For the construction activity, the class split off into groups of 5 or 6 and each group was given some basic materials and tools, such as paper, scissors, and a hole punch. We were tasked with holding up the water-filled 2-liter soda bottle shown in the picture above using just the paper we were given.
The wooden bracket shown was attached to the bottle’s lid, and there was a similar wooden bracket attached to the table. The winning group was the group that could maximize their material efficiency by using the least about of paper by mass to suspend the bottle in the air.
This activity was in interesting way to get the class to innovate a solution to a problem. At face value, it seemed impossible to hold up an entire 2-liter soda bottle with so little paper, but after we got our hands dirty and started experimenting, we quickly found that even a little bit of paper can hold up so much weight!