Lesson plan (Alternative to UBD)

  1. Bridge Building lesson
  2. NJ standards addressed in the lesson.

a.  5.1

b.  5.2

  1. 5.4
  2. 5.5
  3. 5.9
  4. Students should already know:
  5. Students should know different types of engineers and what they do
  6. Students should be able to identify issues in design and make changes
  7. Students should have an understanding of torque and static forces.
  8. Goals:

Students will be able to design a Bridge that holds roughly 3 lbs and span a gap of 14 inches.

Students will be able to talk about what types of engineers are involved in building a bridge (more than just civil).

Students will be able to predict what truss design will allow them to hold the most weight economically.

Students will be able to tell how different engineers work together to build bridges.

  1. Student difficulties:

Students might have difficulties figuring out different types of engineers involved in making a bridge.

  1. Equipment:

Gum Drops, Toothpicks, cups.

Lesson description:

Students will begin the lesson by work together to come up with a design for a bridge that will hold at least 3 lbs. Students will figure out what truss design they feel would hold the greatest force. Students will then work with their teams to build a bridge out of gum drops and toothpicks. Students will then bring their bridges to test 1 by 1 to see if they are able to hold the 3lbs over a 14 inch gap. Student will then come back together as a class and discuss what they found successful and what they felt needed improvement. I will then ask students to come up with as many types of engineers it takes to build a bridge. If students only come up with civil engineers then I will ask about what other things do you need to know about in order to build a bridge (materials, environmental work, traffic flow). Students will then talk about why it is important for engineers to work together across disciplines.

  1. Time Table – who is going to be doing what and when during the lesson to make sure that students are actively engaged.

Clock reading during the lesson / “Title of the activity” Relation to the goals / Students doing / Me doing
0 - 15 min / Pre-design of the bridge / Students Work together to come up with initial design for their bridge / Work with students and have them present design before building.
15- 35 min / Bridge building and testing. / Students work in groups to build their bridge and then bring them to test if they meet parameters / Assist students when necessary and test their bridges when finished.
35-45 min / Class Discussion / Students talk about the roles of different engineers / Lead discussion
  1. Formative assessments
  2. Students are able to design bridge
  3. Students bridge is able to hold 3lbs over a gap of 14 inches.
  4. Students are able to name different types of engineers that are involved in building bridges.
  1. Homework

Students are each going to be given different types of building projects and have students write what types of engineers are necessary in order to create it.

Skyscrapers

Bottled Waters

Artificial Hearts

Fighter Jets

Nintendo Wii

HD Televisions

Ethanol Fuels

Ipads

Bullet Trains

Baseball Stadiums

Wind Turbines

Dams