Lesson Planning
Roman Arches
Topics Year 3
This unit is part of
The Romans in Britain - NEW LOOK Roman Buildings - NEW LOOK
Objectives
History
- To understand how arches were used in construction and why they are so strong.
- To begin to understand how forces act on arches and post & lintel style bridges.
- Collaborate to investigate the strength of different shaped arches, applying skills of measuring and fair testing.
Enquiry question
How are arches used in construction and why are they strong?
Outcomes
Children will:
- Understand why arches are strong and explore surviving examples in Roman architecture.
- Conduct an investigation on the effectiveness of different shaped arches by varying the length of span and measuring the weight supported.
- Record their findings and draw conclusions from these results.
Provided Resources
You Will Also Need
Sheets of A3 card (or thick paper, e.g. sugar paper)
A large number of books (to make columns);
Small play people (or other non-standard unit of weight, e.g. wooden blocks or metal weights)
Weblinks
A presentation about the use of arches in Roman architecture