Approximately 15 million students will be enrolled in high-school in the Fall of 2020, of which 45 percent will attend online, with an additional 48 percent not yet determined. Students across the nation need full access to experience both virtual and hands-on components of the PLTW Introduction to Engineering Design curriculum whether in a brick-and-mortar setting or via remote instruction. How can we provide a practical solution that aligns with the CDC Considerations for Schools, for an individual kit, that would facilitate PLTW curriculum and not require families to shoulder an additional financial burden for the procurement of hands-on materials?

During brainstorming the concept of a durable box within the consumable box was suggested for tool or project storage. The ability of the inner box to survive rough classroom treatment was suggested as a design criteria so a simple loading test was conducted. The inner storage box spanned two adjacent desks while a known load was applied. The deformation of the box was measured. Proportional thinking is a cornerstone of mathematical and engineering analysis and the ability to see mathematical patterns in data is a skill PLTW practices during many activities. A sample notebook entry, spreadsheet table, and graph are shown below. The modulus of elasticity does not agree with published values. Uncertainty in the load and deflection measurements are high because other elements of the test bed itself may have deflected during testing.

• • Computer Programs

    • Google Drive, Sheets, Docs for Collaboration

    • Autodesk Inventor for modeling

    • GrabCAD for shared file storage and access

  • Technology (computer with internet access, phone camera for inserting photos into docs)

  • Equipment (calipers, luggage scale, string, paper clip, shoe box, paper, pen, engineering notebook)

The benefit of corrugated cardboard is its ability to act like a ‘crumple zone’ during impacts. Bicycle helmets have been designed from cardboard to protect a person’s skull (NPR 2012). A simple load test does not accurately measure the ability of the box to deform under the dynamic load typical of a desk height drop. The stiffness of the box was measured to be about 100 pounds per one inch of deflection. Modeling the box as a channel with an area moment of inertia of 6.7 inches³ provides a Young’s modulus of 320 pounds per square inch. This does not agree with published values but the buckling of the box structure seemed to be the source of the deflection as the box was creaking and straining under the maximum test load of 10.5 pounds.