Bridge+Construction+Experiment

Bridge Construction Experiment

(open with road trip - car bridge scene, mute for cuss word at 20sec, unmute at 30. end video at 2:48). media type="youtube" key="xZOg8bzVT5s" width="420" height="315"

Today we are going to talk about structures and more specifically, bridges.

A bridge is a structure that helps us get over an obstacle when going from one place to another.



Early bridges were made out of fallen trees.

Over time we learned how to make better, stronger bridges.

Here is Arkadiko Bridge in Greece, it's the oldest bridge in existence.





Here are some of the most famous bridges in the world.



Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, CA



Brooklyn Bridge in New York

London Bridge in the UK.



The Millau Viaduct in France.

Do you notice something common or similar in these bridges? Do they have any similar shapes?



Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia.



Akashi Kaiko Bridge in Japan, currently the longest spanning bridge in the world.





(watch Bill Nye video on structures, call on students to say one thing they learned about bridges).

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Let the students know that tomorrow, they are going to make a bridge so to be thinking of what a good, strong bridge looks like. (for period 4, winning group gets taco bell)

For Day 2, review pictures and talk about Bill Nye video. Ask students to share what they remember about bridges. Do example from Experiment book and ask students why one worked better than the other. Then have students form groups of 2-3 with a staff and have them make their own bridges. Test bridges out, winning group gets Taco Bell.

Bridge Ideas