Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Straw Bridges

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Working as engineering teams, students design and create model beam bridges using plastic drinking straws and tape as their construction materials. Their goal is to build the strongest bridge with a truss pattern of their own design,...
Website
PBS

Pbs: Who Builds Big

For Students 9th - 10th
Who Builds Big? Learn about careers in engineering and architecture. Scroll to the bottom for more links in this PBS series to find about individuals who build bridges, domes, skyscrapers, dams, and tunnels.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Bridge Types: Tensile & Compressive Forces

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students explore how tension and compression forces act on three different bridge types. Using sponges, cardboard and string, they create models of beam, arch and suspension bridges and apply forces to understand how they disperse or...
Lesson Plan
Yale University

Yale New Haven Teachers Institute: The Physics of Bridges

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Introduce learners to physics concepts that engineers use when building a bridge. This curriculum unit includes concepts such as Newton's Third Law, stress on a material, vibration, and resonance. Unit includes lectures, lab activities,...
Unit Plan
Library of Congress

Loc: America's Story: The Brooklyn Bridge

For Students 3rd - 8th
The history of the Brooklyn Bridge is an interesting story from our early days. Go to this site and learn who built it, how it was built, and many more facts. Some original pictures are included.
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Bridging the Gaps

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students are presented with a brief history of bridges as they learn about the three main bridge types: beam, arch and suspension. They are introduced to two natural forces - tension and compression - common to all bridges and...
Graphic
Tech4Learning

Pics4 Learning: Images for Education: Bridges

For Students Pre-K - 1st
A large collection of beautiful photos of various bridges from around the world! A visual reference for teachers and students. Browse through the examples, then click to enlarge.
Lesson Plan
The Tech Interactive

The Tech Museum of Innovation: Bridging the Gap [Pdf]

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Can your team build the appropriate bridge to fit the needs of various terrains? In this lesson, students will build an assigned bridge in order to increase knowledge of various types of bridges. Students will then engage in a design...
Lesson Plan
Other

University of Cincinnati: Project Step: Build a Bridge

For Teachers 9th - 10th
In this two-period lesson, young scholars work in teams to focus on the real-world application of bridge design and construction based on capacity, cost, and aesthetics.
Interactive
PBS

Pbs Building Big: The Skyscraper Challenge

For Students 3rd - 8th
A site for all users interested in the engineering behind the building. Site engages users in a job that requires them to investigate troubled buildings and then figure out how to fix them.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Natural Frequency and Buildings

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students learn about frequency and period, particularly natural frequency using springs. They learn that the natural frequency of a system depends on two things: the stiffness and mass of the system. Students see how the natural...
Handout
Other

Nbi National Bridge Inventory Database Search Form

For Students 9th - 10th
NBI National Bridge Inventory Database search form from Nationalbridges.com allows one to enter the information related to a specific rail line in order to acquire related bridge information.
Lesson Plan
Other

Sprk: Sphero Bridge Stem Challenge [Pdf]

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
SPRK STEM challenges are fun, interactive activities that challenge students to use creativity and team-work to move through simple steps of the design process in order to build Sphero-based creations. In this challenge students will...
Lesson Plan
Cornell University

Cornell University: Cornell Center for Materials Research: The Physics of Bridges [Pdf]

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students incorporate their knowledge of civil engineering and physics principles as they design and build a bridge within certain parameters while choosing their own materials.
Unit Plan
Next.cc

Next: Bridge Design

For Students 3rd - 8th
Investigate the three basic bridge spans by engaging in the activities provided. Includes links to explore related sites pertaining to bridge design.
Interactive
National Endowment for the Humanities

Neh: Edsit Ement: Xerxes' Bridges Over the Hellespont

For Students 9th - 10th
Xerxes used hundreds of ships to create two bridges over the Hellespont. This interactive activity walks students through the stages of the construction.
Activity
Other

Whiting School of Engineering: Spaghetti Bridge

For Teachers 9th - 10th
An engineering project where students construct a bridge from spaghetti and glue. Site includes guidelines, pictures, and movies of previous projects.
Activity
Other

Bsi Education: Bridges and Tunnels

For Students 9th - 10th
The Applied Science resource consists of practical activities that demonstrate the importance of standard procedures in scientific work. Students examine bridges and tunnels through a variety of activities.
Primary
Calisphere: University of California Libraries

Calisphere: Great Depression: Building Bridges, Dams, Power Plants

For Students 9th - 10th
Primary source material on California during the Great Depression and how unemployment affected the building of the infrastructure including bridges, dams and power plants.
Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: The Effect of Bridge Design on Weight Bearing Capacity

For Students 9th - 10th
This Science Buddies project asks that you identify different kinds of bridges, discover why they are built as they are, and then build three different bridges of your own out of balsa wood. See which one you think can bear the heaviest...
Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: Build the Best Paper Bridge

For Students 3rd - 8th
Find out what makes a bridge strong in this fun activity as you build simple bridges with paper and test to see how much weight they can hold.
Graphic
Other

University of Bristol: Tacoma Narrows Bridge Disaster

For Students 9th - 10th
The Tacoma Narrows Bridge disaster was caused by wind vibrations. Wind in a valley spanned by the Tacoma Narrows Bridge causes the bridge to vibrate so much it collapsed. Shows pictures of the bridge as it is collapsing.
Interactive
PBS

Pbs: The Bridge Challenge

For Students 3rd - 8th
This site from PBS is for any user wanting test their engineering skills. Take a trip to Craggy Rock and help their growing community decide on four new bridges.
Handout
Merriam-Webster

Merriam Webster: Dictionary Illustration: Types of Bridges

For Students 9th - 10th
Labeled illustration of five types of bridges: beam bridge, truss bridge, arch bridge, suspension bridge, and cable-stayed bridge.

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