Recently there was a call for teachers who were interested in joining my school district’s pilot project for a laser cutter in our school. A colleague and I eagerly signed up and were accepted into the pilot project. Yesterday was our very first day of training. Prior to the session, we were required to download the xTool Creative Space Software. At our school, there is currently a bit of interest from teachers regarding using a laser cutter. A parent in the community recently gifted their children’s teachers with unique signage for their classroom made with their laser cutter, and it drummed up some buzz about a laser cutter’s applications in a school setting.

We are learning how to operate the xTool M1 Ultra Laser cutter. The laser cutter is capable of making precision cuts in many different materials such as plywood, cardboard, paper, felt, fabric, and vinyl. For the session, we were split into 2 mini sessions: “how-to-use-it” with Gavin Hanna and safety measures with Anna-Marie MacPherson. Both facilitators are members of our school district’s STEAM team charged with educating, supporting, and co-teaching with teachers with regards to STEAM education.

“How-to-use-it”

In the “how-to-use-it” session, Gavin showed off how to operate the machine with guidelines such as:

  • “Never leave the machine unattended during use.
  • Turn off the machine when not in use. You may remove and store the usb lock key at the rear to prevent unauthorized use. 
  • Keep a spray bottle with water nearby when using the laser. 
  • When through-laser cutting, be sure to place material on triangular bars.
  • Ensuring you are using the correct processing mode (e.g. blade mode for vinyl… NOT lasering on flat surface!)
  • Clean surfaces frequently with a clean, damp microfibre cloth.
  • Ensure the base plate is clean before placing blade cutting mats to avoid spoiling mats.
  • Establish a regular cleaning schedule:

Some of the tips Gavin gave us felt very standard and similar to the 3D printer guidelines – turn off the machine, keep it clean, make sure you place the materials in the machine exactly as how you want it. There was one recommendation that really surprised me and that was not to leave it to run unattended. That was completely backwards from how I’ve learned to use the 3D printer, where prints can take several hours. When I thought about it, it made a little more sense, since it is a laser and it could be a potential fire hazard. That makes me think I need to be very conscientious when I am cutting and make time to keep an eye on the print.

On top of the basics of the hardware, Gavin gave us a tutorial of the software xTool Creative Space to help us with visualizing our designs that we send to the laser cutter. There were a few key suggestions that we need to keep in mind as we must design for not only the aesthetics, but also the material, the method/blade for cutting, the size of the material etc.

  • “Select the appropriate processing mode.
  • Mark the boundaries of the material.
  • Auto-measure (when lasering) the distance from the material. Before clicking auto-measure, make sure the red crosshairs are over the material and will not flip the material if on the triangular bars.
  • Select the material before starting.” (G. Hanna, personal communication, January 29, 2025).

While Gavin was showing us the software, I kept making connections to how 3D printing needs slicing software to make the designs work for the machine, but this software is more interested in the physical space and the material that the job requires. xTool Creative Space felt like the opposite of the Tinkercad and Slicing software combination I was used to for 3D printing. When I print, building the design is a skill in itself for 3D modelling. Creating a 3D model, when so many of us have only learned to prototype in 2D, involves a steep learning curve. On top of creating the design, there is also a need for slicing software literacy where you are making sure the pieces are well supported if they’re hanging and any holes in the design are filled with purposeful excess that can be disposed of after the print. After the g code is written, it is pretty much plug and play for the 3D printer. This is not the case for the laser cutter. From the demonstration Gavin gave us, the designing is the easy part. You can grab any image you want off the internet or draw a custom design, but the real skill is making sure all of the parameters and specifications are correct. If the material is incompatible with the method of cutting, at best, the cut fails. At worst, it can create a toxic gas (i.e. vinyl on laser instead of vinyl on blade). The xTool software is also very concerned with how large and thick the material is that it is cutting on. Unlike the 3D printer that has a pre-determined base plate parameter of the where to print, the laser cutter can accommodate reusing scrap material as long as the cutting area is marked and the width of the material is defined. It feels as if the headspace I need to be in while using this tool will be almost the exact opposite as the 3D printing mentality.

After the tutorial, Gavin showed us some examples of projects they have done in their offices and out in schools. We were left with many ideas of how we could use the laser cutter. It seemed like the possibilities we once thought might be too extravagant, might actually be too modest and rather attainable.

Safety

After we were shown the applications of the laser cutter, Anna-Marie shared some safety considerations when using the M1 laser cutter.

She showed us how to manually shut off the laser cutter and how to disconnect the USB cord in the back that she suggested that we remove from the machine after we are done using the device. If the USB cord is removed, the cutter cannot be used at all, and prevents unauthorized use. She also mentioned that we were not to tamper with the orange transparent cover of the cutter. Because the cover is a specific shade of transparent orange, we can see what the cutter is doing without harming our eyes, thus making this device a class 1 laser. Any modification of the hood would immediate reclassify the laser as a class 4 – unprotected eye hazard.

I was really surprised that everything on the hardware was intentional to make this device safe for children to be around. I had to have a very serious conversation with my students about the 3D printer and how it could be very hot even when not in use. It sounds like if I use the laser cutter with my students, there will need to be another serious conversation to front load them about safe use.

Anna-Marie brought up some considerations when a machine like the M1 is so versatile with the materials and the cutting tools, there will be a few essential combinations one should never use such as:

  • “PVC and Vinyl with Chlorine: These materials can release harmful fumes when laser cut or engraved. These can be cut safely with the blade module.
  • Polycarbonate: This material does not cut well with the laser and can cause damage to the machine.
  • Reflective Metals: metals, such as bare aluminum and copper, can reflect the laser and cause safety hazards.
  • Certain Plastics: Some plastics can melt or release toxic fumes when cut with a laser.” (A. MacPherson, personal communication, January 29, 2025).

With these hazardous combinations being a possibility for honest mistakes, I thought about how I would teach my colleagues about using the laser cutter. These rules need to be visible as a constant reminder to consider safety above all. Should I walk my colleagues through their first few cutting projects, or should my colleagues be required to take the same training that I am doing before they start using it? I would be interested to see if my colleagues would like to learn, or would they prefer to have me and my colleague at the workshop doing all of the cutting?

At the end of the session Gavin and Anna-Marie added all of the participants to a Microsoft TEAMs group to create a community of learners and their ask was that we post photos of our success and failures when using the laser cutter. As a collective, we need to celebrate all the outputs regardless of intention. We can all learn something from another teacher’s attempt. My colleague and I began to brainstorm what we could try and we decided on a small set of classroom name pickers to replace the popsicle method of drawing names. We have designed small ducks with the names of students on the body and we call them – “lucky ducks”. Once our cutter is delivered, we will begin our laser cutting journey. We are nervous, excited, and a little overwhelmed in the best possible way.