After the flag hoisting and the cultural program, Al Qamar had an interhouse MakerFest competition. 12 teams from the 4 houses participated.
The challenge was to build a bridge using only newspaper and tape with a span of 1ft. The bridge could be freestanding or supported by chowkis. And it must take a load of atleast 200gms. The bridge which could take the highest load would win.
At first the teams were flummoxed! How can a weak material like paper be used to make a strong bridge which would take weight. Then the brains started ticking.
One team made triangular supports and a ramp.
Another had a complex set of supports under the ramp.
A third tried to make thin rolls of paper which would be the bridge.
Another team made a T structure.
Remember these are 4-6th grade kids. Getting a feel for a real engineering design problem
Finally the axiom, simple is best, won. The all girls team simply rolled up all their paper into a thick wad and taped it. The structure held about 3.4kg of weight before we stopped measuring- there was no space to further balance the weights on the bridge. The judges felt, this bridge could've gone upto 4.5-5 kgs.
An exciting event which enthuses kids for science and its applications.
The challenge was to build a bridge using only newspaper and tape with a span of 1ft. The bridge could be freestanding or supported by chowkis. And it must take a load of atleast 200gms. The bridge which could take the highest load would win.
At first the teams were flummoxed! How can a weak material like paper be used to make a strong bridge which would take weight. Then the brains started ticking.
One team made triangular supports and a ramp.
Another had a complex set of supports under the ramp.
A third tried to make thin rolls of paper which would be the bridge.
Another team made a T structure.
Remember these are 4-6th grade kids. Getting a feel for a real engineering design problem
Finally the axiom, simple is best, won. The all girls team simply rolled up all their paper into a thick wad and taped it. The structure held about 3.4kg of weight before we stopped measuring- there was no space to further balance the weights on the bridge. The judges felt, this bridge could've gone upto 4.5-5 kgs.
An exciting event which enthuses kids for science and its applications.
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