Challenge
Since it is now officially spring, the flora will start blooming and then before you know it, be ready to disperse their seeds. Flora depends and relies on their seeds to help with expansion and growth into different areas. Some plants have structures that allow their seeds to become airborne and soar long distances. What do you think these seeds look like? How far do you think the seeds can travel? How will you test it out? Enter this month’s challenge. You and your group need to design a wind dispersed seed structure to carry a single seed the farthest distance possible. The seed you will be carrying is a lima bean.

Your seed structure does have some criteria and constraints. You can only use a single piece of paper of your choice. The seed must stay attached to the structure. If the seed falls out during flight, the distance will be calculated as zero. You can test your structure during the build process with the fan. For the final test, you will have three trials, measure each distance, and average them together for your final distance.

Materials

• fan
• lima bean seeds
• computer paper
• construction paper
• card stock paper
• scissors
• tape measures

Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the different paper types to see how durable and heavy they are. Also, let students handle the lima beans to get a sense of their mass.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their design. Students may start fresh with a new piece of paper if they would like to change their design, but you may want to limit how many pieces of paper they can do this with.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials (tape, glue, string), take away certain materials, show them different wind dispersed seeds from nature, make something without a seed or with more seeds. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure to standardize the height and distance students are dropping their seeds in front or the fan. For example, tape a ruler or pole to the back of the fan then an index card to the top of the ruler or pole jutting out it front of the fan. Students then would drop their dispersal structure with the bottom touching the edge of the card.
5. Allow students to build and experiment with their designs and perform their final three trials. Students should average the three trials together.  If possible, discuss the outcomes, compare and contrast structures based upon distance, relate to the real world, and share improvements to be made, and allow students to improve their seed dispersal structure.
6. Connect to science by discussing gravity, weight, mass, structure and function of organisms, growth, reproduction.
7. Connect to ELA by reading Travelling Seeds by Rebecca Bielawski, Who Will Plant a Tree by Jerry Pallotta, or Flip, Float, Fly: Seeds on the Move by JoAnn Early Macken, to explore concepts related to how seeds are dispersed in nature. 

Challenge
Earth Day is celebrated every year on April 22nd. It was first celebrated in 1970. It is a day used to promote and support environmental protection for our Earth. We don't need a special day to celebrate. We can celebrate this day year round! We have to think of our future and generations to come.  Taking care of the Earth is best for every organism in the future.  What are some things you do to protect our Earth?  What are some things others can do to help the Earth? This leads right into the challenge for the month.  How can you reuse materials to reduce your impact on the environment?

For this challenge, there are not any criteria or constraints! Use your imagination to think of different ways to use something, especially plastic items since they take a very long time to decompose.  Search the web.  Learn how others or reusing items to make art, clothing, fashion accessories, bags/wallets, jewelry, etc.   

*This idea and challenge and be further explored in the Advancing STEM Kindergarten Unit, Spot the Differences: Changes to the Environment

Materials

• various reusable items
• tape
• glue
• rubber bands

Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning, research, and discussion time to decide what they would like to reuse, how they would like to reuse it, and what they are going to create.
2. After the initial step, allow student groups to plan their design and collect any materials they will need for their creation.
3. For differentiation, provide ideas students could possibly make, show students websites and artifacts of items that have been reused, assign students parts of a whole, keep track of the waste the classroom makes in a day/week/month, etc.
4. Discuss pros and cons of using different materials and items and why it is important to reuse/recycle them instead of throwing them away.
5. Connect to science by discussing environment, human impact, natural and non-renewable resources, reduce, reuse, recycle, pollution, etc.
6. Connect to ELA by reading Don’t Throw That Away by Lara Bergen or The Adventures of the Plastic Bottle by Alison Inches.  Both stories follow the paths of items being recycled and how to reuse them. 

Challenge
March is National Music in Our Schools so this challenge will follow suit! Sound dampening materials are used in the music industry to produce high quality sound. Without these materials the sounds from outside or inside could mix together. Imagine listening to your favorite song, but there are birds chirping in the background since they were outside the recording studio that day! It probably would ruin the song. There is a need for sound proofing to create excellent recordings. What materials help reduce sounds? How much of the material is need? That’s where the challenge comes in. Your challenge is to construct a prototype room for dampening sound coming from a device. What will be the best materials to use? What already exists in the real world or your school that does this?

Your sound proofing room does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. Each groups’ room should be the same size. Testing the room should be placed over the same device emitting the sound. Or the device inside could be recording and sound coming from outside the room.

Materials

• poster board
• cardboard boxes
• cotton balls
• felt
• craft sticks
• foam pieces
• various fabric
• tape
• glue
• paper
• foil
• etc.
• device for playing sound
• device for decibel meter app (Decibel X)

​
Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see how flexible, movable, and heavy they are. Also, let students test to see how the app or decibel meter works.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their design. Include as many ways to improve their prototype rooms as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials, take away certain materials, show them different sound proofing rooms, amount of time in the room. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. If using cardboard boxes of some sort, they should all be the same size with one side completely open. If using the poster board or other type of paper, create a cube net stencil that students can trace, cutout, fold, and tape to create an open box to represent their room. The unfolded net would work well for creating their room before folding it together.
5. Make sure to standardize procedure of testing the room. The app allows the user to record the data collected so students will be able to test it out and the amount of sound it is picking up either inside the room or outside of the room created.
6. The classroom will have to be as noise free as possible when testing since the meter will pick up all sounds. Ensure that the noise being played is at the same level for each room being tested.
7. Discuss with students the best way to conduct the activity and collect data.
8. Connect to science by discussing sound waves, properties of materials, absorption, reflection, refraction, etc.
9. Connect to ELA by reading How Sounds Move by Sharon Coan, Sounds All Around by Wendy Pfeffer, or Sound: Loud, Soft, High, and Low by Natalie Myra Rosinsky

Challenge
It’s the month of Febrrrrrruary according to the weather. It’s definitely providing some cold temperatures as it starts and will most likely continue. How do you stay warm when going outside in this weather? What makes you stay the warmest? Do you wear different types of clothes during the winter for different temperatures? How come? What types of fabrics are used in winter clothing? After thinking about all these questions, think which hat, glove, scarf, sock, or boot would keep you the warmest. That is your challenge this month, to find out which of these items will help you stay the warmest. Gather a bunch of different types of these in your classroom or at home to help you decide. Your ultimate challenge is to construct a method to fairly test which items will keep you the warmest. Be sure to make predictions, collect data, and share your findings.

Your method does have some criteria and constraints. Make sure to use different types of gloves, boots, scarves, and socks, the same type of thermometer, to reset the thermometers to room temperature, to allow the same amount of time when testing each item, etc.  

Materials

• thermometers
• variety of mittens/gloves
• variety of hats
• variety of scarves
• variety of boots
• variety of socks

​
Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time of how they are going to set up their experiments to be sure they are doing fair trials.
2. After planning and discussion, allow student groups to create their data charts for their experiments. Students can share their data charts and ideas of fair testing as needed, which can allow other groups to adjust their thinking.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amounts of items to be used, provide guidelines for fair testing/amounts of time to test, provide the data charts, etc.
4. After experiments, discuss results as a class to see which item keeps the body the warmest. (The data should show that the items do not make the thermometer show much, if any, in difference in temperatures). Have students ask questions after analyzing to gather their thoughts.
5. Inform class that body temperature creates the heat and these items help trap the heat to keep the body warm.
6. Have students redesign their experiments with this notion in mind repeating steps 1-4 to complete the challenge.
7. Connect to science by discussing energy, thermal energy, properties of materials, heat, energy transfer, temperature, and weather.
8. Connect to ELA by reading The Mitten by Jan Brett or How Heat Moves by Sharon Coan, or The Energy That Warms Us: A Look at Heat by Jennifer Boothroyd to explore some concepts around heat.

​Challenge
Happy New Year! It was officially winter on December 21st and that means the weather will continue changing this month to be more winter-ish. Colder temperatures could mean snow and ice and the possibility of water freezing on the roads and sidewalks. How does this happen? What makes the snow/water turn to ice? Better yet, what is the best way to get rid of the ice on the sidewalks or roads to prevent accidents? Snowplows do their best to prevent accidents but what are they spreading on the road? Is there something better? What do you spread on your sidewalk to get rid of the ice? Which dissolvent works the fastest? Your challenge is to figure out which ice melter is the best.

Your challenge does have some criteria and constraints. The ice cubes being used for the test should be from the same water source, the same approximate size, and conducted at the same time of an experiment. Make sure to also continually check the experiment and during the same time intervals.

Materials

• ice cube trays
• small containers for the ice cube melting
• ice cubes
• measuring device
• magnifier
• sand, dirt, tiny pebbles
• various ice melters and/or salt (non-iodized salt, iodized salt, kosher salt, rock salt, sea salt, etc. and/or store-bought ice melts)

Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them examine the various melters to see how they are differently composed such as size, shape, color, and even names. A magnifier or microscope might help with some of these items.
2. After examining, allow student groups to plan their experiment. For the first experiment, you may want students to test each melter separately on small pieces of ice to get an idea on how each melter reacts to the ice. For the following experiments, allow students to mix different melters together and add any other materials they think will help the process.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials, take away certain materials, allow students to shake their containers. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure to standardize the experiment and the amount of melter to use. For example, if students want to individually test out all of the melters first, they should use the same amount of the melter on the ice. Also, a standardized way of measuring the melted ice needs to be considered. Students may think of finding the mass of the ice before and after it’s been melted.
5. Discuss pros and cons of the different ice melters and of the experiment. For example, one might be more expensive than another or in our experiment the temperature is warmer inside than when being outside so the ice could have melted not because of the chosen melter.
6. Connect to science by discussing weather, properties of matter, or chemistry.
7. Connect to ELA by reading about melting and freezing such as Why Does Ice Melt (How? What? Why?) by Jim Pipe, which has additional activities on melting and heating, or Snowplows by Rebecca Pettiford to discover how a snowplow gets the job done.

 

Challenge
This month's challenge is a little different than previous months'. It is based on the Hour of Code! The challenge is to have every student in your classroom complete at least an Hour of Code in the month of December.

The Hour of Code initiative takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week, which is December 3-9. You can experience this at any time of the year, though! It is held annually in recognition of the birthday of computing pioneer Admiral Grace Murray Hopper (December 9, 1906). 

The Hour of Code started as a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify "code", to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. It has since become a worldwide effort to celebrate computer science, starting with 1-hour coding activities but expanding to all sorts of community efforts. 

Head here, https://hourofcode.com/us/learn, to checkout the free tutorials and experiences for all grade levels.

Additional information about completing the challenge and on the initiative can be found at ​https://hourofcode.com/us.

​Happy Coding!

Challenge
Apples are the fruit of the season, autumn. There are so many ways to eat an apple, from apple cider to apple pie. Apples can be picked right from the tree or off the ground if not too severely damaged from their descent. Certain technology has been engineered to pick apples from trees. Most look like 3/4 of a small wire cage to grab and catch the apple on the end of a long handle. But, what about picking apples up off the ground? Is there something better that would work for this task? Your challenge is to construct a device for lifting an apple or more off the ground. What will be the best materials to use? What already exists in the real world that lifts items? Would it be better to lift more than one apple at a time?

Your apple picker upper does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. Your device has to be able to lift an apple 30 cm off the ground. The device must lift the apple without too much assistance (try to use simple machines to do the work).  

Materials

• apples
• masking/duct tape
• cardboard pieces
• construction paper
• yarn
• paper clips
• clay
• straws
• cups
• any other additional materials

Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see how flexible, movable, and heavy they are. Also, let students test how heavy an apple is.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their design. Include as many ways to improve their apple picker uppers as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials, take away certain materials, show them different uses of simple machines, include more apples to be picked up at once, change the height needed to be lifted. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure to standardize the platform students are building on. For example, if students are building a type of crane/pulley system, be sure to make it fair so they are placing it the same level above the ground.
5. Discuss pros and cons of different simple machines or ideas of apple picker uppers.
6. Connect to science by discussing gravity, weight, mass, weight bearing loads, strength/properties of materials, forces, Newtons.
7. Connect to ELA by reading Pull, Lift, and Lower: A Book About Pulleys or Scoop, Seesaw, and Raise: A Book About Levers both by Michael Dahl, to explore some concepts around simple machines and for students to gather ideas about what they could design.

 

Challenge
It’s September and time to get back to school! At the beginning of the year, establishing routines is a must. Why not include collaboration and teamwork as part of that routine? This month’s challenge provides the opportunity to focus on teamwork. As they say, teamwork makes the dream work. Your challenge is to work together to build two exact structures out of building materials. Half of the team will get a structure already built or not, but then guide the other half of the team to build the same thing.

Your team does have some criteria and constraints. Your team will consist of 4-6 people. Both team halves (2-3 people) will get identical building supplies. But your team cannot see each other or the building materials. There should be a divider put between the team halves, so the structures cannot be seen. One half is the guide team instructing the other half to build the same structure.

Materials

• building material sets (2 for each team)
  • K’nex
  • Legos
  • Blocks
  • Lincoln logs
  • Tinker toys
• dividers

Hints and Tips for Success

1. If students are unfamiliar with the building materials, have them interact with the materials so they know how they fit together and can be utilized to build structures.
2. Have the structures pre-built for the teams. Hand them out secretively so the other members of the team cannot see it. Then have teams start. The guides with the pre-built structure guide the other team members (builders) to construct the exact same structure they have. Having the same pre-built structure for a whole group keeps the challenge consistent.
3. Or hand the identical materials to the guides and builders. Put up the dividers between the team members. Instruct the guides to build a structure while communicating with their builders to build the same thing. The guides could also build their structure first, then communicate with the builders to do the same.
4. Have teams change roles after the first round and complete the challenge again.
5. Debrief the challenge with the teams. How were the members or each team utilized? What was frustrating about the challenge? How did you work through these frustrations? What strategies did you use to simplify the challenge? How did you know when other members needed help? What did you do to help them? Why can it be difficult working as a team? What makes it easier to work in a team? What did you learn from this activity about teamwork? 

Challenge
One activity my family and I just did this summer was a water balloon toss! We filled many balloons with water, but all the balloons had different amounts in them. We weren't being scientific at the time because our main goal was fun. But during the toss competition, I started noticing some differences. Some water balloons broke very easily when tossing back and forth. Other water balloons bounced off hands and off of concrete like bouncy balls! How could this be? What was the difference? This made me think of this month's STEM Challenge. Your challenge is to construct the best device for catching a water balloon without it breaking during a water balloon toss. What will be the best material to use? Are there items already designed or things from nature you could replicate? How far will your design last?

Your water balloon catcher does have some criteria and constraints. The water balloon being tested should be about the same size for all designs. The same distance should be used when tossing back and forth to the water balloon catcher. 

Materials

• water balloons
• netting
• assorted plastic bags
• other balloons
• cardboard pieces
•  assorted fabrics (old shirts)
• cotton balls/stuffing
• rubber bands
• tape
• string/yarn
• paper

Hints and Tip for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see how flexible, movable, heavy they are, and how they might be used to create a catcher.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their design. Include as many ways to improve their catchers as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials, increase or decrease the water in the balloon being tossed, give specific dimensions the catcher must be. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Determine a process for tossing the water balloon to the catcher for all groups so it is consistent,  what to do if their catcher works (greatest distance it will work), and agree on how the balloon will be tossed (overhand, underhand, lots of arc, little arc).
5. Discuss properties of each material and ask students to think about the properties of a water balloon (what makes it break easily or bounce? does the color of the balloon change these properties?)
6. Connect to engineering by discussing properties of materials, designing any type of container for holding water, or developing ways to transport fragile items safely.
7. Connect to ELA by reading Balloon Trees by Danna Smith, where it takes the reader through the journey oh how a balloon starts as a tree to its completion.  A fiction book is Harvey Potter's Balloon Farm by Jerdine Nolen that explores how a farmer grows balloons.

Challenge
The sun emits harmful UV rays year-round. Even on cloudy days, up to 80 percent of the sun’s harmful UV rays can penetrate your skin. Sunlight consists of two types of harmful rays that reach the earth — UVA rays and UVB rays. Overexposure to either can lead to skin damage. In addition, here are other effects of what each of these rays can do:

• UVA rays (or aging rays) can prematurely age your skin, causing wrinkles and age spots, and can pass through window glass.
• UVB rays (or burning rays) are the primary cause of sunburn and are blocked by window glass.

So how do you prevent damage from the sun? Hopefully, you answered with something along the lines of using sunscreen or SPF (sun protection factor). There are so many different versions! Which is the best? How long does sunscreen work in the sun? Does the brand matter? These are all questions that you can try out for this month’s STEM Challenge. But just remember, no sunscreen is able to block 100 percent of the sun’s rays.
For criteria and constraints, it’s up to you to figure them out! It’s suggested that you put the same number of beads in the same kind of bag. The testing protocols are yours to choose, but just make sure everything you conduct is a fair test.

Materials

• plastic UV beads (similar to these https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LZFI7AF/ref=sspa_dk_detail_1?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B01LZFI7AF&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=1713835751726239774&pf_rd_r=5ZBP9BH4RE8NTT7QE165&pd_rd_wg=Ag2T5&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&pd_rd_w=mByta&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pd_rd_r=ac5f2b23-807f-11e8-94ad-0d6a86c107a2)
• marker
• plastic sandwich bags
• other materials as needed
• various sunscreens with various SPF if needed

​
Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time for creating fair tests of how they will answer the question of their choice. Evaluate trials to ensure there is fairness and equity. Questions to consider but are not limited to: Are all brands of a certain SPF the same protection? Can you be in the sun longer with a different SPF? What’s the best sunscreen? How often should you reapply sunscreen? Does there come a time limit when SPF doesn’t matter?
2. After discussing and creating fair tests, allow student groups to plan their trial with the materials provided. Include as many ways to improve their trials as needed.
3. For differentiation, provide the question students need to answer, provide the fair test steps, have all groups working on the same question, limit the amount of questions in the class. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure groups are measuring the same amount of sunscreen for each trial as close as possible, using the same number of beads for every trial, laying the beads out the same number of minutes/hours in the same location, and labeling each bag with the brand and SPF of the sunscreen. Students should be trying to answer the question stated for their challenge.
5. Determine a process for adhering sunscreen to the beads for a fair test. One way is to put the beads in a sandwich bag, flatten the bag, and apply an even amount of sunscreen over the bag.
6. Connect to science by discussing the effects of sunlight or UV rays.
7. Connect to ELA by reading Sammy Learns About Sunscreen by Manisha Shelley Kaura, Sunscreen Irene by Larry and Jen Cheifetz, or Hey! Don’t Forget the Sunscreen by Kimberly Kennedy. Each book provides examples of the importance of wearing sunscreen when going outside with helpful hints.

Challenge
The first parachute jump was taken by Garnerin in Paris in 1797. Since then, engineers have been designing many types of parachutes for different needs with the right material and attachments. June is a great month to get outside and go sky diving with parachutes! For this challenge, you won’t be building a parachute for yourself, but for a toy to safely reach the ground. Your challenge is to construct the best parachute for the safest landing for a plastic figurine. What will be the best material to use? What do parachutes look like? What type of string should be used to attach to the figurine? How large should the parachute be and how long should the strings be? What is the most effective parachute for the figurine?

Your parachute does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. Your parachute has to be connected to the figurine the same exact way for all tests. The same height should be tested every time.  

Materials

• Plastic figurines: all similar (army men or Lego minifigures)
• masking tape
• plastic bags
• different sized coffee filters
• tissue paper
• t-shirts
• yarn
• string
• fishing line

Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see how flexible, movable, and heavy they are. Students could test out materials by cutting them the same size and dropping them to see how they move through the air.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their design. Include as many ways to improve their parachutes as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials, increase or decrease the weight the parachute needs to carry, give specific dimensions the parachute must be. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure groups are measuring their parachutes sizes and string lengths, timing the drops, and observing the effectiveness of their parachutes for analyzing purposes.  Students should be trying to answer the questions stated in the challenge.
5. Determine a process for attaching the parachute to the figurine for all groups so it is consistent,  inform students of the height which the parachute will be dropped, and agree on how the parachute will be dropped (pinching the middle of the parachute, holding it with and outstretched arm, and dropping it, instead of throwing, works best).
6. Discuss properties of each material and ask students to think about the different parachutes they might have seen. Students can research the different types of parachutes (sizes, shapes, materials, forms) and how they are used in the real world.
7. Connect to science by discussing gravity, air resistance (drag), and/or properties of materials.
8. Connect to ELA by reading I Fall Down by Vicki Cobb, where it takes the reader through different stop-and-try-it moments to better understand gravity.  Nonfiction books about parachutes or gravity would fit well with this concept as well.

Challenge
This month is the 144th Kentucky Derby. The best horses will race 1.25 miles around the track at Churchill Downs. Who will help them guide the track? The jockey that rides the horses will do this. A jockey must be light in weight but still be able to control the horse. This a large factor in the competition and winning the race. So for this month, the challenge is going to be creating and designing a mock jockey for a mock horse! How can you make your jockey aerodynamic? How will the jockey stay on the horse? Where should the jockey sit? What will be the race conditions? Your challenge is to think about these questions and use all your given materials to build a jockey that will sit on top a matchbox car (your horse) and goes the fastest speed or longest distance.

Your jockey does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design and ALL of them must be used. You should try to use the same matchbox car as everyone else in the class. The jockey must stay on the car for the entire race. You cannot change the car in any way. The race must be conducted as fair as possible.   

Materials

• 1 matchbox car
• 4 toothpicks
• 2 index cards
• 1 foot thread/string/yarn
• 2 rubber bands
• 5-feet string piece
• 1 foot tape
• stopwatch
  

​
​Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see how flexible and movable they are. Students could test out cars to time them before their jockey is attached.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their jockey and race time as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available, items needed to use, add any additional materials, take away materials, have students choose from a variety of cars, have the jockey need to look like a person. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Create some sort of race track by using a wide piece of cardboard or other sturdy material set up like a ramp. This way multiple cars can be placed on the track at a time. Create a gate for the cars so that when lifted, all the cars start at the same exact time.
5. Discuss if students would like to race to see which car and jockey is the fastest over a certain distance or travels the longest distance after leaving the ramp.
6. Connect to science by discussing forces, air resistance, friction, speed, or variables.
7. Connect to math by having students graph their times or measure the distance their cars and jockeys travel after each race.
8. Connect to ELA by having students create a broadcast of the event as announcers of the race. Students can use a green screen app to broadcast and provide a photo finish for tight races.

Challenge
The windiest month of the year is usually March. The second? April. It’s a little nicer in April than in March to fly kites, which is why it’s the National Kite Month. Besides flying kites, what else does the wind help us do? One thing that has become more common is using the wind to generate power (energy) with windmills. Windmills will be involved in the challenge this month. The challenge is to build windmill blades that generate the most power. How many blades should there be? What types of blades catch the most wind? Use your skills to find out!

Your windmill blades do have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. The blades can only be a certain height determined by the height of the windmill base. The blade spokes need to be coffee stirrers or craft sticks, but part of the blade that catches the wind can be any material.

Materials

• index cards
• tissue paper
• toothpicks
• tape
• string
• foam ball
• wooden skewer
• empty juice carton
• small paper cups
• craft sticks
• coffee stirrers
• paper
• aluminum foil
• wax paper
• small 3 speed fan
• washers, coins, marbles, or other small objects for weights

​
Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see how flexible and movable they are. They could also research different windmills to study the blades, how they are positioned, how many there are, or how they are angled.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design and decide which materials would be best. Include as many ways to improve their windmill blades as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials, provide examples of blades that work, show them the different angles, start with little weight in the cup. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. To make the windmill, fill the empty juice carton with heavy items to hold it in place. Poke the wooden skewer through the top of the juice carton and wiggle it around so the hole is big enough for the skewer to twist freely. Secure a piece of string the length of the carton to a small cup using tape or another fashion. On the dull end of the skewer, tie the other end of the string holding the cup. The students should be able to add weights to the cup. When the skewer twists, it should now cause the string to wrap around the end, raising the cup.
5. Give groups of students a foam ball to use as their center. This ball will be attached to the front of the windmill base, opposite the string and cup. Demonstrate how the windmill works with the students by attaching the foam ball and twisting it. Remind them that their goal is to cause the windmill to generate power by lifting the cup with weights. The fan should be placed in front of the windmill about 1 foot away.
6. Challenge the students further by using different speeds on the fan and adding more weight to the cup if they succeed.
7. Connect to science by discussing weather conditions including severe weather, speed of an object to the energy of the object, or energy and natural resources.
8. Connect to ELA by reading The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Wheeler, where the main character builds a windmill to help provide a water well for the village. Nonfiction books about wind or windmills would fit well with this concept as well.