Curated OER
Pasta Bridges
Young scholars design a bridge using pasta. They explore the elements of architecture involved in bridge building. They practice problem solving in a hands-on cooperative group effort.
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Think You Know Your Bridges?
Students determine what kind of bridge is being discussed by the description given on the quiz. In this architectural lesson, students are quizzed on swing, lifting, arch, suspension, and beam bridges.
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Building Bridges
Students, in groups, design and test a scale bridge. They use the Internet to research three basic bridge designs -- beam, arch, and suspension -- and the forces that act upon them.
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File Card Bridges
Students make different variations of file card bridges and predict how much weight it will hold. In this file card bridges lesson plan, students put file cards between books in different ways and predict how many pennies it will hold.
James Dyson Foundation
Challenge Cards
Can you build it? Yes you can! This interactive game includes four design challenges presented on separate cards. The cards outline the challenges with limited restrictions but with an end goal in mind. The competitions include building...
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Stable and Unstable Structures
Students research three major bridge collapses. In this Physical Science lesson plan, students will sketch a bridge design for their area after their research. All bridge designs will be presented to the class to discuss strengths and...
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Gymnastic Skills
Students use gymnastics beams, benches, mats, and wedges to practice gymnastics skills. In this gymnastics lesson plan, students practice balancing, tumbling, and jumping skills.
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Spaghetti Bridges: Student Worksheet
Pairs of learners work together in order to simulate how engineers test materials for strength and safety in the real world. They use paper cups and pieces of spaghetti to run strength tests. This excellent worksheet should lead to...
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The Bridge Challenge
Students identify important structural elements in bridges. They use a worksheet and websites to investigate different types of bridges and variable factors that relate to building a bridge.
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What Structural Challenges Do Bridge Builders Face Today?
Young scholars investigate the process of constructing a bridge. They study the meaning of structural force and draw pictures of examples. Students identify the types of building materials have been used in history to construct bridges...
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Bold Bridges
For this science worksheet, students collaborate in performing an investigation regarding the best bridge construction for maximum strength. Students build several designs of bridges out of pins, straws, fishing line, and small Styrofoam...
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Dunkin` for Density
In this density worksheet, students complete a science lab experiment to determine the density that an object will float or sink in water. Students fill in a chart with their data, answer 4 short answer questions and write 1 conclusion...
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Tension and Compression
Students explore the forces of tension and compression by manipulating a variety of objects, and apply what they learned in the construction of a model bridge.
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Reinforced Concrete Bridges
Students analyze bridge designs and functions. In this reinforced bridge lesson students brainstorm bridge ideas, divide into teams and give an oral presentation to the class to show them their bridge design.
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Spaghetti Bridges
Eighth graders experiment with building bridges of spaghetti, pennies, and a cup to determine how varying the number of spagetti pieces affects the strength of the bridge. They graph their results and interpret the data.
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Breaking Beams
Young scholars work together designing and building their own beams. They discover the concepts of stress and strain. They participate in a competition to determine the best beam.
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Quintaine Practice
In this Medieval history worksheet, students read an excerpt about quintaine and how it was created and used by a knight. They respond to three questions about jousting and how a squire became an expert using the quintaine. Finally,...
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Spaghetti Bridges
Students thread a piece of spaghetti through the holes in the cup. One person suspend the cup by placing each index finger approximately one inch in from the ends of the spaghetti.
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Tension and Compression
Pupils experience the forces of tension and compression by manipulating objects that are strong in each but not in both. Students construct a simple model of a beam bridge.
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Engineering: Introduction to Legos
Students identify and examine various Lego building materials. They discover how to measure Lego blocks and cut out and paste pictures of the Legos on the Engineer's Parts List sheet.
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Stressed and Strained
Students explore stress and strength in engineering design. In this engineering lesson, students become familiar with terminology associated with stress and strain on building material. They will have a class discuss about how their beam...
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Tension and Compression
Students examine tension and compression by manipulating objects that are strong in each but not in both. Students apply their observations to the construction of a model of a beam bridge, suspension bridge, and inverted triangle...
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Anasazi Pueblo Period: 700-1050 A.D.
Sixth graders investigate the main ideas and information about the Developmental Pueblo period, from 700-1050 A.D., of the Anasazi.
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Designing An Investigation
Students will design a scientific investigation. In this engineering design instructional activity, students will set up an investigation, collect data and form a conclusion about bridge design. They will use common household items to...