MakerBot’s kids’ book teaches them about 3D printing

LEO the Maker Prince is a children's storybook that helps them learn about 3D printing and then download files to bring the characters to life.

We featured Brooklyn-based MakerBot on these pages back in 2010 thanks to its efforts to bring 3D printing to the masses with its initial range of build-your-own desktop machines. Now the project has created LEO the Maker Prince, a children’s storybook that helps them learn about 3D printing and then download files to bring the characters to life.

Authored by artist and writer Carla Diana, the book follows a fictional version of herself as she walks through Brooklyn with LEO, a robot that can turn anything she draws into reality through 3D printing. Readers learn how the robot’s skills can help make new parts to fix broken things and even create new ones. After inspiring their creativity, kids can then download files to print their own versions of the characters and objects from the book at Thingiverse.

The book retails for USD 11.98 and is available from Amazon. Are there other innovations that could be translated into stories to inspire kids at an early age?