Hands-On Bridge Engineering Outreach Activity

This paper describes a bridge engineering outreach activity developed for a science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) expo event. The hands-on building activities are designed to engage kids and teenagers quickly (10-15 minutes) by introducing them to basic structural engineering. The objectives of the outreach activity are to spark interest in engineering among participants and to increase their awareness of engineers’ contributions to society. Bridge model kits, consisting of paint-mixing sticks, binder clips, chains, S-hooks, and large bottles of water for load testing, are used by participants to assemble simple structural models of tied arch, cable-stayed, and suspension bridges. Participants are guided by engineers and are challenged to think critically about how the structure works. All items in the kit are easily procured, inexpensive, and compact. The novelty and utility of this engineering outreach activity lies in its expeditiousness, minimal use of space and resources, simplicity of concepts, and connection with real engineering design. The author hopes that other engineers will use and adapt this outreach activity to organize their own outreach program.