Lesson Plan

Building for Hurricanes: Engineering Design Challenge

Curated and Reviewed by Lesson Planet
This Building for Hurricanes: Engineering Design Challenge lesson plan also includes:

"By the hair on your chinny-chin-chin, I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in," says the big, bad wolf! Engineering hopefuls are challenged to design and construct a hurricane-proof building from simple office and craft materials. The objective is to have it withstand the weight of a tennis ball and the force of air from a fan. A wonderful, complete resource to foster engineering and design skills in youngsters!

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Pros
  • A printable planning and analysis handout is provided for builders, as well as an optional 17-slide PowerPoint to introduce and instruct your class in preparation for the project
  • A strong support for middle school Next Generation Science Standards in engineering
  • Encourages practice in problem-solving and cooperation
Cons
  • While the PowerPoint describes the importance of building safe structures, it does not give any specific instruction for overall shape or reinforcements that support this objective; links to outside Internet resources are included that can help with this need
  • Be aware that the link within the PDF for the PowerPoint does not work; it has been provided though the materials tab