The scenario: Imagine the old bridge, which has spanned the river in your town for over a hundred years, has finally given up the ghost.
It had been a bit rickety for as long as you can remember but it didn’t stop you and your friends from jumping off the balustrade on the walkway and making the biggest splash possible… when no one was watching!
The task: Now it’s up to you and your friends to rebuild a modern bridge that will serve the community for at least another century. And do it on a budget!
Working in a small group, research, design and build a bridge that can span a gap of 500mm between two tables and can support the weight of a full one-litre drink bottle suspended from the centre of the structure.
The materials:
The equipment:
- Craft knives
- PVA glue
- Masking Tape
- Metal ruler
- Pencils
- Cutting Mat
This is the sort of STEM activity being run by teachers and performed by students all across the country. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths and is now entrenched in the Australian Curriculum as a way to help students up-skill, fit in and find employment in a modern world.
Balsa wood is the perfect material for classroom projects like bridge building as it is safe to work with and easy to cut, sand and glue together to make all sorts of structures.