Somersfield Students Bring Bermuda's Heritage to Life with 3D Models

A screenshot of the 3D model Somersfield Academy students created. It will be available at www.thingiverse.com by early June.

May 30, 2013 — This month, P5 Innovations students from Somersfield Academy measured, recorded, and produced 3D models of Bermuda National Trust properties Verdmont and Waterville. These models will be available on Thingiverse (www.thingiverse.com) by early June for download and 3D printing by the general public. The two historic Bermuda properties will appear alongside world-recognised architecture such as the British Parliament, the Reims Cathedral, and the Vanderbilt Mansion in New York City.

One of the Somersfield P5 groups pose at Waterville after measuring the building for a 3D project.

Innovations director Mark Brown, who initiated the project, said: “Upon hearing about Mr Doyling’s Interactive Learning Center and their 3D printer through Bermuda’s STEM Network, I knew I had to come up with a project wherein our students could work with this new technology. I approached the National Trust about producing 3D printable models of their properties. The National Trust recognised that this would be a fitting project to celebrate Heritage Month. We attended both Waterville and Verdmont where we learned about the properties’ history before measuring the buildings.”

Back at Somersfield, students worked collaboratively on scaling the model in a software programme called Sketchup. P5 student Tyler DeCouto, who found the programme particularly engaging and became an in-class expert, then finished the project by adding window dressings, landscaping, and the third storey. Tyler notes that the building is 90 percent accurate but some liberties were taken (there is only one chimney on each side rather than two, and a door is slightly off its true position). The third storey and roof are not perfect “because we weren’t allowed to go on to the roof to make measurements.”

Mr Brown also acknowledged the assistance and partnership with Mr Steven Doyling of the Interactive Learning Center, Dr Dörte Horsfield of the National Trust, and the many parents and grandparents who found themselves with measuring tapes during the trips to the historic properties. He stated: “It is partnerships such as these that move education from something that is merely delivered to children into something that they create for themselves. That, at its essence, is 21st Century learning.”

Originally published in The Royal Gazette