Grade 6 lab scientists completed an activity called “Quake Shake.” They finished learning about plate tectonics and how the movements of the plates cause many changes on earth including causing earthquakes. The students learned how engineers have figured out how to make earthquake resistant buildings, using devices such as base isolation or a tuned mass dampener. Students used this information, along with their past engineering design activity experience, to build structures from clay, masking tape, and wooden coffee stirrers. The structures were then tested on a shake table. Almost everyone was able to create a design to withstand an earthquake.