Quick STEM Challenges

STEM CHALLENGES FOR REAL-WORLD LEARNING

Scientists and engineers can use different ways to study the world around them. This is exactly what these quick STEM activities are intended to provide for your young scientists and engineers! Many valuable, real-world lessons come from working on simple STEM projects.

What’s the difference between a scientist and an engineer? Click here to read more!

Some of the best STEM challenges are also the cheapest! When you are introducing STEM activities to kids, it’s important to use familiar materials, keep it fun and playful, and not make it to complicated that it takes forever to complete!

You need STEM activities that can be set up quickly; kids will find engaging and provide plenty of opportunities for hands-on learning with the Engineering design process.

YOUR FREE STEM CHALLENGES PACK INCLUDES:

• STEM Design Process: Steps To Success
• 5 Quick and Easy STEM Challenges
• STEM Journal Pages
• Materials Master List
• How To Get Started Instructions

We have included 5 of our favorite easy-to-set-up and quick STEM challenges for you to share with your kids! Build their confidence with simple materials, fun themes, and easy-to-understand concepts.

Your kids will love using our Steps to Success STEM Design Process page during their activities. This will help reduce the need for your constant involvement because each step provides great information for the kids to think about! Build their STEM confidence!

The STEM journal pages include plenty of room for writing notes, drawing diagrams or plans, and collecting data! These are perfect for adding to projects for older kids to expand the lesson. Younger kids will love to draw their plans too.

You will also find my master list of cheap STEM materials and a quick how-to-get-started guide for using the STEM activities pack!

TIPS FOR EASY STEM ACTIVITIES

Do you want to explore more stem this year but don’t know where to start? We want you to be able to share quick STEM activities with your kids effortlessly.

These ideas aren’t high-tech, so no circuits or motors in sight, but they will get your kids thinking, planning, tinkering, and testing with easy-to-use STEM supplies. From kindergarteners to elementary through to middle school, there’s something for everyone.

1. PLAN YOUR STEM LESSON TIME

If you are short on time, set time limits for each phase of the design process and make that part of the STEM challenge.

Or if you have multiple short sessions to work on these STEM challenges, choose one or two parts of the design process at a time so as not to rush the activity.

Having kids use the journal pages to keep detailed notes will help them from session to session. Maybe day 1 is planning, researching, and drawing designs.

2. CHOOSE MATERIALS FOR STEM ACTIVITIES

My best tip for these quick build challenges below is to always be collecting re-usable materials. Keep a bin handy for storing cool items that might come in packaging materials, your recyclables and non-recyclables, and all those other random bits and pieces.

Check out our dollar store engineering kit for ideas!

SIMPLE STEM ACTIVITIES

The first 5 STEM building activities below are included in the free printable pack above, but you will also find a few more fun ideas to add to your STEM time.

1. Design and Build a Catapult

There are a variety of materials and methods you can use for building a catapult!

CHECK OUT THESE FUN VARIATIONS…

• Popsicle Stick Catapult
• Marshmallow Catapult
• Pencil Catapult
• Pumpkin Catapult
• Plastic Spoon Catapult
• Lego Catapult

2.  Build a Boat That Floats

Option 1

We have two ways you can go about this challenge! One is to dig into your recyclables (and non-recyclables) and build a boat that floats. Set up a tub of water to test them when everyone is finished.

You can take it further by testing their ability to float underweight! Try a soup can. Will your boat float while holding a soup can?

Option 2

Alternatively, you can give each kid a square of aluminum foil to build a strong boat that floats. Go ahead and test your boat with added weight, too. Remember to pick one type of item, like pennies, to test the flotation of the boat. Otherwise, you will have inaccurate results because you can’t compare the results.

CHECK OUT: Penny Boat Challenge

3.  Design a Paper Bridge

This quick STEM challenge uses stacks of books, pennies, paper, and a couple of pieces of tape. Challenge your kids to build a paper bridge that spans the gap between two stacks of books. Test the weight of the bridge with pennies.

Additionally, you can challenge the kids to make bridges out of similar-sized materials like aluminum foil, wax paper, cardstock, etc. This is a fun way to extend the STEM activity for older kids.

CHECK OUT: Paper Bridge Challenge

4. Egg Drop STEM Challenge

Another great STEM challenge that uses whatever you can find for materials.  Here’s one of our recent egg drop challenge designs! Where’s the egg? Did it break?

CHECK OUT: Egg Drop Project

5. Spaghetti Marshmallow Tower 

Can you build a tower out of noodles? Build the tallest spaghetti tower that can hold the weight of a jumbo marshmallow. Test out those design and engineering skills with a few simple materials. Which tower design will be the tallest and strongest? 

CHECK OUT: Spaghetti Marshmallow Tower Challenge

6. Build a Car That Goes 

There are a few ways you can go about this challenge with a group of kids, and it depends on the time available and the level of difficulty you want! If you have confident builders sending them to design their own cars, that move may be the way to go!

If you have less time or less confident builders, providing the means for the “go” might be more helpful. For example, building a balloon car might be a good choice.

Have the kids brainstorm how they want to make a car “go” as a group. It could be as easy as setting up a fan or building a rubber band car.

7. Design a Marble Run

You can set this challenge up for whatever your space and time allow.  Make a marble run from LEGO or even build your own marble run wall.

Why not try a 3D paper marble roller coaster kids can build on the top of a table. This is where your stash of cardboard tubes comes in handy!

CHECK OUT: Cardboard Marble Run

9. Build A Pulley System 

There are two ways you could do this, outdoors or indoors. The difference is in the size of the pulley you can create and the supplies you will need.

Fill a bucket with heavy material and see how easy it is for the kids to lift. Have them imagine trying to lift that bucket way then up high. How would they do it more efficiently? A pulley system, of course!

Challenge the kids to build a homemade pulley system to move objects like marbles from the ground to table level. Toilet paper tubes come in pretty handy. Add some string and plastic cups.

CHECK OUT: Outdoor Pulley System and DIY Pulley System With A Cup

10. Rube Goldberg Machine

Combine some fun things you’ve learned about forces into a STEM challenge where a ball must travel a path to knock down items at the end (a very simplified Rube Goldberg Machine). You can incorporate ramps and even a mini pulley system!

11. Be an Architect for the Day

You can challenge your kids to design and build a creative structure that solves a problem such as a dog house to keep Fido cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Incorporate planning and design and build models using found materials from your stash.

Check out this fun architecture idea >>> Three Little Pigs STEM