This unit has its foundation in the third grade curriculum utilized by the City of New Haven. The curriculum suggests that students in the third grade study their community. Usually our study covers topics like: What is a community? Why do people live in communities?, What kinds of communities are there?, Why do communities have a government?, and How do the government, schools, and services provided to the community help people to satisfy their needs and wants? For my third graders it is usually the first time they really learn about New Haven and its history.
A few years ago I was privileged to be part of a seminar on the Symbolic Language of Architecture and Public Monuments. The seminar leader pointed out the basics of classical architecture and how its elements form a language we see in even some of the most contemporary buildings within the community. Decorative elements add to the beauty of a building or monument. When architecture utilizes these elements we usually recognize the building or monument as more than a building - rather a statement about us as human beings sometimes more specifically as Americans. In the past, I have used architecture as a way of presenting the past, present, and possible future of the community to my students. The seminar on bridges seemed a perfect continuation of that seminar and those ideas.
Bridges have a practical and aesthetic affect on the community. Recently the local newspaper printed a picture of a proposed bridge to be built over the Quinnipiac River. The now inadequate Q-bridge would have more lanes. The bridge would still connect New Haven with East Haven and points beyond. The picture in the newspaper showed a modern and dynamic bridge. Those proposing the bridge talked little of how it would carry more traffic over the Quinnipiac River. The article spent more time waxing poetic about how such a span would be unique and a landmark people would want to see. It would be an attraction for travelers to the northeast. Some may argue the wisdom of such a bridge but it seemed that there was a conscious effort to build something that went beyond a utilitarian purpose. There was an effort almost a need to build something memorable, something that would mark our community as special. Not only could the bridge literally unite us to other neighborhoods and communities, it would also give us an object of pride to share and enjoy.
I don't know if most people ever think about or appreciate the beauty that surrounds them in the buildings and architecture we take for granted every day on our travels to and from work. I know that that seminar heightened my awareness. I would like to bring both the practical and aesthetic of the bridge to my students. The unit is interdisciplinary in that it will encompass talking about other areas of the curriculum such as math, science, social studies, and art. In structuring a unit about communities and bridges I would like to use the following outline as a guide:
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1. What are bridges?
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2. What are the parts of a bridge?
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3. Who makes up the team that builds a bridge?
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4. How do we decide where to put a bridge?
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5. What type of tools and machinery are used to make a bridge?
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6. What makes a bridge stay up?
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7. What are the basic types of bridges?
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8. How do the materials used in constructing a bridge relate to its form and shape?
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9. What makes a bridge special?
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10. Make your own bridge.
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Fellow participants in the seminar suggested that the unit should include a field trip or trips, to help the children sharpen their observation skills. Whether a trip begins the unit or comes in the middle or end is going to depend on the time of the year, availability of transportation and the purpose of the trip. Our seminar leader suggested a trip to the top of East Rock, which sits above New Haven and Hamden and offers a wide view of the city. At its' base is a park which also features a number of wooden bridges which might interest the children. Our school is near the Kimberly Avenue Bridge and there are also a number of railroad bridges close by. We can easily visit the Tomlinson Bridge that is being rebuilt, and see the Q-Bridge, which will be replaced in the future. Ideally we would take a trip early in the unit and toward its conclusion when students have hopefully increased their awareness of bridges.
