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

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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
  

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​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.

Challenge
Leprechauns should be making their rounds this month, hiding under rainbows with their pot of gold and four-leaf clovers. Just imagine if you were able to get close to a leprechaun and all its gold. What would you do? Steal his gold? Well, that’s going to be part of the challenge this month. We aren’t going to trap the leprechaun but try and take the gold right from under his nose. Your challenge is to design a tool that will be able to grab the pot of gold from a distance as if you were in the bushes. What will you design, a lasso, a grabber, a sticky hand, a long hook?

Your gold taking tool does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. The tool must be able to reach at least 2 feet. You will also want to make sure the pot of gold doesn’t tip over and spill any gold. The more gold in the pot when it reaches you the better!

Materials

• pot of gold (medicine cup with small items)
• craft sticks
• straws
• tape
• string
• index cards
• clay
• cardboard
• toothpicks
• pipe cleaners
• brass fasteners

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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.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their contraption as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available or allowed to use, add any additional materials, show examples of grabbers, change the distance of the pot of gold, or not to have the gold still left in the pot for success. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure to be clear about where the pot of gold is sitting and where the students are hiding in the bushes. Create a start line and an X to mark the spot of the pot for each group.
5. Make a score chart with them to show how much each gold coin is worth, the pot is worth, getting them all, or any other possibilities they can imagine. Have them attempt to get the pot of gold three times tracking their score for each attempt. Allow them to redesign or fix their tool between attempts if needed.

Challenge
Groundhog's Day is an annual tradition held in Punxsutawney, PA  on February 2. On this day, Punxsutawney Phil, comes out of his burrow on Gobbler's Know to predict the weather for the rest of winter. If he sees his shadow, there will be 6 more weeks of winter. If he doesn't see his shadow, it will be an early spring! This year will be Phil's 132nd prognostication or prediction. What will it be? 
This month's challenge relates to Phil and his shadow.  Your challenge is to build a device that allows Phil to pop out of his burrow and when he is out, his shadow must be 10cm long.

Your design does have some criteria and constraints. When Phil is in his burrow, he must be completely down in there. When he is popped out of his burrow, he must be fully popped. For example, if pressing down on a lever to pop Phil out, the lever must be pressed all the way not just to make the shadow 10cm long. The light being used should be in a fixed position. Testing of Phil should also be done in the same spot.

Materials

• cardboard boxes
• craft sticks
• cardboard scraps
• rubber bands
• tape
• scissors
• glue
• cardstock
• copy paper
• springs/wire
• blocks
• connecting cubes
• string

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 and what they want to use for their "groundhog."
2. Allow students to place items in front of the light to see the size of the shadow the item makes.
3. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their design as needed.
4. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available, add any additional materials, take away materials, give every student a box with a hole on top to be used as the burrow, show them items such as seesaws, levers, pop-up cards, jack-in-the-boxes, pulleys, reels, give every group the same groundhog, have each groups make their own groundhog. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
5. Make sure to set up a testing station where there will be a light shining on to the burrow and an X to mark the spot of where the burrows will be. 
6. Discuss using a ruler to measure 10cm or have strands of string/paper pre-cut that are 10cm.
7. Connect to science topics by correlating this challenge to weather, weather forecasting, measuring, properties of light, shadows, patterns of the Sun.
8. Connect to ELA by reading from the plethora of books about Groundhog's Day and the tradition. Nonfiction books about the previous mentioned science topics or groundhogs would be a great fit as well.  Connect to myths, legends, and traditions since this holiday has background ideas with these topics.
9. Visit http://www.groundhog.org/ for the official website of Punxsutawney Phil to read more information about the tradition.

Challenge
Last month the challenge was trying to keep things warm, but this month the challenge is going to try to keep things cold! The weather sure does change a lot in New York from cold and freezing to above freezing and sunny during the winter. When it was snowy, you might have built a snowman, but now it might have melted. What if you wanted to keep it around? Do you think you’d be allowed to put it in the freezer? We are not going to try and build a large enough freezer for a snowman, but a cooler that will keep ice or snow from melting for a period of time if you brought it inside.

Your cooler does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. You are only allowed to use a certain amount of materials per group noted in the list. The cooler has to be one that is easy to open to get the snow or ice out.  

Materials

• same size ice cube or amount of snow
• 1-foot masking tape
• 24x12 inch aluminum foil piece
• 12x12 felt piece
• 5 rubber bands
• 5-feet string piece
• 1 sheet copy paper
• 1-gallon Ziploc bag
• 1-pint Ziploc bag
• handful of Styrofoam packing peanuts
• 4 foam plates/trays
• 10 paper clips
• 10 craft sticks

​
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 materials by placing snow or ice cube in each to see how long it lasts with the individual item.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their contraption as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available and allowed to use, add any additional materials. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure to be using about the same size ice cubes and amounts of snow. Place all coolers in the same area for fair testing. Designate a specific amount of time to wait before opening containers (1-2 hours is the average time).
5. Discuss properties of each material and ask students to think about the different coolers they might have seen to try and emulate those.
6. Connect to science by discussing solids and liquids, reversible and irreversible changes with solids and liquids, freezing/melting points, thermometers, Fahrenheit, and/or Celsius.
7. Connect to ELA by reading The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats, where the main character, Peter, puts snow in his pocket but it isn’t there in the morning. Nonfiction books about freezing and melting would fit well with this concept as well.

Challenge
Do you eat more soup in the summer or winter? Do you eat more ice cream in the summer or winter? Do you drink more hot chocolate in the summer or winter? Do you drink ice cold beverages more in the summer or winter? Why do you think this? As the seasons change, our clothes change and so do our diets! In the summer, our diets include colder things to help cool us down. In the winter, our diets include more warmer items to help keep us warm. In the summer, we use coolers and ice to keep things cold. In the winter, what do we use to keep things warm? If you can’t think of something, well that means it’s time to engineer! Your challenge this month is to build a device that fits around or over a paper cup to help keep the contents inside warm for a longer period of time than normal.

Your device does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. The materials can be placed anywhere outside of the cup but not on the inside of the cup. It can have a cover over the top, but the cover needs to be able to fit the thermometer inside and removable so liquid or food can be put in the cup.

Materials

• paper cups
• thermometers
• water
• rubber bands
• aluminum foil
• felt sheets
• paper
• newspaper
• foam sheets
• wax paper
• thin cardboard sheets
• pipe cleaners

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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.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their thermal insulator as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available, show ideas of how to construct a lid or koozie like device, show pictures of coffee-to-go cups with sleeves, take away any of the materials, change the amount of materials needed to be used, set a temperature requirement of loss to not go below. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure to be using all the same cups, same amount of food/water in each cup each time, and always have a control cup for every group. Explain the importance of the control cup to the students.
5. Try to use warm-hot water so it is not too hot for students to touch in case of spillage.
6. Connect to science and ELA by having students discussing/figuring out how they could perform their investigation and writing the necessary steps to conduct it. Students can also write their conclusions for their device (or the best device) using evidence of why someone should use it.
7. Connect to math by practicing reading a thermometer and graphing the results. Students can also use the data to figure out temperature loss, practice adding and subtracting (especially if using a digital thermometer with decimals), older students can convert from Fahrenheit to Celsius, or practice finding range, median, mode, mean with the class data.

Challenge
It's the month of Thanksgiving and what is better than pumpkin pie for dessert? But where do those pumpkins come from? How are they picked from the patch? When picked, how do they not get damaged? Can they still be used if they get damaged? Is there a way for them to be picked without being damaged? Enter the design challenge. Your goal is to design and build a device to harvest a pumpkin patch efficiently (without damaging the pumpkins and by how many turns it takes to harvest the entire pumpkin patch). 

Your pumpkin picker does have some criteria and constraints. The device must be used to completely pick up the pumpkins (not allowed to touch them with your hands), but you can manipulate the device with your hands. You can not damage the pumpkins (scratches, dents, holes, etc.).  You can pick up as many pumpkins as possible with one turn. Efficiency is measure by how many times it takes you to clear the patch and place them in a bin combined with your time. Finally, make sure the pumpkin patch is set the same for every trial.

Materials

• candy corn pumpkins (rolos, kisses)
• pipe cleaners
• craft sticks
• plastic spoons
• masking tape
• binder clips
• straws
• twist ties
• scissors
• play dough 
• bin for pumpkins

Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see what properties they have.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their contraption as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust or limit the amount of materials students can use, create a map of where to place the pumpkins, set money amounts to each item (calculate it in their efficiency total), make the pumpkin patch smaller, larger, or in different patterns. 
4. Have the pumpkin patch set up in an array pattern to allow students to easily pick up more than one pumpkin at a time. 
5. Students efficiency of their device is the amount of turns it takes to clear the entire pumpkin patch plus the amount of time it takes to do the task. Add in the price of the device if using that strategy.
6. Connect to ELA and Social Studies by researching food that was available to the Pilgrims compared to current day. Connect to science by going through the process of seed, to plant, to being turned into pie with the book, Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin, Pie by Jill Esbaum.
7. Other books to explore, non-fiction and fiction: Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden by George Levenson, From Seed to Pumpkin by Wendy Pfeffner, The Pumpkin Book by Gail Gibbons, How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? by Margaret McNamara, or Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper

Challenge
Do you know what a catapult is? It is an ancient device used for throwing large rocks. It was mostly used as a weapon to throw things either very far or very high up over walls during times of war. How do you think people built catapults? What are some of the main components to a catapult? How did they make them accurate? These are questions you might need to think about since this month’s challenge is to build a catapult. You won’t be using it for rocks or as a weapon, but to fling a popular candy of the month, candy corn. Your challenge is to build a catapult that either throws the candy corn the furthest distance, the highest, to be the most accurate, to knock down the most items. Bonus points for making one that does well in more than one category.

Your catapult does have some criteria and constraints. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. While testing out your device, there can only be three trials for each category. Each contraption has to be built with at least four different materials. Finally, the catapults should all be tested fairly when launching.

Materials

• unsharpened pencils
• craft sticks
• plastic spoons
• rubber bands
• binder clips
• string
• candy corn

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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.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their contraption as needed.
3. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available, show ideas of how to construct a catapult with pictures, take away any of the materials, change the amount of materials needed to be used, set a height, distance, or accuracy requirement. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Set up dominoes or blocks of some sort that can be used for the accuracy and/or knocking things over categories. Or for accuracy, use a trick or treat bag/container/candy dish for students to get the candy corn in. Be sure to have all catapults behind the same line or in the same spots when judging categories.
5. Connect to science by having students discussing/figuring out the trajectories or using evidence to claim which catapult or material is the best to use for the challenge.
6. Connect to math by measuring how far the candy corn was flung during the trials, graphing the distances of all the catapults, analyzing results, or weighing the candy corn to see if the different masses go different distances.

Challenge
Imagine during your cruise vacation you stopped on a deserted island to take in all of nature’s beauty. While you were enthralled by the untouched island, the cruise ship leaves! Now, you are only left with your cell phone and some random materials. Your cell phone doesn’t work at all on this island, but you know from a previous stop there is another deserted island where there is plenty of service. It is a short distance away and an easy swim, but how will you get there without damaging your cellphone? Your challenge is to build a contraption that will be able to float behind you while you swim to the other island.

Your cell phone raft does have some criteria and constraints. The raft has to be tied to your body so make sure to include it into your design. You can’t hold the contraption or the phone above your head since you need that arm to swim! Your phone needs to stay completely dry for fear of not working at all. Only the materials provided can be used in your design. While testing out the device, it can be pulled by the string from one end of the water to the other at a moderate pace.

Materials

• newspaper sheets
• rubber bands
• dental floss
• various kinds of tapes
• pencils
• scissors
• rulers
• tennis balls
• various string types
• plastic sealable bags
• old mobile phone

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Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with a sample to see how items react in the water and what different ways they can be used.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their final design. Include as many ways to improve their contraption as needed.
3. If you don’t have enough old mobile phones for each group, use a deck of cards, soap dish filled with weight, or something similar.
4. For differentiation, adjust the amount of materials available, change some of the materials to more that float, make the contraption propel itself, not have the contraption travel across the water, show examples of floatation devices. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
5. Ask reflection questions: Would the water be salty by the deserted island? Would that change how well your contraption floats? How could you test that? Would waves affect it? Why does a small little rock sink, but larger items float (barges, airplanes, cruise ships, etc)? What items do you wish you had to build the contraption?
6. Connect to science by having students discussing/figuring out buoyancy, density, sink/float, displacement of water, effects of electricity with water, waterproof and water resistant.
7. Connect to ELA by using the text, Captain Kidd’s Crew Experiments with Sinking and Floating by Mark Weakland, to introduce and provide background knowledge about floating and sinking with a pirate adventure. 

Challenge
Did you or are you going to visit an amusement park this summer? What is your favorite ride there: ferris wheel, merry-go-round, water slides, roller coaster, or other?  A roller coaster seems to be a crowd favorite with all of the twists, turns, being upside down, downhill speed, and loop-da-loops! Have you ever thought about trying to design a sample roller coaster?
 
This month’s challenge has you experimenting with materials to create a model roller coaster and experiencing the different attributes they have in order to work properly. Your challenge is to use the materials to make a roller coaster that has the passengers (a marble) going from the start to the finish in a slow manner, a fast manner, over a small hill, over a big hill, over two hills, through a loop-da-loop, through two loop-da-loops, and more of your choosing.
 
You can approach this challenge in a few different ways with different materials, but one way is to use foam pipe insulation, a large marble, masking tape, and a plastic/paper/foam cup. Cut the foam pipe insulation in half on its side to create the track for the marble. Tape multiple tracks together to make it longer and to adhere it to the different surfaces. Tape the cup at the end of track so the marble stops inside instead of rolling all over. Now your ready to start the challenges!

Materials

• masking tape
• foam insulation pipes
• large marbles
• plastic/paper/foam cups
• scissors

 
Hints and Tips for Success

1. Have students start out going in order of the challenges as listed above to the more complex ideas.
2. Only give students a certain length of foam (6') to conduct the initial challenges before building more detailed roller coasters.
3. Have students reflect and compare their results of what worked and didn’t work with each challenge.
4. Connect to science by discussing the concepts of forces such as gravity since the marble is being pulled toward the ground on the roller coaster.
5. Connect to ELA by reading the book, Roller Coaster by Marla Frazee, which shows different emotions of 12 people getting on and riding a roller coaster. This book is excellent for inferring from the character’s faces and by what is going to happen next by observing the pictures.
6. Use different types of balls (ping pong, foosball, wooden ball, bouncy ball, ball bearing) to see if they act the same on the roller coaster. Conduct different experiments to see which ball is the fastest/slowest through the track and have discussions about the trials.