Ridgefield students use Jell-O to test earthquakes

RIDGEFIELD – Second-grade students at South Ridge Elementary learned how to build structures to withstand a simulated earthquake using marshmallows, toothpicks and a pan of Jell-O. After reading “The Earth Dragon Awakes” about an earthquake and fire in San Francisco, teacher Kelle Petree challenged them to build and test their own structures. The group studied how engineers at the University of California San Diego are building earthquake-safe structures. Using the toothpicks and marshmallows, they created four walls and tested it on a “ground” of strawberry Jell-O, recording how long it took for structures to fail. Brayden Mattox was the top engineer of the day, taking 33 seconds for his structure and 39 seconds for his tower. “We were all amazed at his creativity in keeping his buildings earthquake safe,” Petree said in a news release.