You've got tibia kidding me, Halloween is 3 weeks away! Whether you are a parent looking for a fun weekend activity or looking for a fun activity for your classroom, this collaborative, brain-buster is right for you! The Bone Bridge STEM challenge is a creative way to get in the spirit of Halloween and learn! Keep your little ones engaged by connecting this activity to the skeletal system, bridge engineering, and physical forces!
Don’t forget to make your own bone bridge with the strongest bones possible (like our bones should be)! We have two examples to help guide you from the bare bones!
Materials Needed:
- Q-tips
- Colorful Pipe Cleaners
- Popsicle sticks
First Challenge Bridge
Step One:
Lay out your colorful pipe cleaners and cut them up. Each pipe cleaner should have 6 even pieces.
Step Two:
Grab two Q-tips and cross the two tips. Once you have them crossed, grab a piece of pipe cleaner and wrap It around the crossed tips.
Step Three:
Once it is wrapped securely, grab another Q-tip and repeat step two on the other end of each Q-tip until you have a triangle shape.
Step Four:
Repeat until you have at least four triangles.
Step Five:
Take two popsicle sticks and stack one on top of the other. Wrap the cut pipe cleaner around the stacked part on the two popsicle sticks.
Step Six:
Once it is securely wrapped. Grab your triangle shapes and evenly wrap them around the popsicle sticks to make a 'bridge.'
To challenge yourself, build a bigger bridge and stack them higher to see how 'strong' your bones are!
Second Challenge Bridge
Step One:
Grab two wooden dowels and four clothes pins. Clip the clothes pins on each end of the wooden dowels.
Step Two:
Line each wooden dowel bridge parallel to one another. Make sure they are spread around 1.5 inches apart so the Q-tip can lay across it!
Step Three:
Begin with laying a Q-tip across the two bridges and begin wrapping the pipe cleaner around the one side of the bridge.
Step Four:
Continue laying Q-tips across the bridge and wrapping the pipe cleaner around the tip to secure it to the wooden dowel.
Step Five:
Continue along the other side of the bridge by wrapping another pipe cleaner along the other end of the Q-tips. Once complete, cut the excess pipe cleaner.
Step Six:
Want to challenge yourself? Continue building the bridge and see how far your strongest bone can go! Or, stack another bridge to the top!
To make this activity even more fun, don't be afraid to get creative and make it a competition! How would you build your bone bridge? The strongest bones win! 🌉
