STEM Education Resources for Engaging Science Teaching
Do You Want To Build A Snow Castle? Winter STEM Activity
An Engaging December or January STEM Activity Perfect for before or after Winter Break!
Around Winter Break, I like to do fun STEM challenges and activities with my classes. I came up with 'Do You Want to Build a Snow Castle?' a few years ago, and my students really enjoyed it. I added some extra resources to it this year, to get my students in a wintery mood!
It doesn't require too much prep, just white pom poms, googly eyes, Q-tips and Scotch tape, and I love that each groups produces such different structures. Some groups really want to make the tallest tower, others focus on making a pretty geometric design, some want to make a traditional castle, and some really enjoy making furniture such as thrones and beds for their snowballs!
Creating a Wintery and Festive Atmosphere
Kids love listening to wintery music and sounds!
This year I spent some time listening to lots of videos of wintery music and sounds. It's nice to have this playing in the background when you introduce the activity and while the students are making their snowballs and snow castles.
Setting the Scene with An Adorable Story!
Read an Illustrated Story about a Snowball Building a Snow Castle
I find even my 5th graders love having a story read to them. Before I introduce the Winter STEM activity, I read my students an adorable story about a snowball who builds a snow castle with the help of his other snowball friends.
I then tell the students that they are going to make their own snowball, and then build a snow castle for it! This does get the students super engaged in the Snow Castle activity, and they all love taking their snowballs home.
Making a Snowball!
Kids love making their own Snowball, and giving it a name!
You can buy packs of white pom poms easily on Amazon. I usually buy googly eyes that have sticky backs, as the eyes just seem to fall off using regular glue. It's also fun to buy different sized eyes, as it can really give the snowballs different personalities. Eyes close together and far apart are fun too!
I do have to help my students to get the backs off the eyes, especially if they choose very small eyes. it's quite a fiddly job!
Once the snowballs are made, the students love to give them a name, and sometimes a little backstory!
Building a Snow Castle for the Snowball!
Tips For Success!
- You might want to tape your structure to a piece of paper to help with stability.
- Triangles and squares are quite stable shapes to make.
- Start with the base and build upwards.
- Give each team a roll of Scotch tape and a hand full of Q-tips to start.
Here are Some Ideas!
Add Some Snowflake Science
How do Snowflakes form?
When learning about anything snow related, I like to give my students the Google Slide on the right. Here, students can watch time-lapse videos of snowflakes forming, and a video about where snowflakes come from. I also included a simulation where students make their own snowflakes. Snowflake shapes depend on the position that the snowflakes form in the cloud and temperature. Students can vary this in the simulation, and make different shapes!
The Complete Unit: Can You Build A Snow Castle?
Visit the TPT STEM Voyage Store
All the resources needed for the Marshmallow and Toothpick STEM Activity can be found on my STEM Voyage TPT store.
They include:
- Google Slides: Videos of Wintery Music and Sounds.
- Google Slides: Illustrated Story of a Snowball Building a Snow Castle
- Google Slides: A beautifully illustrated set of instructions.
- Google Slides: Snow Flake Science, videos and simulation.
- A Teacher Information Guide.
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