Adapting a Shared Model

Overview

In this practical lesson, students locate a suitable Thingiverse model, record its creator and licence, and analyse how its form, materials and intended function meet user needs. They then create an original, purposeful adaptation in Autodesk Inventor or prepare a justified production plan for the next making stage.

This is lesson 12 of 18 in Design, Model and Make. It builds on students’ previous CAD modelling, design criteria and safe workshop practices.

Learning intentions

Students will:

• investigate a shared digital design and identify its creator and licence.
• analyse how design features, materials and production processes support purpose and users.
• adapt a model to create a more useful, accessible or sustainable solution.
• communicate and justify design decisions using technical language and digital tools.

Success criteria

• I can accurately record the model’s creator, source title and licence conditions.
• I can explain how at least three design features respond to a user need or design criterion.
• I can make a purposeful adaptation, or produce a detailed production plan if CAD access is unavailable.
• I can justify my changes in relation to function, sustainability, accessibility, safety or appearance.

Curriculum links

• Analyse needs and opportunities, develop design briefs, and investigate and select materials, systems, tools and equipment for designed solutions.
• Analyse and judge how material and component properties can be combined to create effective designed solutions.
• Develop independent design criteria, including sustainability, to evaluate design ideas and solutions.
• Generate, test, iterate and communicate design ideas using digital tools.
• Select and justify suitable technologies, processes and safety procedures for making.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–6 min · Hook and purpose. Teacher opens the shared-model hook and learning intentions with a striking comparison of an original model and a thoughtful adaptation, then asks, “When does changing someone else’s design become your own purposeful design?” Students make a quick judgement and share one possible reason for adapting a product.

2. 6–16 min · Explicit teaching: responsible reuse. Teacher uses the creator, licence and design-analysis slides to model how to record a model’s creator, title, licence and permitted use without presenting another person’s work as their own. Students identify the difference between copying, modifying with acknowledgement, and creating an original response, then annotate the key requirements on the shared-model analysis and adaptation record.

3. 16–25 min · Demonstration and task briefing. Teacher demonstrates searching the school-approved Thingiverse access point, selecting a model that is suitable for Year 9 work, and importing or recreating relevant geometry in Inventor; the teacher also models a purposeful change, such as improving grip, reducing material, adding a joining feature or adapting dimensions for a specific user. Students select a model and complete the model identity, user, intended purpose and initial design-criteria sections of the worksheet.

4. 25–45 min · Individual design work. Teacher conferences with students, checking that each chosen model is appropriate, the licence has been recorded, and adaptations are more than decorative changes; students analyse the original model and either modify it in Inventor or prepare a labelled production plan showing dimensions, materials, tools, processes, joining methods and safety controls. Students must explain the intended user and the problem their adaptation addresses.

5. 45–54 min · Peer critique and iteration. Teacher pairs students for a structured review and distributes the Prototype Testing Feedback Template for recording criterion-based feedback; students explain their original model, adaptation and licence acknowledgement, then give feedback on function, feasibility, sustainability and appearance. Students make one immediate improvement to their CAD model or production plan and record why the change was made.

6. 54–60 min · Share and exit assessment. Teacher returns to the critique and plenary slides and invites two or three students to present a design decision, then collects the completed worksheet and feedback template. Students complete the final worksheet prompts: “My adaptation is purposeful because…”, “The most important licence or attribution requirement is…”, and “My next production step is…”.

Resources

• Computer or laptop for each student or pair
• Autodesk Inventor
• School-approved Thingiverse access
• the shared-model hook, licence guidance, demonstration, task instructions and plenary deck
• the shared-model analysis and adaptation record
• the Prototype Testing Feedback Template
• Projector or interactive display
• Headphones where required
• Existing student design criteria and project folders
• Workshop safety signage and school production-planning requirements

Assessment

• During model selection, check that students can identify the creator and licence and explain whether their intended use and adaptation are permitted.
• Review CAD screens or production plans for a clear user need, purposeful modification, technical feasibility, material and process choices, and consideration of safety and sustainability.
• Use the completed worksheet and peer feedback template as formative evidence; the final prompts provide an exit check of attribution, justification and next steps.

Differentiation

• Provide a teacher-curated shortlist of suitable models, a visual step sequence for importing or recreating geometry, and sentence starters such as “The user needs…”, “This feature works because…” and “I changed… so that…”.
• Allow students who cannot access CAD, or who need additional processing time, to complete a detailed annotated production plan with dimensions, material choices, tools, processes and safety controls.
• Pair students strategically for navigation and discussion, while requiring each student to make and justify an individual design decision. Read licence terminology aloud and clarify unfamiliar vocabulary for EAL/D learners.
• Challenge confident students to respond to competing criteria, such as reducing material while maintaining strength, adapting for accessibility, or comparing two possible production processes and defending the better choice.