Last week, to kick off our science unit on strong and stable structures, grade three students from my class and Ms. Lewis’ class worked in groups of 2 and were challenged to plan and build the tallest free-standing tower using only 50 cue cards as their building material. The groups were given 45 minutes to complete this task, so they had to be focused right from the start! Each group first had to plan and sketch their design. They were allowed to use scissors to cut the cards if they wanted to. They were also allowed to bend the cards in any way they wanted.  As you can see, the groups got right down to work, and several designs were attempted! In the end, the tallest cue card tower measured 70 cm tall! Next, we will explore ways to make tall structures more stable. (Please send in empty paper towel rolls if you have them! They are very useful building materials and will come in handy over the course of our unit!)