Towering Towers

Summary

Students have a contest to see which group can build the tallest tower out of one sheet of paper and some masking tape.

Materials

• student sheet (attached)
• regular copy paper
• 3/4" masking tape
• scissors

Instructional Procedures

1. Hook Activity: Ask the students to tell you some structures that are built to support loads. Show the students a clip of a building implosion. Discuss how the biggest factor in designing any building is how to deal with gravity, gravity wants to pull that structure down, in a demolition all they need to do is loosen things up and let gravity take over.
2. You will need some sort of reward for the students that win the contest.
3. Explain the contest to the students:
   1. Students can only use one piece of paper (they can cut it up however they want)
   2. Students can use only one piece of tape -- 24 inches ling
   3. Students can only attach the tower to the surface it is standing on
   4. Tallest tower wins
4. Put students into groups of two or three.
5. Hand out all materials and let them go.
6. As you go from group to group ask these two questions:
   1. What characteristics of your tower help it to make up for the pull of gravity?
   2. If you were to build a large version of your structure what type of materials would you use? Why?

Assessment Plan

Scoring Rubric:

1. Participation………………………………………………………10

Bibliography

Lesson Design by Jordan School District Teachers and Staff.