Want to learn how to make a catapult? It's easy and fun and the perfect STEM activity for kids of all ages! Toddlers, preschoolers, and kindergarten kids
Have you seen the flying carp streamers in Japan? They are known as Koinobori. (Admittedly, I just learned that term.) They are typically made from a woven fabric and flown during the Japanese celebration known as Tango no sekku. This celebration is dedicated to children and also referred to as Children's Day. This is a celebration of the children of Japan in the hope they may grow up to be strong and resilient like the carp that swim up the waterfalls. Read more about the festivities here. I'v
Teach your kids how to make their very own marshmallow catapult using common household supplies. How to construct a marshmallow launcher.
Students will LOVE practicing engineering skills with this hands-on STEM Jellybean Structures. Best part? The taste-testing afterwards!
My kiddos are always asking for hands on science activities, even if it’s one we have done over and over like this Hovercraft Science experiment project.
Teach your kids how to make their very own marshmallow catapult using common household supplies. How to construct a marshmallow launcher.
When you're stuck indoors, these ideas for rainy day physical activity with preschoolers and toddlers might just save the day!
These 20 SUPER FUN home science experiements will teach your little ones all about science while keeping them busy and having a great time!
My kids love to play this fun game! The game of SKUNK, that is!
Know what I love to do on days when it’s too cold or wet to go outside? Build stuff!! This fun geodesic dome was built using rolled up newspaper to form rods — SO frugal! I basically followed the tutorial here, but made one important adjustment. Rather than using staples at the joints, I punched […]
Ready for Peep catapults?! My kiddos loved this STEM activity so much they didn't realize they were learning engineering, physics and math!
The best and most fun pen and paper games to cure the boredom blues. Solo, two player and three or more player pencil and paper games for kids and adults!
STEM activities are a lot of fun and educational, but the best kind of STEM activities are open-ended, allowing children to think for themselves. In this paper plate maze STEM challenge, kids are challenged to make a marble maze using household materials. They must follow all elements of a real design process, including brainstorming, blueprints,
CREATE GIANT KID SIZE SPIROGRAPH DRAWINGS
Looking for boredom busters? Grab this list of over 100 unique holidays and find something fun to celebrate as a family! Wacky & weird holidays every month!
Create your own SPY WEEK with these spy and secret code activities for kids! Below, you’ll find activities, crafts, and games with a fun spy theme. This is also a great resource if you’re planning a spy themed camp or birthday party. SECRET CODE ACTIVITIES It’s so fun to send and receive messages in a […]
Learn how to make both a basic homopolar motor and a tiny dancing motor! Great science fair project for older kids!
DIY Catapults are easy to make and fun to use and the best part is there are so many ways to do it! We found twelve inventive catapult crafts for kids of all ages. If
If you will make it, they will play it and they will learn it! Sometimes you just need some easy, low prep activities, but ones the students will enjoy and be engaged in so learning
In this activity, children are invited to learn more about gravity, engineering and architecture in a fun and hands-on way. I'm not generally one to take pictures of buildings. Sure, I admire certain made-made structures but I've never felt compelled to take multiple pictures of non-historic buildings. Until I went to Dubai, that is. When I asked my family living in Dubai, "Why should families visit Dubai?" and one of the answers on the list was, "Architecture (Dubai has a mix of both Arabic and modern contemporary buildings which creates a unique and interesting landscape)," they weren't wrong. Out of the desert pops this quite amazing spectacle. I had never seen buildings like them. They appeared to rise out of the ground, often so tall that they looked like they were on a lean (perhaps some were?). A new shape and design around every corner. Everywhere that we drove I found myself constantly going, "Wow, look at that one!", "Woah! Check that out." and scrambling to take a photo before we drove on. You can see some great views of Dubai from the air in my earlier post. When I got home, my kids thought the buildings looked fabulous. Going through photos together brought up all sorts of questions and discussions. Opportunities for learning. How do they make the buildings stay up? Why don't they fall over? How do they get them so high? How did they make it that shape? The Burj Khalifa. The tallest building in the world. Building challenge for kids. To help us find some of the answers to the questions, I set out a classic and simple construction activity with just two types of materials, toothpicks and mini-marshmallows. We chatted about how being an architect means that you design, plan and oversee the construction of buildings. It is a very important job that requires a lot of study in order to be able to do it properly. Architecture is both an art and a science. It is the job of an architect to use their creativity to design something that looks a certain way and performs certain functions, as well as knowledge of scientific principles and mathematical expertise, to ensure that the structure stays up! Engineers are also very important in the construction of buildings. They use maths and science to come up with solutions to problems that might arise with the construction of a building. They often need to overcome problems with new solutions that have never been done before, to help realise the dreams of the architect and client. They also need to be able to think creatively. These days a great amount of technology is used in the design and construction of buildings. Here, we were getting back to basics and testing out simple structures. Seeing if we could work against gravity (that force that is always pulling things back to earth), and engineer a building that would stay standing without any assistance other than the arrangement of mini-marshmallows and toothpicks. Relishing in the beauty of a structure and in symmetry that often occurs in buildings. Discussing plans. Using photos for inspiration and to lead discussion. "I think you should make this one" Testing ideas. Problem solving. Whilst younger children (my son had recently turned 3 here) might not be capable of building free-standing structures, this is great for their fine-motor skills and for testing and experimenting. Sorting and counting. Playing allows for unplanned learning to occur naturally. Children learn naturally about 3-dimensional shapes and some of their uses whilst building in this way. Engineering some support beams to prevent the structure from falling. Handy Tips: To extend this activity children could be challenged to: First play the architect and draftsman role in the construction of a building by drawing up plans. See how high they can get a single structure to stand unassisted Test their construction against certain natural phenomenon. Can it survive winds (a fan) or an earthquake (shaking the table)? Build a structure entirely of cubes - To simplify this activity, younger children might find using larger, stronger materials easier for their developing fine-motor skills. Try regular sized marshmallows and paddle-pop sticks instead and let them experiment with sticking them together and seeing how gravity works. - Instead of marshmallows to hold the construction together you could use gum-drops or blu-tack. Instead of the toothpicks you could try straws or sticks. Here we tried building with cotton-buds and playdough with similar results. There are plenty of different combinations of materials that you could try. Happy playing, Debs :) Look where else we are. Are you following along? :) New Here? Subscribe to get all activities sent directly to you Enter your email address: Delivered by FeedBurner
Winter solstice has been celebrated all over the world for thousands of years. It occurs on the shortest day and longest night. Although this is often the first day of winter, it also promises the return of the sun after an extended period of darkness.
Who knew playing with straws could be so fun? Straw bridges are a great whole class activity that also sharpens students' STEM skills!
Incorporate fine motor skills and math with these great hands-on activities that kids in preschool and elementary school will really enjoy!
Check out how you can make a simple popsicle stick catapult with materials you already have at home. It's a fun STEM project that you can do with your kids indoors on a rainy day!
Discover over 45 vestibular activities that can calm, regulate, and improve attention in your child. Plus, get vestibular exercises for...
Spring break makes me so excited (i love to sleep in!) but then i do this dread thing like how do i keep my kids entertained when the weather is iffy at best! So i
We've rounded up our fifteen favorite family reunion games including some for the family history buff, the spunky kids, and the strategist.
Spring is in the air and it's time to get out with your kids for some fun Spring activities! Spring time is a great time to get back outside after being cooped inside during the
These DIY ribbon wands are easy to make and can be done in about 5 minutes! The video tutorial will show you exactly how to make them..
Build marshmallow and spaghetti towers to learn about strong shapes and stable structures. A wonderfully sticky STEM challenge
Little scientists can build a popsicle stick catapult that really launches. This is an engineering project kids will beg to build over and over again.
This blindfolded maze game teaches obedience to children. My kids loved playing this game, wanting to try completing the maze over and over again. Teaching through games speaks volumes to kids. The concepts resonate with them because kids learn through play. Some people are questioning whether obedience is outdated. They don’t want their children being...Read More
Once you've cut off the bottoms of these paper cups and slipped on balloons,
Catapult art is a fun and unique art project for kids! Let them explore a variety of science and art skills with catapult painting.
Do you want to lure leprechauns to your house? I know how, but they are mischievous. I guess it’s not too mischievous to pee in a toilet, but it was really fun for the kids to discover that they had come for a visit. So, what does it take to lure a leprechaun? Why, gold, of...Read More
Kids will test different materials to see which ones provide the best insulation for an ice cube and keep it from melting!
Printable Secret Decoder Wheel - Attention all secret agents! Your secret decoder wheel has arrived and your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to send and receive secret messages to your friends without anyone being the wiser. No one will be able to decode your messages unless they have the secret key. This is a super
Finding Bigfoot game took playing a Bigfoot game to a whole new level of fun for kids or adults!
Free Printables for both mom and kids! We collect of all our favorite FREE printables every month so that you don't have to! Save these on Pinterest so you know where to find them
How to make an indoor boomerang out of paper. What a fun boredom buster science and engineering project for kids when they are stuck inside!
This allows you to see all the important parts of the plant.
This caterpillar sight words activity was such a fun way to practice sight words and I didn’t have to buy or print a thing! *This post contains affiliate links. **I was give a free copy of this book to review and use with my own kids. All opinions are my own. 100 Fun & ... Read More about Caterpillar Sight Words – Eco-Friendly!
'Do you think you can fit through this index card?' My daughter looked at me like I was crazy as I asked her this question and held up a 3x5 index card. She emphatically answered no, and was very curious when I told her that I could show her how she could very easily fit through an index card. What followed was one our favorite science experiments for kids as we learned how to make an index card chain. Why this experiment is fun for kids With this science experiment, kids will learn about how physical objects change. As a bonus,
Learn how to combine 2 colours of yarn to make these cute Finger Knitting Snakes. We also show to to increase and decrease Finger knitting stitches. COOL!
Sometimes when working with young children on the production of speech sounds, it is helpful to provide the little one’s with a fun label, or name, for the sound(s) you are teaching. Providing a visual cue to go along with the label is also very helpful, to provide multisensory instruction. Several years ago I asked […]
I came across this game from one of my peers and think it’s really awesome. In fact I have been using this regularly this year as a fun and creative way to review before a test. So far I have used it prior to my grade 10 chemistry and biology test using the practice questions […]
RAINBOW PAPER PLATE TAMBOURINES - A fab homemade musical instrument to inspire creativity and fun.
I wanted one place to share all of my Mass ideas for kids, so here you go- crafts, games, books, and other learning resources! Mass Books For Kids Mass book for Catholic kids: A Picture
