School News
Structural Efficiency Learning in Middle YearsOur Grade 7s recently participated in a Bridge Building Competition. The STEM project helped students gain an understanding of structural efficiency and gave them the opportunity to test different building techniques to help support heavy loads.
After spending a week constructing their designs made out of 150 popsicle sticks and white glue, each bridge was tested and destroyed with the “Structures and Materials Tester”. This year’s winning bridge was able to hold 299 lbs!
Our students learned:
-how to reinforce and strengthen joints
-use braces while creating their structure
-how structural efficiency compares the mass of the bridge to the load it supports
-how external forces such as the load placed on the bridge by the “Structures and Materials Tester” is distributed to the trusses, deck and roof, and how engineers plan and account for weaker areas when designing structures
Thank you to our Grade 7 teaching team (Mrs. Jessica Grenier, Miss Angela Kramer, and Mrs. Monica Ulrich), and to Senior Years teaching guests Mr. Dan Reeve (expert from the Physics Department) and Mr. Bruce Bartel (Science Department Head) for facilitating this learning opportunity.
