History in Their Hands: MakerBot’s STEAM Mission at the Intrepid

The Intrepid Museum is a living piece of history. Docked on the Hudson River, the legendary WWII-era aircraft carrier is a monument to sea, air, and space innovation. It’s home to some of the world's fastest airplanes, a Cold War-era submarine, the Concorde, and the Space Shuttle Enterprise.

The museum’s mission, however, isn't just about the past. As Producer of Public Programs Alicia Siegel puts it, the Intrepid is about "educating, honoring our past, and inspiring the future, too."

This mission was on full display during the museum's 2025 Kids Week, and MakerBot was thrilled to be invited to join the celebration of innovation.

Making History Tangible

How do you get the next generation of learners excited about the complex engineering of a space shuttle or the aerodynamics of a fighter jet? According to the Intrepid team, you find new, interactive ways to bring those giant artifacts down to a human scale.

"We thought 3D printing is such a really fun and... newer interactive thing that kids are really starting to embrace nowadays," said Siegel.

That's where MakerBot came in. Alongside these incredible historical artifacts, our 3D printers demonstrated the power of turning digital ideas into physical objects. For the thousands of kids and families attending, it was a perfect bridge between the technologies of the 20th century and the innovations of the 21st.

From Artifacts to Assets

The challenge with teaching STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) is often making abstract concepts concrete. A child can look up at the massive Enterprise shuttle, but it’s hard to grasp its individual components or design.

3D printing changes that. "Having the ability to print something and be able to see it up close, it helps them on a smaller scale be able to get a larger sense of what it looks like, the shapes involved, [and] how the aerodynamics of the plane, for example, can work," Siegel explained.

To make the experience even more relevant, MakerBot helped develop a lesson plan specifically for the Intrepid. Kids could see and hold 3D-printed models of the very artifacts surrounding them—from the Tomcat to the Concorde and the rocket shuttle.

It’s one thing to see a plane. It’s another to hold a model of it in your hand, printed right before your eyes, and then take it home. That printed souvenir becomes a powerful reminder of the visit and the concepts they learned.

The Future of STEAM Education

This partnership was about more than just a fun activity. It was a demonstration of how 3D printing is a vital asset for modern education.

The Intrepid Museum "leans into science, technology, engineering, and math because we have so many amazing artifacts," Siegel noted. "Being able to 3D print little pieces of STEM... learning about engineering, learning about how pieces can fit together, and how you can actually design your own things on a computer, and then being able to print it out as well. It's a really, really great asset to be able to have."

We couldn't agree more. At MakerBot, we are dedicated to providing the tools and curriculum that empower educators and inspire students. We were honored to partner with the Intrepid Museum to help "inspire the future" and show thousands of kids how they can be the next generation of engineers, designers, and innovators.