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Since I started bringing STEM challenges into my classroom, I have watched many of my students learning and problem solving skills grow. Hands-on learning through STEM leads to problem solving, critical thinking, team work and much more. These activities are easy to set up and even easier to prepare with this collection of 33 STEM Challenge Task Cards.
STEM activities typically incorporate skills in math, technology, engineering and math. The more of these subjects mixed into the activity, the better. The activities tend to be hands-on and allow for countless possible correct answers to each challenge.
One of my favorite things about STEM challenges is watching my students come up with unique and incredibly creative solutions that never crossed my mind when creating the challenge. STEM challenges encourage a different way of thinking and unusual answers are always my favorite.
This collection of STEM challenges are unique because each of the ideas below also include a free printable task card. You can print the task card to post with the materials for children to complete independently or create STEM kits. The task cards are also a great way to keep kids focused on the challenge.
If you like this collection of activities, make sure to check out Hands-On Teaching Ideas popular collection of 45+ STEM Building Challenges and 60 Best STEM Activities for Kids.
Most of the free stem activity printables featured below can be downloaded in the Free Resource Library. A link to subscribe and access the library is available at the bottom of this post.
STEM Activity Ideas
For each of the ideas below, make sure to click the link, or the image for the full activity description. On the bottom of each page, the individual task card can be downloaded. Or if you sign up through Teaching Ideas you will be able to access the Free Library where all of the resources are.
Grab a bunch of straws and pipe cleaners for this STEM challenge. Children bend, test and create various shapes and structures using only the materials provided.
One of the great things about STEM challenges is that they typically use simple materials that you often already have on hand when working with children. As you look through the ideas below, consider materials that you have access to and don’t have to purchase. Keep it simple.
Simple STEM Activities
Using only a few materials, can you keep a ball in place while a hair dryer is directed at it?
Clean Water STEM
Learning about how valuable clean water is is an important lesson. This Clean Water Experiment for Kids is great to try for Earth Day, or any day. Using the materials provided, how clean can you get the dirty water? Is it clean enough to drink?
Kids love playing with and experimenting with water, check out 33+ Best Water STEM Activities.
This challenge is always a favorite and perfect for a lazy Saturday at home. Using only paper and tape, can you create a structure that you can sit in?
Easy STEM Challenge Using Only 2 Materials
This STEM challenge doesn’t include a task card exactly, but it does include the materials needed to do the challenge. This Straw Rocket STEM Challenge is always popular and great to get kids outside.
Make a list of activities to try this summer, like the straw rocket, that are perfect for screen-free fun: 37 Simple Summer STEM Activities
If kids love animals, then they’ll love creating a home for them. With only popsicle sticks and clothes pins, children create a fenced off area perfect for a plastic animal figure.
This is one of my first, and still one of my favorite STEM challenges. With only reusable cups and jumbo popsicle sticks, can you create a tower high enough for an animal to stand on top.
How far can you send the dough flying? Challenge children to create a catapult with this Simple Popsicle Stick STEM Activity.
Bridge Building STEM Activity
STEM challenges are a great way to use familiar materials in a whole new way. Bring out your buckets of Lego for this Build a Bridge STEM Challenge. Add a piece of blue paper for children to create a bridge, with the Lego, that crosses from one side to the other.
For more bridge building STEM challenges, check out 10 Easy Bridge Building STEM Challenges.
Teach children a bit about what materials float, and what sinks. With just a few materials, create a boat that will not only float, but can also hold a weight.
At the end of summer, hang onto your pool noodles for this Easy STEM Activity.
If you have playdough and wooden blocks, you have everything you need for this Building Block STEM Challenge. This is a great starter activity to introduce children to STEM challenges because it is easy to build and create with the materials and allows for lots of design options and creativity.
This STEM challenge is a little bit different from others, but it is always popular when I do it in my classroom. With only paper and glue, create the roller coaster of your dreams. Make sure to talk to students as they build to describe the different parts of their coaster. Kids always get really creative with this activity.
STEM Activity Make Your Own Roller Coaster
STEM Activity Cards
One item that tends to be in most households, and classrooms, are wooden blocks of some kind. Grab your collection of blocks for this challenge. Whether you do the challenge as a whole class, or individual children work on their own, children will get creative with the blocks as they turn them into countless other items and objects, such as a staircase, boat and more!
STEM Building Blocks Challenges
Part of a STEM challenge is the brainstorming process before building. Sometimes the ideas are written down, other times they stay in children’s minds. With this challenge, children draw their ideas and solutions before they build.
Bridge building is a common challenge with STEM activities. Different materials change the challenge, but a bridge is a great way to get kids thinking about structures, shapes and strength.
For more hands-on bridge building ideas, check out 9 Best Bridge Building STEM Challenges and extend the learning even further.
Tower STEM Challenge Task Cards
This is one of my favorites! Grab some paper plates and paper towel rolls for this Simple STEM Activity for Kids. This is a great challenge to start with for young children because they can very quickly become successful in their creation.
As children get better creating and building with simple materials, increase the challenge with STEM activities like this Simple Paper STEM Activity. Using only paper and tape, create a structure that can hold a weight.
Seasonal STEM Challenge Task Cards
Since I create many of my STEM activities for the classroom, I often create them for specific themes or celebrations that we learn about in my classroom. Below are some of my favorite themed activities to make STEM learning happen all year!
Using a table top, create a path for the egg to travel and find its way back to its nest. Kids will love ‘helping’ get the egg back home.
For even more spring themed activities, check out a collection of 35 Easy Spring STEM Activities. For activities such as STEM challenges and building to science and math activities.
This Easy Winter STEM Activity is always a busy center when I put it out in my classroom. Using styrofoam balls, to represent snowballs, and toothpicks, create a snow fort. The styrofoam balls are a unique material for children to build with and it’s a great sensory activity as they get the toothpick through the ball.
Reuse the toothpicks from the previous activity for this Winter STEM Challenge where children use the materials to create a snow fort. Both of these activities will result in a similar structure, but children will find great differences in building with the styrofoam versus the playdough.
Winter is a great time to explore everything the season has to offer. This popular collection of 43 Easy Winter STEM Activities gives lots of ideas for hands-on challenges that are all winter themed!
Snowball fight! Create a winter catapult with this Free Winter STEM Challenge Kids Will Love. Incorporate math into the activity by measuring how far each child, or group, is able to get their snowball.
STEM Activities for Holidays
Some STEM activities include an element of art. This lovebug activity is perfect for any Valentine celebration. Children use only a few materials to create an adorable critter!
Keep the learning happening throughout Valentines with 37 Valentines Day STEM Activities.
Make mom something special this Mother’s Day with a printable “Happy Mother’s Day” card craft. Children have to use a few simple materials to complete the card and create three flowers for mom.
The classic St. Patrick’s Day challenge involves creating a leprechaun launch! Measure how far your leprechaun goes flying through the air and improve your catapult after you test it.
Easy St. Patrick’s Day STEM Challenge
From rainbows to fizzing coins, check out this collection of 27 St. Patrick’s Day STEM Activities.
During the holidays, I’m always looking for new hands-on activities that children have to think and problem solve, such as for this reindeer home Christmas STEM Activity.
This Christmas tree toss includes the catapult featured in many other STEM challenges. Even if you do the catapult for another challenge, it’s a great idea to do it again for Christmas. Children learn how to make a catapult and learn what works best after trying it different ways.
Each time I bring one of the catapult challenges into my classroom, all of my students want to try! This Free New Years Eve STEM Activity is also a great idea to create on New Years with children and groups to keep them engaged and learning, even on this special night.
Thanksgiving STEM Challenge Task Cards
We had a group of kids over for Thanksgiving so I wanted a few Thanksgiving themed activities and games to keep kids busy. This Turkey Table Thanksgiving STEM Challenge can easily be played at the kids table.
Can you make a home for a turkey? This Thanksgiving make a structure that the (free) turkey cutout fits and sits comfortably inside.
Another catapult challenge and this one always gets a lot of laughs. Children create their catapult to send their turkey flying through the air!
Fun Thanksgiving STEM Challenge
If you always end up with a bunch of extra plastic eggs after Easter, hang onto them for this Easy Easter STEM Activity. With just the eggs and jumbo popsicle sticks, children build, create and reuse the eggs.
For more Easter themed activities for kids at home, or in the classroom, visit a collection of 22 Best Easter STEM Activities.
This Father’s Day get really creative with this DIY STEAM challenge. Print the activity page and provide children with random craft type materials to create an image of their father. Either glue all of the supplies down, or take a picture to create a card for dad.
Access the Free STEM Challenge Task Cards
Most of the task cards and activities featured above can be accessed through the Free Resource Library. There are over 100 free printables for you to download and use. The STEM cards are available for free as well. When in the library do a search for your STEM card and make sure to click the image for the resource you want.
Start by subscribing, through Grow by clicking the grey box below. Once you subscribe, a link for the library will appear. Click the link and start downloading! Also by subscribing through Grow, you will unlock the other freebies on this site. Using Grow will also ensure that if you sign up once this way, at the bottom of each of the activities above, the task card will be available to you in one click!
STEM Kit
If you are looking for even more STEM challenges, this STEM kit is all you will need! With 50 hands-on STEM challenges, using only 15 materials, you can gather your supplies and have 50 STEM challenges at your fingertips to use whenever you are looking for an engaging activity. Print all of the STEM challenge task cards and create a booklet to pick and choose an activity any day.
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