MS Engineers Design Pasta Bridges
Source/Author: Elisabeth Pope, MS Technology & STEAM Teacher
February 04, 2026
Shorecrest seventh and eighth grade students made bridges from pasta in their STEM Explorations class.
Students were given 1 lb of pasta and hot glue as their only materials, and tasked to create the strongest bridge. Bridges were assessed on carrying the heaviest load while having the lightest overall bridge weight.
This activity was the 2nd step in the students' engineering unit, and will be followed up with a 3rd step of toothpick bridges. This allows the students to follow the iterative design process and make improvements to their approach and overall design through each step.
