Children's Ideas about Strengthening Structures

This research focused on 181 school children's (aged 5-13 years) responses to an Awareness of Technology Survey question intended to explore their conceptual knowledge of structural strength. The survey responses showed that the children had many productive ideas about structural strength prior to formal classroom instruction. After instruction, the children's ideas showed little overall change. The Discussion explores how the framework of the programme and professional development opportunities did not help the teachers to implement the programme. Suggestions for productive classroom experiences related to structural strength include: introducing children to a greater variety of building materials; assisting children to explore the physical and mechanical properties of materials; practising with vocabulary needed to describe properties of materials; providing opportunities to understand the pushes and pulls at work in a structure; and promoting design technology discourse.