Here is a great bridge design software for your homeschooler. We have used this application prior to our homeschooling experiment. All our kids have had a great time trying to design a working bridge and then optimize it. It just may be the thing that awakens the engineer in your kid. Chronic Logic also has two other bridge design software applications but we have not tried those.
http://www.chroniclogic.com/index.htm?pontifex2.htm
Hello!
We just tried the demo based on your suggestion … Our kids seem thrilled w/ it & I’m going to buy it about 2 min from now. I have this weird thing: I hate to see children in front a screen/monitor, especially really mindless games. Just like nails on a chalkboard to me. I compromise on weekend mornings & for “babysitting” – keeping 2 safely occupied while I run the third to a class/etc. However, because of my head in the sand approach, I am not up on any of the games, like BCS, which seem to be both a lot of fun and a useful way to spend time. I’m so over lego.com & abc arcade (of course, the kids aren’t) – I’m hoping BCS will be the beginning of my finding computer games that we ALL feel good about!
V.