wylime chaylene ursala
Catherin Bergan
This was many, many years ago when I was the Science Club sponsor. At one of our club meetings, I gave students some spaghetti strands (uncooked), some tape, and a cup of pennies. Their task was to build a bridge that would hold the pennies.
Keep it simple! First graders do not need extravagant materials or a huge scenario for what they are building. The best way is to show them a short video or read part of a picture book to introduce the challenge. Our favorite Bridge book is Twenty One Elephants by Phil Bildner. It is the story of the Brooklyn Bridge being tested by circus elephants. First graders love this book! TIP: Think about paraphrasing most of the book and showing the pictures- to save time. First graders will get the wiggles if you read the whole book. They are anxious to get busy building a bridge.
The Challenge: Using connecting cubes and craft sticks ( and a little bit of tape) build a bridge. I discovered quickly that first graders want ramps for their bridges. They invented some very imaginative ways to create the ramps so cars could travel over the bridge.
Again, keep it simple! That is seriously the best tip I can give you about building bridges. These youngest engineers will not need more than a few materials. They will also think more about what a bridge looks like and will include side rails and ramps.
The Challenge: Using straws, craft sticks, and tape build a bridge to connect two chairs (or tables). I also added little cars to this challenge. This is a little more difficult than the first-grade challenge because of the span the bridge must cross. I let each team decide how far apart to make the chairs and the distance was only a few inches. They were very concerned about the car falling off the bridge and added side rails.
Third graders are ready to be challenged with unusual materials. I use the Index Card Bridge with them. Each team has a stack of cards (any size) and tape is optional. We also use pennies for weight. TIP: Think about how you will talk to students about the unusual designs they will try. You can see a little of what I mean in the photo below.
The span of the bridge is sagging from the weight of two pennies. Students will try folding cards into zigzags and piling them on top of one another to be the bridge. This rarely works. So, when you see students doing this, what do you say? My answer: nothing. This is one of their first opportunities to learn from failure (in STEM). They will try many things with those cards and then finally discover what will work!
The Challenge: Using only index cards build a bridge that will support weight. This resource has an introductory activity that will help students understand that folding the cards is one way to make this work.
The Challenge: Using straws, string, some tape, and paperclips build a bridge that will support weight. We have used many ways to create the span for this bridge, too. Also, the use of the string is part of this challenge. It becomes a factor as the bridges are built. The students use it to support the roadway of the bridge. These bridges can hold a lot of pennies.
This project is one only my upper-grade students complete. We use hot glue guns (low-temperature) and this project takes longer. It is more difficult to sustain excitement with a project for younger students. They ten to like something that is finished in one class session.
TIPS: The materials for this bridge are easy to gather. We use cardboard strips that I cut from packing boxes. Ask your cafeteria staff to save boxes for you! You will need several low-temp glue guns and you need to set up glue stations. I used our floor space for the glue stations and covered the floor with heavy brown paper to help catch glue drips.
The Challenge is to build a model of a suspension bridge. The glue is used to make the supports on each end of the bridge. Stuednet have many different ways of using the string as the suspension part of the bridge.
I have these listed by grade level but you can certainly try any of the ideas/resources at a different grade! The 3rd, 4th, and 5th-grade challenges are available in my TpT store. Just click on the images.
Developed to build bonds of understanding and trust between communities of color and law enforcement, Building Bridges is an initiative that brings students from St. Benedict's Prep together with members of law enforcement for a shared experience involving physical, mental, and emotional challenges, as well as team building and reflection. Facilitated by Victory Road Leadership Development Group, the program launched in 2021 with a group of Benedict's students and New Jersey State Troopers. Its aim is to become a national model that can be replicated locally, regionally and nationally.
"[Building Bridges] allows Troopers to see things through the eyes of high school students and vice versa, allowing those high school students to see things through the eyes of our Troopers," says Colonel Patrick J. Callahan of the New Jersey State Police.
Graduate education at the University of Michigan is a shared enterprise. The Rackham Graduate School works together with faculty in the schools and colleges of the University to provide more than 180 graduate degree programs and to sustain a dynamic intellectual climate within which graduate students thrive.
Over 8,300 students are enrolled in Rackham degree programs taught and advised by faculty in graduate programs situated within 18 of the 19 schools and colleges across the Ann Arbor campus. Another 7,000 students are enrolled in graduate and professional degree programs administered separately by individual schools and colleges at U-M.
Students in each Bridge Program take graduate-level courses, often alongside first-year doctoral students, that allow them to develop their skills and capacity in a structured and supportive environment. Along with curricular and academic experiences, students are engaged in research activities that provide opportunities to learn about the key steps in professional development, as well as critical skills that scholars and scientists need, such as conceptual and technical skills, writing and presenting skills, etc.
Students are matched with faculty advisors and participate together in a mentoring workshop to support the development of an effective mentoring relationship. These faculty-student connections are critical to building a multilayered community for students that includes strong peer-to-peer relationships established in the cohorts.
These activities prepare students to enter doctoral programs with confidence, skill, and achievement; they are highly competitive for admission to doctoral programs at both University of Michigan and peer institutions. Initial results of the NSF-funded Bridge Programs indicate that they have had a significant impact on the pipeline of underrepresented minority students pursuing doctoral study in STEM fields. A high percentage of these students have matriculated into Ph.D. programs.
NASBE is the only organization dedicated solely to helping state boards advance equity and excellence in public education. We assist our members in shaping education policy in dozens of state contexts.
Attend the largest gathering of state board of education members in the nation, with ample opportunity for peer networking and conversation. Expert speakers cover a range of topics important to state boards.
More about the Annual Conference
Engage with members of Congress, U.S. Department of Education senior officials, and other prominent national education community stakeholders on current federal legislative and regulatory activities.
More about the Legislative Conference
Learn what it takes to be a successful, productive member of a state board of education. This professional development opportunity is suitable for new state board members.
More about the New Member Institute
NASBE develops, supports, and empowers citizen leaders on state boards of education to strengthen public education systems so students of all backgrounds and circumstances are prepared to succeed in school, work, and life.
Building Bridges for Student Mental Health is a joint initiative of the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) with the goal of establishing and enhancing productive, collaborative, and trustworthy relationships between state education leaders, medical experts, and families to improve student mental health.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been detrimental for student mental health, and policymakers, families, educators, and medical professionals alike recognize this is an issue we must address. However, the pandemic also created opportunities for state education leaders to build stronger partnerships with state health leaders and deepen relationships with parents and families. To build upon and contribute to the sustainability of these efforts, NASBE is partnering with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in facilitating a state network that will focus on relationship building, professional development, and increased attention to improving student mental health through parent and family engagement efforts.
Through through fall 2023, states engaged in this work, including Illinois, Maryland, Texas, and Utah, will participate in convenings and professional development and receive ongoing technical assistance, and connection to subject matter experts on effective parent and family engagement strategies to help formulate an action plan in their state.
This initiative is made possible through the financial support of Kaiser Permanente. Read our fact sheet to learn more about the Building Bridges for Student Mental Health Initiative. Please contact Celina Pierrottet to learn more about this project
Anyone who has ever heard a child say, "I don't know" in answer to a question about what they are thinking and feeling or about why they acted a certain way, will be thankful for these thoughtful, biblically wise, and creative ways to engage young people. Julie Lowe, drawing on decades of experience in counseling children has compiled helpful, practical ways to speak the gospel into children and teenager's lives. By building bridges with young people, we can build bridges with them to the Lord.
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