Animation With Blender

Learn about creating animations

Caleb Gordon is an 8th grader at Woodlawn School who got interested in animation a couple of years ago. For STEAMfest, he created a custom animation of the Woodlawn School logo using the free Blender software package. In this activity, we’ll learn a bit about how Caleb made the animation, how you can get started learning about animation and how to make your first Claymation movie.

Here’s the activity …

  1. Check out the custom Woodlawn School logo animation above.
  2. Read the interview with Caleb.
  3. If you’re interested in learning to use Blender, there are some links.
  4. Watch the Claymation tutorial video.
  5. Create your own Claymation animation.
  6. Tell us what you did in your MySTEAMfest journal.
Journal Questions
  1. What do you think of Caleb’s animation?
  2. Have you ever learned how to do something using YouTube tutorials?
  3. Did you try to make a Claymation video?

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Interview with Caleb

Tell us who you are?
My name is Caleb Gordon and I’m in the 8th grade at Woodlawn School.
How did you get interested in animation? 
I got interested in animation about a few years ago when I started trying out Stop-motion or better known as Claymation. About 4 months ago I tried out a 3D Program called Blender and started learning the flow of it to create more detailed animations.
Have you taken classes or learned on your own?
I have not taken any classes on learning Blender but I watched a few tutorials to help boost my abilities.
What software did you use to create this animation?
I used an incredible 3D program called Blender. The awesome thing about it is that it’s free for anyone to use at any time!
Any suggestions for a beginner on how to get started?
I suggest that if you are new to this platform look up YouTube videos. Instead of paying for an online class you can look up free tutorials!
Can you show us a few screenshots of your project in Blender?
This is the layout of the project.
I created the Snowflakes and water myself and then attached it to a plane.
Gave it a particle emitter and adjusted it to make it look like real snow and rain!

Getting Started With Blender

You can download the free Blender software here:

https://www.blender.org/

Then get started learning … a good place to start is the Blender Fundamentals videos here:

https://www.blender.org/support/tutorials/

Claymation Animation

Want to make your own Claymation animation? Here’s a tutorial …

Topics

TechnologyArt
Grade Level
4-5
6-8
9-12

Creator

Picture of Caleb Gordon - Woodlawn

Caleb Gordon - Woodlawn