Simple Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Problems for Children

Simple Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Problems for Children

Article Title: Creative and Inexpensive STEM Challenges for All Ages

Are you looking for engaging and educational activities for your little ones? Look no further! Here are several creative and inexpensive STEM challenges suitable for different age groups, using common household materials such as paper, recyclables, and simple kitchen items.

For Young Children / Preschoolers:

• Sink or Float Challenge: Using a bowl of water and household small objects (coins, sponges, plastic toys), children can hypothesize and test which items sink or float, learning basic physics and scientific method.
• Simple Plant Experiments: Growing grass heads in a cup or color-changing flowers using food coloring and plants to explore biology and botany concepts.
• Animal Habitat Matching and Life Cycle Activities: Printable games and craft activities to understand living things and ecosystems.

For Elementary Age:

• Paper Engineering Challenges: Using just paper, scissors, and tape, kids can build structures such as paper bridges (testing load-bearing), towers (stability and height), or experiment with paper airplanes and helicopters to learn aerodynamics.
• The Incredible Expanding Index Card: Fold and cut an index card so it can expand large enough to step through, teaching perimeter, area, geometry, and spatial reasoning.
• Longest Paper Chain Challenge: Design the longest paper chain considering strip thickness and strength, introducing measurement, optimization, and trade-offs in design.
• Penny Chemistry: Clean dirty coins using vinegar and salt to explore chemical reactions in a simple hands-on way.

For Older Children / Middle School:

• Build a Catapult: Using craft sticks and rubber bands, create catapults to explore physics principles like energy transfer and force.
• Balloon Rocket or Balloon Car: Using balloons, straws, string, and other simple items, explore Newton’s Third Law of Motion with fun racing challenges.
• Marshmallow and Toothpick Structures: Build towers or famous landmarks using toothpicks and marshmallows or gumdrops, focusing on engineering and stability.

Additional Challenges:

• Creating a LEGO marble maze or a marble run: A STEM Challenge for 6-8 year olds.
• A milk container rocket mouse: A simple STEM Challenge for 3-5 year olds that only requires a milk jug and a paper cone.
• Designing a water slide using kitchen foil: Another STEM Challenge.
• Designing a falling paper spinner that takes more than 10 seconds to reach the ground: A STEM Challenge for ages 9.
• Creating a landing pad for a water balloon to prevent it from breaking: A fun and less messy STEM Challenge for 6-8 year olds.
• Designing and timing different shape and material sledges as they slide down ramps with different gradients: A STEM Challenge.
• Designing and building a boat or raft from recycled materials and specifying a particular weight it should hold: A STEM Challenge for 6-8 year olds.
• Creating a Rube Goldberg Machine: A STEM Challenge, which can be as big or small as desired.
• Creating a pylon system using pipe cleaners and straws: A STEM Challenge.
• The Sinking and Floating Challenge: Investigates which objects float and encourages children to build a boat or raft to help objects that sink float.

To make a STEM Challenge more challenging, limit the materials children have access to or set a time limit. For older children, a challenge is to make a lemon sink by adding materials to weigh it down. Building magnetic sculptures can also be a part of STEM Challenges, as shown by the ones from Babble Dabble Do.

These activities are low-cost and adaptable for different ages by modifying complexity, making them excellent for hands-on STEM learning with minimal prep and expense. They engage critical thinking, scientific inquiry, and creativity across physics, chemistry, engineering, and biology domains.

Last Updated on May 21, 2025 by Emma Vanstone.

Note: This article is for informational purposes only and does not contain advertisements.

References: [1] iGame Mom (2022). 5-minute STEM Challenges. [Online] Available at: https://www.igamemom.com/5-minute-stem-challenges/

[2] Frugal Fun for Boys and Girls (2023). Domino STEM challenge cards. [Online] Available at: https://frugalfun4boys.com/domino-stem-challenge/

[3] Science Kids (2024). Sink or Float Challenge. [Online] Available at: https://www.sciencekids.co.nz/experiments/sinkorfloat.html

[4] Kids Activities Blog (2021). Simple STEM Activities for Preschoolers. [Online] Available at: https://www.kidsactivities.net/activity-ideas/science/simple-stem-activities-for-preschoolers

[5] STEM activities for Kids (2020). Marshmallow and Toothpick Structures. [Online] Available at: https://www.stemactivitiesforkids.com/marshmallow-toothpick-structures/

All these activities, derived from the article 'Creative and Inexpensive STEM Challenges for All Ages', cater to both wonder and learning for children across different age groups. Preschoolers can enjoy explorations like the Sink or Float Challenge or simple plant experiments, while elementary-aged kids might find interest in paper engineering challenges or penny chemistry. Older children, including middle schoolers, can delve deeper into more complex concepts through projects such as building catapults, designing water slides, or crafting a Rube Goldberg Machine. Each activity provides an opportunity for children to engage in arts, science, engineering, and biology, thereby fostering critical thinking, scientific inquiry, and creativity, all within educational and entertaining contexts. No wonder these engrossing activities prove to be excellent tools for hands-on STEM learning, requiring minimal preparation and expense.

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