On May 16th, GE Volunteers, alongside PEER & WISE staff and GirlsUpGVL, collaborated to host an Engineering Discovery Event. During the event, students were grouped into teams to take on the Tall Tower Challenge, where students worked together to create the tallest tower from limited materials. The goal? Their towers had to support the weight of a golf ball for 2 minutes. Students were given the following materials for construction: 50 straws, 50 pipe cleaners, and 25 paperclips.
The students began by developing a sketch of their design with the support of Next Engineers GE Volunteers. Following the design phase, they proceeded to the presentation and testing phase of their towers, evaluating their results alongside those of their classmates. Next, the students were given an opportunity to reflect and discuss why they think the winning tower won. They also discussed challenges they had while designing and constructing, and came up with tips for improvement in the future.
This Discovery Challenge taught the students about the Engineering Design Process and had them participate in a team-based learning experience to learn more about architectural engineering, all while having fun!
