PROGRAM DETAILS
• A five-day, Monday to Friday program:
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. each day
• Optional extended care:
8:00 – 9:00 a.m. $50 per week and/or
4:00 – 6:00 p.m. $95 per week
• Apply for our Counselor in Training (CIT) program:
Rising 10th-12th grade students call (315) 773-5673
• Limited to 12 children, rising 5th to 9th grade
Grouped according to age!
• Scholarships available by calling (315) 773-5673
• $25 sibling or multi-session discount applies
• Ask about our referral program
• Child to instructor & assistant ratio is 6:1 or less
• Your instructor: Hunter Boucher, bioengineering major
YOUR INSTRUCTOR
Hunter Boucher
Bioengineering major at Endicott College (Dean’s list: 3.56 GPA)
Professor Kaufman at Endicott applauds Hunter’s dedication and notes that his building skills are perfectly suited to leading Bridge Building. Hunter has a keen interest in science, with experience in building model bridges. He looks forward to sharing all this with the campers this summer!
Program Curriculum
We start by introducing your child to engineering basics with a simple beam. Then each child engineers, builds, and load tests an efficient model bridge that satisfies certain design criteria. Outside, we build three different bridges: a truss bridge, a suspension bridge, and an arch bridge. Inside, your child works with a design simulator that presents the design considerations addressed by bridge engineers.
- Learn more
Engineering conduct and ethics are taught, and we draw on real-life engineering challenges through case studies and historical accounts. The week culminates in a mini engineering fair, where family and friends can see the model bridges tested under load.
“Bridge building is a magnificent example of the practical and everyday use of science.”
– David Blockley, Emeritus Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Bristol
“Bridge Building was awesome. It’s all I could talk about when I got home.”
– Noah S., participant
“Bridge Building was a great experience and introduction to engineering.”
– Renée Powlin, parent
“Bridge Building was fun overall. I liked that we got to build bridges outside and inside. I got a better understanding on how bridges are built.”
– participant
“Everyone was polite and funny. We did exciting designs and construction. My favorite bridge was the suspension bridge!”
– participant
“I liked doing the larger model bridge (outside), that we got to work on together. It was awesome!”
– participant
CREATED & DIRECTED BY
John Aviste, P.Eng.
BS Civil Engineering, University of Toronto
John is the owner & founder of Edge on Science and has a background in civil engineering. His concrete design instructor, Professor Mills, left a lasting impression in class one day, when he had his students stand up and imagine that they were concrete columns. John brings this immersive approach to this structural engineering program!
Discover the flow of forces in an arch bridge, model timeless stone structures, and then unravel the genius of Leonardo da Vinci by examining one of his designs. Learn the different trade-offs between function, form and cost faced by real-world bridge designers every day. Explore the fascinating challenges of building a bridge that stays up under load, and build not one, but three large outdoor models with a team. What could be more fun? Campers always come home happy and excited!
Why is EOS Bridge Building a good choice?
If your child has made spaghetti bridges at school, then this program takes them to an entirely new level. We know that children easily relate to bridges. Here, they’ll have the experience of working in a team, staying safe, exercising quality control, supervising, building, using tools, measuring, reading drawings, communicating, estimating, and managing and organizing.
We’ve learned that models are an effective way for kids to explore form and function in the engineering design process. By grabbing hold of a large-scale model bridge, campers can gauge its stiffness and know firsthand how it will support a load. And imagine the excitement and satisfaction of unboxing crates of bridge components, and then assembling them into a working 8-meter suspension bridge!
Bridge Building …expected to sell out!
