Children learn to take pride in bridge building

A record-breaking bridge made of interlocking bricks and a six foot lion were among the attractions during two days of bridge building activities.

ICE Student Bridge Building Workshop 30/11/16

Year 5 and 6 pupils from St Paul’s Primary School in Camden, London, experienced this and more when they tried their hand at bridge building during a two-day event organised by the Rochester Bridge Trust.

ICE Student Bridge Building Workshop 30/11/16

Taking place at the Institution of Civil Engineers’ head office, One Great George Street, activities were aimed at teaching the children the impact of civil engineering on our everyday lives. This included a rotation of six bridge building activities focusing on bridge types, materials and health and safety.

ICE Student Bridge Building Workshop 30/11/16

Aileen White, Education Officer for the Trust, said: “The children enjoyed a variety of practical activities, including the fun of being covered from head to toe in protective health and safety clothing.

ICE Student Bridge Building Workshop 30/11/16

“Their bridge designs in different materials were very creative and I was impressed with how they persevered and refined their work to make it better at coping with different loads and forces.”

ICE Student Bridge Building Workshop 30/11/16

Activities took place over two days, with Year 5 pupils attending on one day, and Year 6 pupils on the next. They were held in the ICE library, which is currently hosting an exhibition about bridges. This includes the world’s longest single span bridge made of interlocking bricks.

Also in attendance was the Trust’s engineering education mascot Langdon the Lion, who met pupils on the first day of the event.

ICE Student Bridge Building Workshop 30/11/16

Langdon commented: “Children are naturally fascinated by how the world works and as a civil engineer I particularly enjoy helping them to understand the importance of bridges in their daily lives.

“The school cubs I met were all very enthusiastic and keen to try out the paws-on activities. They created some very well-built bridges and I will be pleased to welcome them into my pride.”

For more pictures from the event, see our Facebook page.

Photographs courtesy of the Institution of Civil Engineers and Visual Eye Photography.

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