Why is a dam curved? Why should a skyscraper bend? Kids get the answers when they think big and build small.

Thinking Big and Building Small is a fun, hands-on way for kids to learn the secrets of superstructures. This companion to the PBS series Building Big with David Macaulay lets you explore the greatest manmade wonders of the world, discover how designers overcome engineering challenges, and build your own mini-structures.

By studying New York’s Citibank building and the design obstacles that engineers had to solve before and after construction, kids learn the problem-solving steps to building big, such as identifying the challenge, designing concepts, and testing their ideas.

Then, Kenny and Caroline from the popular PBS kids’ show ZOOM, and other kids at home, construct their own working bridges, domes, skyscrapers, dams, and tunnels. Using only common everyday materials to build their models, kids discover the same obstacles that have faced civil engineers throughout history. As shapes, forces, and loads affect their small creations, the young engineers solve problems, make choices, and learn why structures sometimes stand up- and sometimes fall down.

Features five hands-on activity segments with printed instructions.