Sixth Grade Bridge Building

The students worked in small groups of three or four, brainstorming ideas on how they were going to build a bridge that could hold a certain amount of weight without collapsing.

Each group decided who the captain of the team was going to be and that student was responsible for making sure they all stayed on task.

Before they could start building their bridge they had to draw out their plan, label it and think their plan through.

The final step before they could begin construction was pitching their idea to Ms. Koepke.

If Ms. Koepke thought they needed to put more work in to their plan she told them what part of their design to focus on.

If the students pitched a solid plan, Ms. Koepke gave them their materials and the students could start building.

All of the groups were given the same materials - a piece of cardboard, scissors, tape, two toilet paper rolls and screws.

As they started building, they moved their tables nine inches apart, which was the distance their bridge design needed to cover while holding the weights.

Students used the safe cutting tools to perforate the cardboard and cut it in half, as well as plastic screws to connect pieces of their bridges together.

The students are looking forward to finishing their bridges to see if their designs can hold the weights they were given.