Curated OER
Building Paper Bridges
High schoolers construct a bridge that can hold 100 pennies. In this math lesson, students evaluate the strength of their bridges. They predict how much weight a bridge can hold based on its design.
Curated OER
What Structural Challenges Do Bridge Builders Face Today?
Learners 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 and how...
Curated OER
A Good Foundation
Students examine how regional geology affects bridge foundations. In this physical science lesson plan, students explore how bridge types are constructed for different purposes.
Curated OER
The Earth is a Changin'
Students view examples of different types of erosion. In this erosion activity, students discuss the different types of erosion and how erosion changes Earth. Students explore erosion and the effect it has on engineering.
Curated OER
Stable Structures
Consider what it means to create a stable structure. The words stable and structure are defined, then stable objects are depicted and discussed in terms of their design features. Learners are asked to design a photo frame that includes...
Curated OER
Design and Construct a Road Sign Support
Students use simple materials to design, build, and test a model of a free-standing structure used to support overhead road signs.
Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
An Uphill Swim
Students explore the concepts and engineering principles used in a canal lock system and apply those concepts to navigate a boat through a working model of a canal lock waterway.
Curated OER
Design And Construct A Road Sign Support
Students use simple materials to design, build, and test a model of a free-standing structure used to support overhead road signs. First, students watch a video on the engineering design process. Then the design challenge is defined.
Teach Engineering
Engineering and the Periodic Table
Elements, to the rescue! Scholars first review the periodic table, and then learn about the first 20 elements and their properties and uses in the fourth of six lessons in the Mixtures and Solutions unit. Applying their newfound...
Curated OER
Tacoma Narrows Bridge Lesson Plans
Middle schoolers design and construct a suspension bridge. Math is used to compare the actual measurements of the bridge to the student's version.
Curated OER
Building Texas: the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Lesson Plan
Seventh graders study the engineering projects that the US Army Corps of Engineers initiated during the development of Texas. They examine primary source documents that are in digital and print form, and identify US Army Corp of Engineer...
Curated OER
"Ex-SPAN-D" Your Math by Traveling Over the Chesapeake Bay
In this math lesson, students calculate the cost of bridge construction and time of completion. They solve and write short answers to 5 questions using mathematical operations.
Curated OER
Designing an Earthquake-resistant Structure
Students attempt to design and build the most stable "earthquke resistant" structure. They create model buildings and test them on a shake table to see which design holds up the best.
Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
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.
DiscoverE
Human Arch
Sometimes, we all need somebody to lean on. Scholars create a human arch by leaning against each other. They consider different approaches to making the arch sturdier and stronger.
CK-12 Foundation
Expand and Contract
Gaps are essential to engineering bridges and roads. Learners watch a video showing a typical construction of a bridge to see why they're so important. They then manipulate an interactive to model the effects of temperature change on the...
Curated OER
Tower Power
Students explore basic building and engineering concepts by constructing a structure that supports weight. They demonstrate an understanding of basic business concepts by estimating the cost and value of a building.
Curated OER
Junior Engineering Retaining Walls
Students name the properties of sand as related to the properties and the building of retaining walls. They build a retaining wall and state how retaining walls are used.
Curated OER
Strong as the Weakest Link
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.
Global Oneness Project
Highways and Change
What is the cost of change? Roberto Guerra's photo essay "La Carretera: Life and Change Along Peru's Interoceanic Highway" asks viewers to consider the impacts of the 1,600 mile-long highway through Peru and Brazil that connects Pacific...
Curated OER
Construct with Solids
Students discover which properties of solids lend themselves to building a tower through hands on trial and error and observation of others as they are building. They write down the steps it took them to build the tower and label an...
Curated OER
Design and Construct a Road Sign Support
Students use simple materials to design, build and test a model of a free standing structure used to support overhead road signs.