3rd Grade Science | Strong and Stable Structures

Capture your students’ attention with this highly engaging Strong and Stable Structures unit for 3rd grade science! Your students will work hard at understanding structures and mechanisms through fun, hands-on challenge activities, building tasks, group discussions and worksheets.This complete Strong and Stable Structures unit covers everything your grade 3 science students need to know to master all concepts related to understanding structures and mechanisms. This resource extensively covers strength and stability of structures, natural and man made structures, environmental impact of structures, famous structures and so much more. This 111 page strong structures unit comes with lessons uniquely designed to meet curriculum expectations, full color posters and vocabulary word cards, book suggestions, task cards, building challenges and an end of unit assessment to test understanding of strong structures! Make your grade 3 science planning a breeze with this complete unit to help your students understand structures and mechanisms. Please check out the PREVIEW to see all that is included in this amazing resource!

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Strong and Stable Structures for Grade 3 Science includes lessons on the following key concepts:

• Strength, stability and structures
• Altering materials for strength
• Levers and leverage
• Balance, center of gravity and balance points
• Natural and Man made structures
• Environmental impact of structures
• Designing strong and stable structures
• Bridge types and construction
• Famous structures

❤️ See What Teachers Are Saying ❤️

• My class has just started this unit but so far they are loving it! As a teacher, I love this resource. It is organized very well and notes additional resources. I have used 2 of the other 3 units and I love them as well! 
• Love your science resources! Students enjoys the experiments and the visuals help to reinforce the concepts. This is a well laid out unit that is easy to follow and comprehensive. 
• I teach STEAM and we build a lot of structures. I wanted my students to understand the basics of structures before we started building. This was a great resource to do with them. They loved it!

Ready Made for Ontario Science Standards!

⭐ This COMPREHENSIVE 3rd-grade science unit on Strong and Stable Structures covers the Ontario curriculum standards for Understanding Structures and Mechanisms.  Make planning for the Ontario grade 3 science standards simple with this fully comprehensive science activities unit!⭐

It encompasses the following overall "BIG" expectations:

➀ Assess the importance of form, function, strength, and stability in structures through time

➁ Investigate strong and stable structures to determine how their design and materials enable them to perform their load-bearing function

➂ Demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of structure, strength, and stability and the factors that affect them

This unit covers the following Ontario Curriculum expectations:

• 1.1 Assess the effects of strong and stable structures on society and the environment (e.g., reliable load bearing structures are essential in all areas of life for shelter, transportation, and many other everyday purposes; strong and stable structures can endure for long periods of time and provide a historical record of other societies and cultures; strong and stable structures can be hard to dispose of when their usefulness is ended and may then have a negative effect on the environment)
• 1.2 Assess the environmental impact of structures built by various animals and those built by humans
• 2.1 Follow established safety procedures during science and technology investigations (e.g., carry scissors and other cutting tools in a safe manner)
• 2.2 Investigate, through experimentation, how various materials (e.g., paper and wood) and construction techniques (e.g., folding, adding layers, twisting/braiding, changing shapes) can be used to add strength to structures
• 2.3 Investigate, through experimentation the effects of pushing, pulling, and other forces on the shape and stability of simple structures (e.g., the effect of adding one or more struts on the strength of a tower; the effect of adding ties on the strength of a bridge; the effect of adding weight to the base of a tower on the stability of the tower)
• 2.4 Use technological problem-solving skills, and knowledge acquired from previous investigations, to design and build a strong and stable structure that serves a purpose (e.g., a place to store lunch bags, a place to put wet boots)
• 2.5 Use appropriate science and technology vocabulary, including compression, tension, strut, ties, strength, and stability, in oral and written communication
• 2.6 Use a variety of forms (e.g., oral, written, graphic, multimedia) to communicate with different audiences and for a variety of purposes (e.g., an oral report to the class on the results of experiments to strengthen materials)
• 3.1 Define a structure as a supporting framework, with a definite size, shape, and purpose, that holds a load (e.g., a running shoe, a tepee, a bicycle, an igloo)
• 3.2 Identify structures in the natural environment (e.g., a tree, a bees’ nest/hive) and in the built environment (e.g., a totem pole, a fence, a pyramid, the CN tower)
• 3.3 Identify the strength of a structure as its ability to support a load
• 3.4 Identify the stability of a structure as its ability to maintain balance and stay fixed in one spot
• 3.5 Identify properties of materials (e.g., strength, flexibility, durability that need to be considered when building structures)
• 3.6 Describe ways in which strength of different materials can be altered (e.g., folding, adding layers, twisting/ braiding, changing their shape)
• 3.7 Describe ways to improve a structure’s strength (e.g., by using triangulation or crossmembers) and stability (e.g., by lowering the centre of gravity)
• 3.8 Explain how strength and stability enable a structure (e.g., bridge, tent) to perform a specific function
• 3.9 Describe ways in which different forces can affect the shape, balance, or position of structures (e.g., a load may cause a cardboard box to buckle)
• 3.10 Identify the role of struts and ties in structures under load (e.g., a strut is added to a wooden frame to resist a compression that might cause its collapse; a tie is added to roof truss to resist tension that might cause the roof to collapse from the weight of the shingles)

☟ MORE FUN AND ENGAGING GRADE 3 SCIENCE ☟

• Soils in the Environment
• Growth and Changes in Plants
• Forces Causing Movement

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Copyright © Laura Merritt – Stop and Smell the Crayons (TpT) All rights reserved by the author. This product is to be used by the original downloader only. Copying for more than one teacher, classroom, department, school, or school system is prohibited. This product may not be distributed or displayed digitally for public view. Failure to comply is a copyright infringement and a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Clipart and elements found in this PDF are copyrighted and cannot be extracted and used outside of this file without permission or license. Intended for classroom and personal use ONLY. See product file for clip-art and font credits.