Ms. Ackerman, who worked with the mentors and Sunrise staff to align the project to the third‑grade animal‑adaptations unit. Principal Andrea Davidson noted the classroom lab and student work had been seeded by philanthropic support: a Flint Scholar provided funds that enabled a teacher to purchase a 3D printer and pilot the work at Sunrise Drive.

Parents and school leaders also described recent small grants and booster support that expanded the project. "Because of this, a parent at Sunrise who works for Caterpillar suggested that we apply for a Caterpillar grant," Ackerman said. "So we are just receiving this week $500 to pay for the materials for taking it to the whole grade level, third grade," she added. The meeting also noted that some of the printers used in class belong to the student mentors themselves and that the Sunrise FFO (family/teacher organization) has provided an additional printer.

Board Vice President Eileen Jackson praised the mentorship model and the program’s engagement across grade levels. "I love it when our students across grade levels and across schools interact and the mentorship opportunities available," Jackson said during the meeting.

Teachers and mentors described the classroom experience as rigorous, not merely decorative. "It wasn't just a fluffy, like, piece of art that just got stuck to the end of the lesson," Ackerman said, describing how students designed bird parts to match beak, feet and wing adaptations for habitats. The Pioneer mentors described piloting the curriculum with teacher feedback, deliberate revisions and a single‑class pilot last year before scaling up.

District staff said the project will continue to expand through the current school year, with classroom teachers, mentors and the Sunrise Drive community coordinating to broaden the district‑level deep‑learning work.

The board’s recognition of the project came early in the meeting and was framed as a showcase of applied STEM instruction and student mentoring. Officials encouraged continuing community and booster support to sustain materials and scale the curriculum to more third‑grade classrooms.

The district did not take any formal action on the showcase itself; staff said they will incorporate lessons from the pilot into regular curriculum and continue to seek modest grant and FFO support to fund materials.