Bridges

This term, in Year 5, the topic is bridges. The children have been exploring the differences between a beam, arch and truss bridge and have been thinking about how these bridges are reinforced to add strength. In our first session, the children created their own beam and arch bridge from cardboard and tested to see how much weight it could carry. They found the arch added additional support to the beam bridge and so it could carry more weight. In our second session, the children explored features of a truss bridge and have begun the process of creating a spaghetti truss bridge. This was very tricky as the material was extremely brittle so prone to breakage. The children worked incredibly well in their teams to create spaghetti beams and triangular structures. Next week we will assemble the truss bridge and test to see how much weight it will be able to carry. Our prediction is that it will be even stronger than the arch bridge.