Use Candy And Toothpicks To Engineer Your Own Structures (Halloween Themed Activity)
While the kids might have doubts about using their candy for anything except gobbling it down, I am sure you will be able to entice them into this fun and educational STEM activity, at least briefly, before munching down on the sugary treats once again. Yup, it that time of the year again, when pillow cases and buckets are filled to the brim with candy corns, lollipops and chocolates galore!
Why not keep to the theme of Halloween this year during some of your lesson planning, and engage your students in an activity that lies within their hype of festivities?
During the month of October I will bringing a series of Halloween themed educational posts to the @steemiteducation channel. Here are some of my recent entries:
- Learn About Bones And Create Your Own Spook Skeletons
- Halloween Experiment - Power A Clock With A Pumpkin!
- Dissolving Candy Corn - Halloween Experiment
- Mad Scientist's Potion - Edible Halloween Treat (Learn About Dry Ice)
- Ghost Rocket Science Experiment - Awesome Halloween Activity
- Halloween Moon Sand - Sensory Play Activity For Pre Schoolers
Today's Addition:
Use Candy And Toothpicks To Engineer Your Own Structures
This is probably the simplest of activities, but has the potential to keep young minds active for quite some time! This is an all round STEM activity, meaning that it involves the use of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, pretty much all at the same time!
What you will need:
- Toothpicks
- Halloween pumpkin candy (or any candy with a soft jelly center)
Like I said, the required materials for an activity have never been more basic than this - what are you waiting for :)
Instructions:
Set out the tooth picks and candy and let the kids get creative! You can either limit the number of candy and toothpicks per student/child or you can allow them to use as much as they need for the building structure they have in mind. You can also set a theme, for instance:
- Who can build the tallest tower?
- Who can build the sturdiest bridge?
- Who can construct the most creative structure?
The kids will be challenged with building their structures through some trial and error, they will have to use both logic and creativity to combine the toothpicks and pieces of candy in a manner that will best fit their main objective/idea that they have in mind or have been set to task. Without realizing it, they will be using mathematics when spacing their materials and choosing the amount of toothpicks and candy pumpkins needed to build the structure they have envisioned.
Did you know?
According to the U. S. Department of Commerce, STEM occupations are growing at 17%, while other occupations are growing at 9.8%. STEM degree holders have a higher income even in non-STEM careers. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics workers play a key role in the sustained growth and stability of the U.S. economy, and are a critical component to helping the U.S. win the future. STEM education creates critical thinkers, increases science literacy, and enables the next generation of innovators. Innovation leads to new products and processes that sustain our economy. This innovation and science literacy depends on a solid knowledge base in the STEM areas. It is clear that most jobs of the future will require a basic understanding of math and science. Despite these compelling facts, mathematics and science scores on average among U.S. students are lagging behind other developing countries. http://engineeringforkids.com/article/02-02-2016_importanceofstem
This activity can be done from age 4 upwards and can be done at home or at school as a group activity. Younger children will build less impressive structures and the candy is most likely to be eaten rather than used constructively, but still, kindergarten age children will still be able to learn basic STEM skills. Older students will be able to design and build more impressive and detailed structures, you can challenge them to engineer sturdy and tall buildings.
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