building a strong structure with index cards

Experimenting with shapes such as triangles and arches, teams consider which can best support a load without collapsing. New ScreenCraft online events Author and podcaster Shin Yu Pai shares how an ordinary J Crew suit became a part of The Smithsonian's collections and the inspiration for a podcast on Asian American stories as told through objects. Gather your supplies and begin building. Susan Mattern, author of Out of the Lions Den, grand-prize winner of the 10th Annual WD Self-Published E-Book Awards, talks staying true to her story and the benefits of writing at a distance from the events. They then use index cards and their shape of choice to build a bridge that will support a die-cast toy car. Planning your story is the same experience. If you have too many action sequences, they'll stick out like a sore thumb. Load: The weight that something must support. First organize each plot line in its own thread. Our goal is to provide STEM resources, ideas, and encouragement to teachers, parents, and students. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. Have a contest to see whose bridge can hold the most weight. Cut and fold a second card into a strong beam that will span a 15 cm gap. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Every scene should propel the story forward. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Join our community of over 100,000 screenwriters and get weekly inspiration delivered to your inbox: Popular blog posts and industry news Take the fourth card and insert one of its slits into one of the two remaining exposed slits on the structure. Reproduction of material from this website without written permission is strictly prohibited. How could you test your ideas? When the cards are on a flat service, you can move the pieces of your narrative puzzle with much more speed and purpose. Use black sharpies for the words to stand out even more. How many index cards did you use for the chair Science. Pretty much everyone was in agreement that the cards would buckle under the load. A bridge has to support the weight of cars driving across it. To make a safe bridge that will last a long time, engineers often look at other bridges that are already built and try to imagine ways that they can improve on that existing design. I hope that helps! Try index cards, folded paper, pizza boxes after a pizza party or other ideas. This is a generalization but can hold true to many films. The force causing it to fall is gravity. Students will design, build and test a structure made of index cards. We are passionate about elevating and supporting the construction workforce. Stack of Books Paper Bridge Data Sheet (included below) Directions 1) Have each student create a "valley" for their bridge by making two stacks of books and separating them so that the gap inbetween measures Do you know what the strongest shape is? The activity sheets include: Introduction, Equipment. Are larger towers more or less stable? If you label your initial final showdown as such, you're not going to be able to move that index card anywhere as labeled. After 1 minute has elapsed, use a tape measure or meterstick to measure the distance (in centimeters) from the supporting surface (floor, tabletop, etc.) Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Enjoy experimenting with your card structures while learning a little about physics and architecture in the process. Then, pennies are added one at a time until the bridge collapses and touches the tabletop. Your tower must also support a heavy weight at the top without collapsing. Stuck inside on a rainy day? Is this a logical or inevitable progression of events? Working in groups of two, the kids built everything from short and wide towers, to very elaborate towers with multiple columns and walls. STEAM, like STEM, is an integrated approach to learning that encourages learners to make connections between the concepts they are learning and how they apply them to real-world problems. STEM challenge at the 1st/2nd grade level asking students to create a structure using index cards. The structure will have four walls, each with two additional pieces extending out of the walls for stabilization. So, it is possible for a shorter tower that uses less paper to beat a taller tower that uses more paper. A detailed design for a house, building or structure; usually to scale. A mechanical engineer by training, she enjoys creating STEM educational resources for her two sons, other homeschoolers, and classrooms around the world. However, a tower that uses less paper may be weaker and have a harder time supporting the weight of the can. How well do you predict the arch will support weight? Save those cardboard paper towel tubes. How to Watch a TV Show You Want to Write a Spec Script For, 99 Archetypes and Stock Characters Screenwriters Can Mold, How to Create the Ultimate Screenplay Pitch Deck, 101 Reasons You Should (and Shouldn't) Become a Screenwriter, 9 Do's & Don'ts From the Perspective of a Major Literary Manager, 5 Ways Becoming a Pro Screenwriter Will Change Your Writing Process. Triangle shapes in a bridge direct the weight of the bridge and the cars crossing it downward without bending. How about two? Your email address will not be published. endobj : The distance from one side of something to the other side, like the length of a bridge. Take two of the cards and orient them so that they are next to each other, with the slits on the cards facing each other. I especially like what David has to say about treating each scene as a "motivational unit" and being able to see, from a visual perspective, those scenes that don't move the story along, and therefore are necessary to cut. Paper used in earlier prototypes or for sketches does not count. Do you employ this technique, or something similar, when creating a structure for your novel or story? You can also use this project to demonstrate the engineering design process. Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures. See the. The strength of a building material can depend on how it is used. Once it is in, release the piece and your structure will be standing. Engage (5 minutes) Introduce the challenge to your students. to the. Keep your hands nearby and ready to catch the can in case it falls or the tower collapses. Building a bridge is an example of a hard problem that engineers know how to solve. A bridge has to support the weight of cars driving across it. Image by Justin Meyers/WonderHowTo This seemed a puzzlingly simple notion--that developing the plot of your story was in some way akin to the act of jotting down your grocery list. Remember that there is an inherent trade-off in your design. A pack of one hundred white index cards sells for an average of just fifty cents. See the following links for more details about the challenge: If you like this project, you might enjoy exploring these related careers: You can find this page online at: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/CE_p027/civil-engineering/tallest-paper-tower-challenge. What I absolutely loved about this challenge is that every single index card tower was completely different! Announcing the winning manuscript and author of the 2022 November Poem-A-Day Chapbook Challenge! Figure3 shows several examples. Use the diagrams in Figure 4.45 to decide what type of beam to . Try building a tower that can support more weight. About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features NFL Sunday Ticket Press Copyright . For troubleshooting tips, please read our FAQ: Tallest Paper Tower Challenge. If you have not already done so, watch this video for an overview of the challenge before you proceed. When it was time to test the towers, they were a little apprehensive about the weight. Parking garage must be strong enough to hold at least 1 small book (or 8 toy cars) . STEM challenge at the 1st/2nd grade level asking students to create a structure using index cards. Tearing down an existing structure requires a separate demolition permit and public notice of proposed work to be completed. Strongest Shapes - DiscoverE Back to STEM Activities Strongest Shapes Experimenting with shapes such as triangles and arches, teams consider which can best support a load without collapsing. Get yourself a stack of index cards. Index cards, being little more than small piece of paper, are not exactly ideal building blocks. And this is an area where you can really change the challenge up. You will need index cards, masking tape and a scale to weigh the structures and to get a weight on the textbook. Put a card between two cups to make a bridge. How much do you predict the bridge will hold? Author Katie Shepard shares her views on writing at the intersection of mental health and romance fiction, including examples of novels that do it well. What Makes Us Different. B. If your tower starts to buckle or sag and does not look like it will hold the can for an entire minute, you should reinforce it before you proceed to the official test. Before you start building anything, it is a good idea to brainstorm some different designs. You don't have to worry about pinning and unpinning something to a corkboard, which can become tedious. I also mention why this is the design you want for a column, but not a beam. Ive also presented this to teachers and despite being very competitive they could not reach the record set by my 3rd graders :) It's an essential tutorial for those interested in writing science fiction, fantasy, or paranormal, and I highly recommend it! YA author Jennifer De Leon shares 5 things writers should know about writing for teens. They were so excited to see how much weight the towers held. Rather than explain each topic in detail, this Background section will give you a brief overview, and you can do more research on your own or use the links in the Bibliography. % In the Ask section, I added Can you design and build a tower that holds a heavy weight? View Credits. Ive used the same set of folded index cards with 6 grade levels x 6 HRs per grade for 2 years in a row. Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. Only paper used in your final design counts when calculating your score. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Teachers, lesson plan versions of this challenge are also available. ruler (to ensure all bridges are of equal distance) Method 1: Single Strip Bridge A single index card (or strip from an index card) is placed across two supports. Roll 12 index cards into equal-size tubes and secure them with tape. - the structure must be as tall as possible - it must be freestanding - it must hold a small stuffed animal (or other objects such as a bag of 20 pennies) The constraints: - you can only use 2 feet of tape, and up to 100 index cards per team - you will have 5 minutes (adjust as appropriate for grade level, available time) to build We feature these ten directives and offer our own elaboration on each point. How to Make a Pop-Up Book About the Solar System. 2 0 obj Every scene must serve a specific purpose. This is often a common mistake for those that attempt this index card process for the first time. This is not designed to give youth the answers, but to empower them to ask questions and figure things out on their own. 3 0 obj They have the knowledge to plan one, design one, and build it, so that we dont have to worry about whether a bridge is strong enough for us to cross. If your tower is not as sturdy as you thought, you can modify it (for example, by adding more tape or reinforcing beams) or go "back to the drawing board" and start over with a new design. Somewhere between 8-10 minutes makes it challenging, but you can decide. Examples of a triangle, a square, and an arch made of index cards and tape. Most of them didnt think it could be done! Required fields are marked *. I used the basic graphic organizer in my STEM Sampler (free): https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/STEM-Sampler-Pack-2220744 2023 Active Interest Media All Rights Reserved. Plus, I share three additional finalists and seven honorable mentions. 1 toy car (1:64 scale size, such as Hot Wheels or Matchbox). If you list a card as the opening hook, the midway turning point, or the final showdown, you're doing nothing more than limiting that moment to a specific location within your script. Place all four cards in a stack and put them on the table in front of you with the long sides running horizontally. If you would like to use printables like the ones shown above (vocabulary cards, recording pages, etc.) For materials, the original version of this used just 35 or 46 index cards. Nice one, Rio! It's an innovative approach to putting exceptional education at the very heart of a community. Using a ruler, yardstick, or measuring tape, measure the height of your tower in inches. The index card process has been around for decades. Insert the slit on a third card into the unused slit at the end of either of the first two index cards. So what do you think--is this sound advice? That's enough for two screenplays, generally speaking. Do you think that engineers care how a bridge looks? Make another cut on the new right-hand side, exactly the same as the first. Cardboard tubes may present some challenges as kids try to make a stable tower. Last week in STEM class, we built towers with index cards. This will leave just two exposed ends. One pair of scissors Three paper cups Three paper plates One marking pens One roll of masking tape Four index cards (5x7) Four index cards (3x5) Four plastic coffee stirrers Introduce the purpose of the exercise: to experience the importance of paying attention to work processes and team relationships, as well as results. How many index cards did you use for the chair that held 80 lbs.? Screenplay competition announcements! In exploring the shapes, it will be easier to see which shapes buckle more easily than others and why so many columns are circular. Some people like to do their outlining on a computer, but the actual physical act of writing scene synopses down on cards and shuffling them around on the kitchen table is still one of the best ways to get a sense of the rhythms of story structure, because it allows you to treat scenes as units. She said she designed. In this case, three pennies does the trick. Find out which is strongest by pushing down on them and rocking them side to side. (Check out the Dragon Bridge in Vietnam.). Our team of volunteer scientists can help. Why or why not? Thanks for your question. Activities by the Carnegie Science Center. How do these towers stay standing without falling over, even though they are very tall and skinny? Every action sequence enhances the pacing. Learn the best way to structure your screenplay with this free guide. may be used to build your structure. Pleating or rolling paper can increase its stiffness. : The weight that something must support. The objective of the 2021 Engineering Challenge is to build a paper tower that is as tall as possible and can support a can of food at the top. Materials: 1 deck of cards, 1 pair of scissors The scissors may not be damaged and may not be used as part of the solution. When I first showed the kids that we would be using just index cards and tape, I held up a floppy index card and a can of beans and asked them if they thought index cards were strong enough to hold the can. Copyright 2002-2023 Science Buddies. Bend down the small piece of card on the outside of one of the slits, then twist the end of the other card so that its slit will fit into the slit on the first card. So write big enough that you can read them from a few steps back. The tower must support one can of food (14-16 oz or 400-500 g) for at least 1 minute without collapsing. 5 index cards (20 cm 13 cm) glue gun, white glue, or glue stick at plywood (20 cm 20 cm) string Design Specications A. Then I decided to add another component and test the height as well. Hi Pam. (A sidenote: What's particularly amusing about it is that he is the writer of the episode "The Trouble with Tribbles" from Star Trek: The Original Series, which is, in my opinion, one of the best Star Trek episodes ever.). What about arches? This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. If you have too few within your action script, you'll see the problem quickly. People have built whole cities out of Lego bricks. Or do you disagree entirely with this approach? It cannot be taped to anything else (like the vertical leg of a table or a wall) or supported by a person. You are limited to using only the following materials in your actual structure: 10 Pieces of Spaghetti, 20 Marshmallows, and 30 centimeters of Tape. Slowly put coins or other weights on the bridge to test your prediction. You can use the organizer as is, or add these questions (by hand or digitally): Some people outline. You cannot touch, modify, or repair the tower during this minute. What would you do to the individual pieces of paper? Double-sided tape, duct tape, and packing tape are not allowed. Make observations about the strength of each shape. No strings attached. Writing Science Fiction, Fantasy, and the Paranormal Tutorial, taught by Lucianne Diver. Thank you for your interest and for helping us in our mission to transform lives as we put the E in STEM! Cardstock and newspaper are not allowed. While they were working on building and testing, I had a surprise in the works: a seat made up of index card columns! Character Breakdown: What Makes Ariel More Than Just A Little Mermaid? If you step back and can't read them, you're not going to be able to envision the layout of your cinematic tale. Design, build, test, improve, repeat. How does John August (screenwriter of Go, Big Fish, Charlies Angels, Titan A.E., Charlie and Chocolate Factory, and Corpse Bride) utilize his practice of using index cards to develop his screenplays? How can you make sure that your tower can support not only its own weight, but the added weight of a can of food? Wait for 1 minute to make sure the tower does not collapse. If you dusted the cards with baby powder, would it reduce or increase the friction? Try building a card house on carpet versus tile versus stacking them on a piece of paper. You may print and distribute up to 200 copies of this document annually, at no charge, for personal and classroom educational use. If you are having trouble with this project, please read the FAQ below. Kids can add an index card in between each tube, or they can experiment with other methods. For any other use, please contact Science Buddies. Each index card represents the core element of each scene or sequence that it represents. BuildStrong is the preeminent organization driving the national policy discussion on how to increase investments in mitigation to draw down disaster costs and losses. How can you make your bridge look really good? eHow may earn compensation through affiliate links in this story. YA is less of a genre than it is a category of reader. Are there other things you could use to build a card house? Are all decks of cards equally good for building a card house? on every floor, observation towers may have a mostly "hollow" structure with an observation deck on top. The cut should go exactly halfway up the cards. Then take it to the next level! The bottom of the tower can only be taped to the horizontal surface that it rests on (floor, table, etc.). No other materials (glue, tape, etc.) Join to Download. You cannot use more than one roll of tape. With a simple item that most people have in their house, you can do numerous experiments. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. As students explore the construction possibilities, they will . They had a few ideas and then I showed them some ways to make different columns (circular, triangular, square), and how to make an accordion shape with the card. Note: the following variations are not eligible for the 2021 Engineering Challenge, but you can do them for an independent science project. Use folded index cards to build the tallest tower. The kids loved it so much that I started planning more tower-building events. This year I want[]. Another great structure in nature to look at is honeycombs! Challenge: Build the tallest freestanding structure possible using only one deck of cards. We got to work making our index card STEM towers: Then they took time to plan out their designs. %PDF-1.5 One of the first STEM challenges we ever tried was tower building. https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/phy03.sci.phys.mfe.zcolumnsi/columns-finding-the-strongest-shape/#.WTKaiPErIUQ. Looking for inspiration? You also might want to test your tower as you build itfor example, by pressing on it gently to make sure it is sturdy enoughinstead of waiting until the very end and then putting the can on top. Here are some questions to ask and experiments to try: Enjoy experimenting with your card structures while learning a little about physics and architecture in the process. Cherryh and Connie Willis can make it look so easy. http://www.asceville.org/lessons-bridges.html. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Engineering-Design-Process-Teacher-Guide-and-Student-Activities-6135198, Quick STEM Challenge for Kids Engineer a New Paper Clip, A STEM Building Toy for Imaginative Children, https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/STEM-Sampler-Pack-2220744, https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/phy03.sci.phys.mfe.zcolumnsi/columns-finding-the-strongest-shape/#.WTKaiPErIUQ, Meredith on Index Card STEM Towers, Shannon Bynum on Quick STEM Challenge for Kids Engineer a New Paper Clip, Jana on Index Card STEM Towers, 5 Easy STEM Challenges You Can Do with Paper Plates. You might want to practice building individual elements (for example, single beams, or connections between beams) of your tower before you try to build the entire thing. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions, offer guidance, and help you troubleshoot. Explain that their main goal is to build a tower that is as tall as possible and can support a can of food at the top, using nothing but paper and tape. The tree is already cut don't be afraid to recycle an index card in favor of taking another one from the deck and rewriting a scene or sequence. But that doesn't mean it's the be all end all way to outline and structure your screenplay. Need a literary getaway? you can find them in my Teachers pay Teachers shop here. Just write them down as fast as you think of them: But this isn't enough for a complete story. The point to the index card process is not to offer detailed outlines of every moment within the screenplay. Mathematics. One by one the students tried it out and it held up to all of them to at least 80 pounds! October 01, 2015. You're using these index cards as a visual representation of a broad stroke scene or sequence. That's enough for two screenplays, generally speaking. Engineering project activity for STEM curriculum in grades 4-12. x|ZAuud`4l'Ssn%#}#V-OTO~S?{oWm+owo048 Z!w[Nsmv'Z;,p_k D??^[a-# Kad6zNWM\Y] \}csp8;9{6VD 2D^+=~kO [iHpW|Z 6wzz2o$WXlZ9Y`p\Qy_iI\izX$B6(tt]A!HyX,Egg "/1e^OP). What overall design would you choose for the tower? Darren Bagley, Michigan State University Extension - Make sure to stand the shapes upright! 10 points if the height of . Quentin Tyler, Director, MSU Extension, East Lansing, MI 48824. All rights reserved. Credit: American Society of Civil Engineers. Want to try a guided index card tower challenge? Which one was the strongest? Keep doing this--adding, cutting, rearranging--until you think you have all the scenes the story needs in an order that works. We use cookies and those of third party providers to deliver the best possible web experience and to compile statistics. What do you predict will build the sturdiest house? Engineers design structures using shapes that support a lot of weight without collapsing. The cards are laid out on a table or pinned to a board, offering the screenwriter the ability to move any scene or sequence around in whatever way their analytical mind would like to maneuver. Post-It Notes have a sticky portion of the back that you can use on a board or on a table or flat surface, allowing you the freedom to rearrange your moments with ease while offering the security of a sticky mount. A column takes an axial load, but a beam is subject to a bending moment (which is why you see I-beams). In other words, they do not want the structure to fall down when a force is applied to it. Put a card on the palm of your hand and slowly raise your arm until the card starts to slip. That's not the point. Today you can experiment with shapes and think like an engineer to build a bridge. The development of this site was made possible by a grant from the United Engineering Foundation (UEF). Pretty soon, you start to wonder how the hell Arthur C. Clarke and Larry Niven and Frederik Pohl and Richard Matheson and Jack Finney and Anne McCaffrey and C.J. When you feature an action sequence within an index card, you're calling attention to a part of the script that is elevated. Did you notice any shapes that are repeated? For my money, I say it is. You can download this slideshow for more pictures of different towers. In this weeks roundup brought to us by Script magazine, author and screenwriter Mario O. Moreno shares three notable tips on taking control of your writing career with adapting your screenplay into a book or any other medium. Oops, I need a scene to fill in between this one and that one, I need another scene to foreshadow. Test it and find out. Laying index cards on a table or countertop forces the risk of an unwanted breeze, a curious pet, or a simple slip of your hand that can put your orderly craft into disarray. It's all about balance and using color cards for certain elements is key to maintaining a visual sense of the balance between action and dramatic scenes and sequences. Do not tape the tubes or cards together, but you should tape the floor of your structure to the cardboard base! I'd love to hear about your own methods. Now see if it can hold one car without collapsing. When you have all the cards laid out in order, go through them as if you're reading a comic book or a storyboard and see if they read like a story. The purpose is to work as an editor, trying to find the best flow of scenes and sequences for pacing purposes and story structure building. This activity is included in the Engineering Design Process resource listed here: Meredith Anderson is a STEM education enthusiast and former homeschooling parent. Set a time limit for yourself. Do you happen to know which NGSS standard this activity aligns with? The problem is that you have to figure out yourself how to put the things together. If you push hard on one side of a square, pentagon, or other straight-edged shape, it will fold in on itselfexcept for one shape: the triangle. This is a great, accessible explanation for students: You might need to iterate by testing and tweaking your design multiple times so you can continually improve it. When printing this document, you may NOT modify it in any way. The tower can only be built from paper and tape. Scoring: A. Pinning something to a corkboard can be laborious as your hands and fingers try to keep up with your mind. Download Format: .zip file. Finio, B. The Amazing Index Card Tower Using one simple material, students build the tallest tower possible. We'll send you a list of our free screenwriting eCourses when you subscribe to our newsletter. How can you build a tower if the only materials you have available are paper and tape? <> Your building will be considered "earthquake proof" if it can retain its complete structure on the shake table and not fall over during a period of 10 seconds of shaking the table. I am currently doing my student-teaching for my Bachelors in Education, and would love to do this with my students. Think about the hypothesis that two cards together will hold twice as much weight.
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