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I wouldn't worry about using K'Nex because it's a commercially available
product. One kit (usable by 1-3 students) in, say the bridge-building
category, goes for $29. (So likely enough for a class is over $300.) Few
schools can lay out that kind of scratch. This is from K'Nex's own
website (http://www.knex.com/) 

The downsides of K'Nex: the aforementioned price, plus lotsa tiny
pieces.

Upside: they work really well, kids love using them, high durability,
the company also publishes lesson plans.

When doing our bridge-building outreach, we use water as the weight.
Just measure off in water bottles how much volume = how much weight -
that makes it easy to add more. (And, if you're using this for outreach,
you don't have to carry a bunch of weights with you.)

Jonah Cohen
Outreach & Public Programs Manager
The Children's Museum


"If you hear only one song this year, there's something terribly wrong
with you."
    -They Might Be Giants

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