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Activity
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Teach Engineering

Glue Sticks Bend and Twist

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Stick this resource in the "Use" column. In the second installment of a six-part series, learners use glue sticks to demonstrate forces. Using glue sticks, instructors can demonstrate tension, compression, and torsion.
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Interactive
Magic of Physics

Forces Lab

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Here's a force to be reckoned with in the physics classroom! Scholars discover the movements associated with tension, compression, and other common forces through a hands-on simulation. Pupils pull, push, and twist their way through each...
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Activity
Teach Engineering

Bridge Types: Tensile and Compressive Forces

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Bridges rely on tension and compression to keep them standing. Pairs test this principle by constructing simple bridges and applying a force to the center. Teams use the provided worksheet to record their observations of the reaction of...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bridge Building, Tension, and Compression

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students demonstrate tension and compression using real world examples. In this forces lesson, students demonstrate tension on a suspension bridge. They demonstrate compression on different roof designs.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wind Effects on Model Building: Pre-Lab for Truss Design and Testing

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Emerging engineers perform pre-lab calculations in this first of a three-part lesson on model building. They determine the forces of tension and compression in a truss. After completion of the worksheet, pupils will draw a draft of their...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Strong as the Weakest Link

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students recognize that compression and tension forces are important considerations in building structures. They construct their own building structure using marshmellows and spaghetti to see which structure can hold the most weight.
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Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Bridging the Gaps

For Teachers 6th - 8th
The London Bridge should not have fallen down. And here's why. After a brief history of bridges and the three main types, class members are introduce to the concepts of tension and compression, the two main forces acting upon bridges. 
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Lesson Plan
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Purdue University

Take a Stand!

For Teachers 5th
Not all will still be standing by the end! Challenge classes to use engineering principles to design display cases with specific constraints. A hands-on STEM lesson reviews the concepts of tension, compression, and torque before...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Suspension Bridges

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Students explain the concepts of tension and compression, and then state the purpose of suspension bridges. They also study some of the most famous suspension bridges in North America.
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Lesson Plan
1
1
Teach Engineering

Exploring the Forces of Tension

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Let the resource stretch the minds of your young scientists with a instructional activity about tensile strength and stiffness of materials. Groups consider how easily materials stretch and relate this property to engineering design.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tension and Compression

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students 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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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tension and Compression

For Teachers 6th - 11th
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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Lesson Plan
1
1
Teach Engineering

Fairly Fundamental Facts About Forces and Structures

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Don't twist and turn looking for a resource. The first installment of a six-part series teaches young engineers about the five fundamental forces of compression, tension, shear, bending, and torsion. These forces help explain different...
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Lesson Plan
Science Matters

Fault Formations

For Teachers 6th Standards
The San Andreas Fault moves about two inches a year, approximately the same rate fingernails grow—crazy! The third lesson in the series allows for hands-on exploration of various fault formations. Through the use of a Popsicle stick,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bridge Building lab

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students investigate the 4 types of bridges and their strengths and weaknesses at an Internet Website. They describe one type of bridge that they have seen. Students pair off and face each other with their palms touching and feet flat...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Paper Suspension Bridges: You Want Me To Go Up There?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
A few class periods will be required to complete this physics investigation with your high schoolers. There is an unavailable video written into the lesson plan, but there is plenty of material here to bridge the gap. Two terrific...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Human Suspension Bridge

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
When is it okay to be suspended in school? When you're part of a human suspension bridge! Learners first model tension and compression in pairs. Once complete, they get together as a class to model a suspension bridge.
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PPT
Urbana School District

Fluids

For Students 11th - Higher Ed Standards
In 1879, Sir William Crookes discovered the fourth state of matter, plasma. The presentation covers states of matter, phase changes, density, pressure Pascal's Principle, buoyant force, Archimedes' Principle, Bernoulli's Principle,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tension and Compression

For Teachers 6th - 12th
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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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Freestanding Structures: A Tech Museum Floor Activity

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Learners attempt to design the tallest structure that they can with the given materials which are wooden dowels and rubber bands. They discuss the physics of their structure and how they would improve it the next time they built a...
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Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Doing the Math: Analysis of Forces in a Truss Bridge

For Teachers 10th - 12th Standards
Join together to investigate truss joints. Scholars learn how to analyze forces at truss joints to determine the strength of truss bridges. They apply the "method of joints" in calculating the tension and compression forces at each joint...
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Interactive
Magic of Physics

Materials Lab

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Why is wood good for building houses, but not the best choice for high-rise apartments? Future materials scientists put building materials to the test using a hands-on interactive. Pupils pull and push on substances such as reinforced...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Suspension Bridges

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Students view examples of suspension bridges and discuss their structure. They complete a tension and compression experiment with a partner then perform a similar experiment with books. They discuss engineers and how they design and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Activity: Leaning Tower of Pasta

For Teachers 6th - 8th
A well-laid-out lesson plan, this can be used in an engineering, STEM, or physical science course. Laboratory groups design a structure using pasta and marshmallows, measure its height and weight, and then discover the load that it can...