Brainstorming

Brainstorming helps everyone in the group share their ideas and bring their viewpoints about the project. At the beginning, we didn't know how to go about building the bridge, but by hearing different ideas we began to form a solid plan. After we had a concept in place, we used scratch paper to test out variations of the design. We tried out several ways of joining the paper before we decided to overlap the triangles. Testing allowed us to find problems in our early designs and improve them to create a better product. In fact, if we have more time, we can definitely do more testing and improve our bridge even more. The whole process was made possible with good teamwork. Everyone in our group respectfully listened to each others’ ideas, worked together cooperatively, and contributed equally to the product.

When we designed our bridge, we didn't know that we could split up the "base blocks," so we kept them in two large lumps and our structure sagged in the middle. If we worked on the project more, we definitely would use the blocks to make separate supports along the bridge. Also, with the added supports, we could extend the bridge (we had 1/2 a piece of paper left over, so we could add a segment). After looking at the other groups' designs, I think it would be a good idea to use slits or weaving to join the paper instead of just overlapping the segments. Other than that, I think our bridge was relatively strong.

Our group's "bridge"