The beauty of science is that it can be done anywhere – and it’s fun, too! Read on for a list of interesting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) projects that can be done at home or in your yard or neighborhood. All of the projects below are fun for the whole family, but some will require parental supervision.
Some links are marked as PDF links below. Get Adobe Acrobat Reader here.
A huge thank-you to StarNet for collecting most of the activities below!
Craft Projects
Animal Remix: Cut out animals from magazines and mix and match animal parts to create your own animal! Have fun deciding its name, where it lives, and what it eats. As a fun follow-up activity, use clay or play dough and recycled materials to build your animals in 3D!
Cloud Mobile: Use templates (you’ll need to print them out) and styrofoam to create a cloud mobile. Learn about different types of clouds and experiment with how they affect your mobile!
Locomotion Commotion: Toy cars get new life as artists in this fun painting project. Use the wheels as paintbrushes to create interesting art.
Nature Wristbands: Take a walk and come back with a fun new bracelet!
Pressing Plants: Plant-pressing has been done for hundreds of years, as a way to study or enjoy the beauty of plants year-round. Try pressing some of the plants around your yard (even the ugly weeds).
Recycled Planter (PDF link): Use items you already have around your house to create a recycled planter. It’s the perfect time to open the curtains and watch birds and insects enjoy spring!
Wind Chimes: Use natural and recycled materials to create wind chimes.
Engineering Experiments
Balloon Joust: Missing the Renaissance Festival? (So are we!) Replicate some of the fun at home with balloons, straws, and a few other necessary bits to create your own joust. Safety goggles recommended!
Block Building Challenge (PDF link): All you need are sponges and some imagination for this project. See if you can replicate the sponge-block buildings in the PDF link, or set challenges: how high can you stack? Can you make a tower with a pattern or using certain shapes?
Create a Zipline (PDF link): Have fun making life a little easier at home with your own zipline (or create some epic action-figure battles!)
Edible Destruction (PDF link): Use paper plates, dry goods like pretzel sticks, and marshmallows to try to create a structure that can survive disaster! Part of the fun of this project is creating a “shake table” to simulate an earthquake!
Ice Exploration: Freeze small items in ice cubes and use household tools to excavate them.
Paper Mountains (PDF link): Use markers and a water dropper to simulate how rivers and streams flow down mountain ridges.
Roll On Through: Paper towel or toilet paper rolls, cardboard, boxes, and tape can be combined to make fun tunnels for balls and toy vehicles.
Soda-Straw Rockets: Simple household items can be used to make fun soda-straw rockets. Whose will go the furthest? FYI: You’ll need to print and cut out a template from the link to make these rockets.
Outdoor Projects
Drawing Nature: A piece of paper and pencils or crayons are all you need to go out and try drawing nature. Try drawing something small, or something very big. Use all your observational skills!
Nature Wristbands: Take a walk and come back with a fun new bracelet!
One Foot Wonders: This project can be done in- or outside. Hunt down all the objects you can find that are one foot long!
Pressing Plants: Plant-pressing has been done for hundreds of years, as a way to study or enjoy the beauty of plants year-round. Try pressing some of the plants around your yard (even the ugly weeds).
Shadow Tracing: Trace shadows at different times of day to see how the sun’s movement affects your shadow. You can trace other objects, too!
Wind Chimes: Use natural and recycled materials to create wind chimes.
Recipes
Science Cooks! Granola Snack (PDF link): Learn about nutritional facts and how ingredients can change the nutrition content of food. Plus, whip up some yummy granola while you’re at it!
Solar Cupcakes (PDF link): Bake and decorate cupcakes while exploring aspects of the sun. Or try decorating a cookie – see this PDF link for details.
Writing
Planetary Poetry: Try writing a poem about an aspect of space you enjoy.
A Wonderful Weather Story (PDF link): Learn and practice the parts of speech to write a silly weather story.