Geodesic Dome

Geodesic domes are around more in our lives than we think. One of the most notable examples is in jungle gyms in playgrounds. They are a simple version of the architectural designs that can serve many purposes such as greenhouses, houses, and even entire arenas!

This project is a scaled down version to help elementary to middle school children understand the basics of construction, architecture, and even iterative systems.

The core disciplinary standard that I am addressing in this project is Design in Technology and Engineering Education. This is one of the better standards that apply to this project, as the student will understand iterative systems a little bit better. Students are free to design the dome in any way they like, including colors, types of straws, and the size of their dome. This allows students to make the project their own and begin thinking about aesthetics and functionality.

The practices that can be seen in this project is Making and Doing and Systems Thinking. Students are able to create a product that will increase confidence in themselves, have a hands-on approach on a project, and help them understand the second practice of systems thinking. The iterative process of creating the pentagons demonstrates how developing a good system for making things can speed up the project.

The context that follows this project is Material conversion and processing as students will take different materials, in this case the straws, and process them into an entire structure.

Objectives:

• Students will be able to express themselves creatively through material choices.
• Students will understand some basic concepts of architecture
• Students will be able to implement processes to make future projects easier
• Students will have fun creating their own structures.

So, the very first thing you must do to begin building your own dome is to gather your materials.

For this project, you will need:

1. some pipe cleaners (approximately $5)
2. a box of straws ($2-$4)
3. a pair of scissors. ($3-$5)

The exact amount of straws and pipe cleaners you will need will vary on the size you would like to make your dome. for my example, I used 25 pipe cleaners and about 35 straws

Most of the time that is put into this project will be in preparing your materials. There are two different lengths of straws that must be cut for the dome. Strut A can be any size that you choose. Strut B must be smaller by a factor of 0.885. To find out what this length should be, Take the length of Strut A and multiply it by 0.885. As long as the length of Strut B is close to that number, you do not have to be absolutely perfect.

Once you have the lengths all figured out, begin cutting 35 Strut A's and 30 Strut B's

For my example, my Strut A was 3.5 inches, and my Strut B had to be rounded down .09 inches to 3 inches.

Now that everything has been cut out, its time to assemble. Start by making a pentagon out of a set of 5 Strut A's. To do this, thread a pipe cleaner through the first section, and secure it by bending the end of the pipe cleaner. If your length of pipe cleaner is not long enough to secure 5 struts, then take another pipe cleaner and twist the end to the first one in order to make one long cleaner. Once you have 5 struts, bend them together in the shape of pentagon and secure the ends.

You will need 6 total pentagons.

Once you have your pentagons, its time to add some Strut B's. The easiest way I found to do this was to attach two at a time on one pipe cleaner, then add the last one by securing it to the joints of the two pairs. Each strut will be attached to the pentagons at the corners.

After adding the struts, you should have 6 pentagons, and 5 loose strut A's. Almost there!

These struts act as supports for a shape that doesn't have the best resistance to being crushed. In architecture, supports like these are vital, as they prevent buildings and structures from collapsing under their own weight

Now its time to join the pentagons together. This is one of the more tricky parts, but don't worry, you can do it! In the first picture, I have the pentagons arranged with the sides together in sort of a flower shape. from there, I rotated the pentagons so that the corners are together around the center pentagon. This is where you want to begin securing those corners together. the base shape will begin forming as the dome wants to come together.

Once your pentagons are connected at the corners to the center one, its time to connect the pentagons to the ones on the left and right of them. The dome shape will begin to come together, and the end is in sight! you will want to use smaller lengths of pipe cleaner to reduce the amount of waste. (I used the scraps from making my pentagons)

You should now only have 5 Strut A's remaining. At the bottom of the dome, there are some gaps between the base of the pentagons. thread a pipe cleaner through a strut, and attach the ends to the corners of the base. Or you can make one long pipe cleaner and thread through the entire base, with the remaining struts filling in the gaps.

Filling in the gaps adds a little more stability to the structure by reducing the amount of movement that can occur between the pentagons. One of the basic topics of architecture is having a good foundation. These last struts help to complete the foundation of the dome.

And now the dome is complete! This project is an example of breaking down large things into more manageable parts, and creating iterative systems to help speed the process up. One thing to notice is that you can actually create an entire sphere by repeating the steps, making a second dome, and attaching them by the base. The lessons learned here can be applied to other projects as well, and I hope you have fun creating your own Geodesic Dome!