You don’t have to have a complicated supply list for an engineering challenge. Nor, do you have to create something something spectacular and life-changing. Simple is best.
Kids learn from taking items from their everyday life and using them in new ways to do simple things. It helps them understand the world around them and how things work.
For this engineering challenge, give each of your students a sheet of foil and a few drinking straws. Their challenge is to create a foil boat that is no larger than 6 X 6 X 6. The boats have to float and not tip over easily. After the boats pass the float and tip tests on the water, start adding pennies (you can use marbles, too). The boat that holds the most pennies without tipping over or taking on water wins the challenge.
Related post: 50+ STEAM Activities
When doing this and other engineering challenges, don’t worry if your students create something that doesn’t look like a typical boat or whatever else the challenge is about. The idea isn’t to re-create something familiar. The idea is to think and problem solve. New ways of doing things are great!
More engineering challenge ideas…
This post is part of the 5 Days of Engineering Challenges series, which is part of the iHomeschool Network Homeschool Hopscotch. The Hopscotch is full of homeschool resources.
This is a great resource for tons of engineering project ideas!
Anne says
March 6, 2017 at 9:48 pmI LOVE your ideas!!! Thank you for making them cheap! 🙂
Marci Goodwin says
March 19, 2017 at 10:41 pmI try to make activities easy to do with supplies you probably already have on hand. Have fun with this one!
Richard Tyson says
April 11, 2017 at 4:37 amI work for an international ship management firm and every year we bring a local school in to ” encourage the next generation of seafarers”
I do the engineering part of the day and we always set the kids the same ( boring ) homework task – design the ship of the future.
This year they’re going to be making foil ships and seeing who can carry the most cargo.
Thanks so much for the idea !!
Marci Goodwin says
April 11, 2017 at 8:22 amI love it! Way to make it fun for the kids! I’d love to see pictures of what they come up with.