STEM Activities for Kids (482 results)

Slinking Slinkies

STEM Activity

2 reviews

Have you ever watched a Slinky "walk" down a flight of stairs and wondered how it works? It's a fascinating thing to see and a big part of the Slinky's appeal. These spring toys have been popular for well over half a century; your parents, or even grandparents, may have played with them. Slinkies not only make fun toys, they are also great for doing physics and engineering activities. In this activity you will investigate how the angle of an inclined plane affects how well a… Read more

Slippery Science: Explore Friction by Launching Stuff

STEM Activity

4 reviews

Have you ever tried to get a running start and slide across a smooth, wooden floor while wearing socks? What happens if you try the same thing on a carpeted floor, or while wearing shoes? The amount of friction between your feet and the floor surface determines how well you can slide. Some combinations of surfaces, like socks on a wooden floor, produce very little friction. Other combinations, like rubber soles on a wooden floor, produce much more friction. In this project you'll do a much… Read more

Slippery Slopes and the Angle of Repose

STEM Activity

5 reviews

Have you ever seen an avalanche or landslide roll down a hill? Why is it that at one moment, everything seems fine, then suddenly the mountain begins to slump? It has something to do with how the earth or snow is piled up on the mountain. Generally, granular materials such as snow or earth pile up relatively well. However, if the slope angle gets too steep, the materials will start to slide down the slope. This critical slope angle, also called the angle of repose, is different for different… Read more

Featured

Make String from Algae

STEM Activity

225 reviews

Did you know that the seaweed you've seen in the ocean or even eaten as a snack is inspiring innovators to imagine new materials? Large brown algae, like kelp, contains polymers—long chains of molecules—that are more environmentally friendly than the ones in most plastics. These natural polymers (alginates) could eventually be used to create sustainable everyday objects. Try your hand at using a bit of chemistry to turn biodegradable polymers from algae into your own custom… Read more

Soil Color and Moisture

STEM Activity

4 reviews

Have you ever taken a step onto what appeared to be dry ground, only to find yourself ankle deep in mud? Yikes! When you walk through damp soil, it can be a very messy experience. How can you tell if soil is wet or dry before you step on it? In this science activity you will investigate whether the color of soil can help you determine how dry or wet it is. Read more

Soil Science: How Moist is that Mud?

STEM Activity

Have you ever taken a step onto what appeared to be dry ground, only to find yourself ankle-deep in mud? Yuck! When you walk through damp soil, it can be a very messy experience. How can you tell if soil is wet or dry before you step on it? In this science activity, you will investigate whether the color of the soil can help you determine how dry or wet it is. Read more

Solidifying Science: Which Fruits Can Ruin Your Gelatin Dessert?

STEM Activity

Have you ever noticed that if you’re making a gelatin dessert, like JELL-O, it’s not recommended to use certain fruits, like pineapple? Why is this? It’s because these fruits may prevent the gelatin from solidifying. In this activity you’ll get to determine if certain enzymes in some fruits are preventing the gelatin from solidifying, and whether there’s a way to still include these fruits without ruining your gelatin dessert! Read more

Speedy Science: How Does Constant Acceleration Affect Distances Traveled?

STEM Activity

23 reviews

Have you ever dropped something and wondered how fast it was moving while falling? If it was something fragile, like a cell phone, you might not have been thinking about this at the time – you were likely too busy trying to grab the phone! But you probably wanted to find out how hard it hit the ground afterwards. We all know that gravity forces an object to fall, but how does this affect how quickly something falls and its impact? For example, did the phone move faster right after leaving… Read more

Spinning Symmetry with Pinwheels

STEM Activity

4 reviews

Have you ever played with a toy pinwheel, or seen larger real-life versions like a windmill or wind turbine? Have you wondered why all the blades are symmetric? Why can’t they get away with just one blade? Try this project to find out! Read more

Spooky Science: The Sounds of Halloween

STEM Activity

1 review

Do you enjoy watching scary movies at Halloween, or going to haunted houses? However you may want to have a thrilling experience this time of year, spooky sounds and music will likely play an important part. Part of what makes a haunted house or a mysterious movie perfectly eerie is the soundtrack that goes along with it – all the noises orchestrated to raise the hair on your arms, make you shiver, and leave you with little doubt that there are things unknown lurking about. In this… Read more

Springtime Science: Exploring the Pigments in Red Flowers

STEM Activity

9 reviews

In the springtime it can be easy to spot flowers in a dazzling array of colors at flower gardens and in plant nurseries. And with Mother’s Day just around the corner, stunning flower bouquets are even more readily available in stores. Have you ever wondered what pigments make a flower appear a certain color to us? For example, what pigments make a rose be a deep, rich shade of red? Do different flowers use the same pigments? In this activity you’ll get… Read more

Explore Our Science Videos

LED Circuit Design: Power and Efficiency

Comparing Different Types of Irrigation Systems | Science Project

How to Measure Sound with Google's Science Journal App