Saturday, October 13, 2012

Results & Photos of Plank-a-Palooza! 2012, Benefiting Early Childhood Alliance - ECA in Fort Wayne

Updated post Oct. 13, 2012:  The results are in for Plank-a-Palooza! 2012 (see more photos on Social Fort Wayne's Facebook Page)....
Best Overall Structure Award - Trine University

Best Engineering Award - IPFW

Most Creative Award - Turnstone
All the teams did a great job and it was very difficult to choose the three award winners.  The three judges took their responsibility seriously and deliberated for a long time.  All the teams left with huge smiles on their faces knowing they accomplished a difficult and fun task, plus knowing they helped raise funds for Early Childhood Alliance which was the real winner!

Original post from Sept. 13, 2012: Several area Fort Wayne teams are registering to secure their spot in this challenging event that raises money for Early Childhood Alliance.  Hurry, registration ends on September 22, 2012 (after this date, call to see if there is room).  If you don't want to participate, you at least have to see the Plank-a-Palooza! structures that are constructed to believe them!

You may ask, what is a Plank-a-Palooza!?  It's a challenging event in which teams use 500 KEVA planks to design and build a structure in 30 minutes. No glue is needed, just gravity. This highly energized construction event creates interest in math and science and encourages creativity and collaboration.  Teams members are all ages and come from all walks of life, friends, families, schools, business, clubs, etc.

Now you are asking, what are KEVA planks?  KEVA planks are precision cut maple blocks (about 1/4" x 3/4" x 4 1/2") that stack on four different planes with surprising stability.

When:  Saturday, October 13, 2012, 10am
Where:  The Summit, 1025 W. Rudisill Blvd., Fort Wayne, IN
Admission:  Free to the public to view
More information:  Jane McGraw, 260-458-0125 or jmcgraw@ecalliance.org