Premise: An Anytime STEM Challenge
Working against a criteria & constraints list, students will make a boat designed for capacity and/or speed (new twists included in the newly-updated version of this challenge)!I think of this as an “anytime” STEM challenge, but it’s perfect for the end of the school year and summer.
Materials: Easy, Low-Cost, Flexible
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Suggested materials. Add in your own ideas; more varied materials yield more varied student designs! |
At least one per class, if not one per student or group:
- Container filled with water to test the boats (be sure to choose a container with appropriate dimensions, or constrain students on length, width, height accordingly. For sailing tests, stream tables, under-bed-storage bins, or kiddie pools work well).
– Set of uniform objects to measure capacity (pennies, base-ten blocks, paperclips, balance weights, bouncy balls, etc.)
For each student or group:
- Modeling clay, Crayola Model Magic, foil and/or wax paper sheets
- Index cards, paper, coffee filters, etc.
- Tape (masking tape or packing tape perform best, constrain to 12 in. or less)
- Scissors
Build-A-Boat Video Walk-through
If you’re familiar with my work, you know I’ve been switching over to using video to explain the bulk of my STEM challenges. It seems to be the best/fastest way to explain the important details: materials, set-up, tips, modifications, extensions, demonstrations, and more! Who has time to read all that?! However, if you do prefer to read instead, you’ll find the video transcription at the end of this post.
Want to Save a Ton of Time? Get the Resource!
Printable or Paperless
A paperless version for use with Google Slides(TM) is also available.
While this a stand-alone challenge, I have also created 5 challenges for summer/the end of the school year! You can find the overview of each on this blog post.
Please reach out with any questions and tag me in photos of your students’ work on Facebook & Instagram.
You can find even more STEM challenges in my Mega Bundle, on this blog, and on my YouTube channel!