STEM 2

STEM has been hit or miss with sickness, etc. But early November I did host again. 

I wanted to introduce computer coding but didn't have enough time to pull together across-the-age-range activities so I went with more structure stuff. Last time it was more about balance, placement, and physics. This time it was more about structural integrity, and physics too, along with design accommodations.

We used clothes pins, metal bracket pins, and our same 'ole jumbo craft sticks. 

They first had to make any size structure that could hold the most weight.  

 short and sturdy, those clothes pins in connection with the other materials proves super-strong.

We also just tried to design with triangles...

And of course try a bridge...

great designs...all did awesome and each person succeeded, failed, and improved upon their original designs.

Lastly I helped them build exploding boomerangs (that don't actually work like real boomerangs), with just four jumbo craft sticks. With no glue or anything holding them together they are stuck together simply by the way they are wedged. They loved this, then throw them and upon impact they 'explode'. (Just don't throw them at people!!! was my constant drum)