A Registered nurse at DaVita, who is also a mother of a Pottsville Junior High EAST student, reached out to our EAST students with a special request: to create fidget toys for DaVita clients to use while undergoing kidney treatments.
To develop these fidget toys, the DaVita group went on a field trip to Divita RIver Valley Dialysis, they went on this field trip to show the clients their fidget toys to see if they liked them as well as what they liked about them. To make these fidget toys they have received 3D printing training through the EAST initiative website. They used Tinkercad to design and print various fidget toys, including revolving Christmas trees, octopuses, infinity cubes, and fidget circles.
This team, including the client, collaboratively decided on the design and functionality of these tools. This process has not only taught the students how to 3D print, but also enhanced their teamwork and collaboration skills by having to talk out what needed improvement on their fidget toys. This project is particularly meaningful because it was initiated by a client and addresses real-world needs.