Triangulation – Design Technology

Date: 11th Mar 2020 @ 11:56am

As part of our Design Technology unit on bridges, today we investigated the power of triangles! First we tried to create our own mini-bridges in class and discovered that when we concertinaed (I had to check the spelling on that one!) A4 paper it made it much stronger. Then we created some 2d triangles, squares and rectangles to to try and discover which were strongest. When we held our triangles flat we noticed they kept their shape and were firm and strong. The rectangles and squares were flimsy and floppy by comparison. We discovered that such is the strength of triangles, they have become common in the design of many structures, including lots of bridges, such are their load-bearing properties. This is called ‘triangulation’, which is the use of triangles to strengthen and solidify structures. Really interesting stuff for pupils and grown-ups alike!