STEM Activities for Homeschoolers: Fun Projects for Every Grade
In this blog, EZ-Teach will share 10 fun STEM activities for homeschool! Challenges are based on chemistry, engineering, physics, problem-solving, and more. Please read the disclaimer and safety warnings below before proceeding to the activities and instructions. You can click on the links to read about a specific challenge, or scroll through to see all the activities.
Disclaimer: Adult supervision is required for all activities. Exercise caution and prioritize safety while handling materials. These activities are provided for educational purposes only. EZ-Teach is not responsible for any injuries or damages incurred during participation.
Specific Warnings for Dangerous Materials: a) Borax and similar substances should not be ingested or come into contact with eyes or open wounds. Wear safety goggles and gloves. Wash hands thoroughly after use. b) Hot water can cause burns. Adults should handle the heating and pouring steps. Ensure children maintain a safe distance during this process. c) Check for allergies or skin sensitivities before using any materials. Discontinue use if irritation occurs. d) Dispose of all materials responsibly and in accordance with local regulations.
Remember, proceed with care so you keep everyone safe, but have fun with your kids doing these activities. And, if you like, share another great idea with us - we’d love to hear from you!
10 Fun STEM Activities for Homeschool
1. Build a Baking Soda Volcano
STEM Focus: Chemistry (acid-base reaction), Earth Science
Materials Required:
Baking soda
Vinegar
Dish Soap
Food Coloring
Plastic Bottle
Modelling Clay or Paper-Mâché and Painting Supplies
How: In this first of many possible STEM activities for homeschool, you begin by creating a "volcano" structure around the bottle. Add baking soda, a bit of dish soap, and food colouring inside the bottle. Pour in vinegar to trigger a chemical eruption. You can also watch the video above for similar instructions and to get a visual example!
Tips: Make sure you have materials to catch the “lava”, avoid messes, and protect surfaces. You can place your volcano on a rimmed tray, baking sheet, or in a deep plastic bin to contain the eruption and catch the overflow. Also, to protect the surfaces you are working on, use a plastic table cloth or garbage bag which you can roll up and toss after the experiment. This makes cleanup easy. Alternatively, depending on the weather, you could work outdoors.
2. DIY Water Filter
STEM Focus: Environmental Science, Engineering
Materials Required:
Plastic Bottle
Clear Plastic Cup
Coffee Filter
Elastic Band
Gravel
Sand
Pebbles and Rocks
Dirty Water
How: Cut the bottle in half. The top portion of the bottle will be your funnel. Begin by putting the coffee filter over the neck (the narrow opening at the top of the bottle) and securing it with the elastic band. Then turn this over so the spout faces down and rest it in the plastic cup. Next, fill the bottle with the materials by layering the sand, gravel, and then the pebbles and rocks. Pour the dirty water into the funnel you created and observe the filtration process. You can also watch the video above, but be aware that, in Ryan’s World, they experiment with different filters (a dirty sock and a paper towel!). This is something you could add to make your experiment even more interesting.
Tips: If you don’t have a plastic cup, you could use a glass one or even the bottom portion of the plastic bottle you cut in half.
See how fun STEM activities for homeschool can be?!
3. Paper Circuit Cards
STEM Focus: Electrical Engineering, Basic Circuits
Materials Required:
Cardstock
Drawing Materials (E.g., Markers or Pencil Crayons)
Tape
Copper Tape
LED Lights
A Coin Battery
How: Design a greeting card. Then design the circuit in the inside of the card by adding copper tape as the "wires," an LED light as the bulb, and a coin battery as the power source. Complete the circuit to light the LED. Watch the video above to see how it’s done and get some inspiration for your next greeting card! This is one of the sweetest STEM activities for homeschool because it gets your kids thinking about others at the same time as they learn about circuits!
4. Egg Drop Challenge
STEM Focus: Physics, Engineering Design
Materials Required:
Uncooked Eggs
Various Household Items (e.g., straws, cotton balls, plastic bags)
Tape
Painter’s Plastic (to protect surfaces)
How: Build a protective structure to keep an egg from breaking when dropped from a height. Test and refine designs. In the video above, you’ll see how Zoe uses straws as her protective structure. There are different methods to try, however, have fun trying a couple of methods.
Tips: If you have multiple kids involved in this activity, have them use different materials to create different protective structures so you can test and compare the results… it can even be a competition if you like.
5. DIY Slime Experiment
STEM Focus: Chemistry (polymers), Material Science
Materials Required:
1/4 cup Elmer’s Glue (white liquid glue) + 1/4 cup Water
1/4 tsp of Borax + another 1/4 cup of Water
Food Coloring
How: Thin the glue by mixing in the 1/4 cup of water. You can add a couple drops of the food coloring to the glue mixture. Then combine the borax and other 1/4 cup of water. Add the borax solution to the colored glue to create slime. Experiment with proportions to adjust texture. Watch the video from Tidlybit to see how to mix the ingredients and to learn about atoms and molecules too!
Tip: If you don’t have Borax, you can use Contact Solution as an alternative. Get the recipe for slime made without Borax here.
6. Balloon Rocket
STEM Focus: Physics (Newton's third law of motion)
Materials Required:
Balloons
Markers (If you want to make your balloon fancy or add a face!)
String
Tape
Straws
2 Chairs
2 Clothespins
How: Thread the string through a straw and tie the string between two fixed points. Tape a blown-up balloon to the straw at one end of the string, using a clothespin to keep the air in until you are ready to release it to see how far it goes. Remember to position the balloon so that the air is released in the opposite direction of your balloon’s destination along the string. Watch the video from TheDadLab to see how it’s done.
Tip: Set up pathways for multiple balloons so that you can make it a race as you see in the video above!
7. Build a Mini Solar Oven
STEM Focus: Renewable Energy, Thermodynamics
Materials Required:
Old Pizza Box
Aluminum Foil
Tape
Scissors
Pencil
Plastic Wrap
Black Construction Paper or a Black Paper Plate
How: Follow along with the video above and begin by lining the inside of your pizza box with foil, using tape as necessary. Then create a window at the top of the box, cutting it out to create a flap. Cover the opening that is created by adding a flap (or window) with plastic wrap from the inside. Then line the inside of the flap with tin foil so that when it is propped open it can reflect light into the solar box. Prop the flap open with a pencil. But before you prop open the “window”, remember to place food like s’mores inside and let sunlight cook it. Enjoy!
8. Grow Crystals
STEM Focus: Chemistry (crystallization)
Materials Required:
Borax
Water
Food Coloring
Pipe Cleaners
How: Dissolve borax in hot water. Shape pipe cleaners into fun designs and suspend them in the solution. Leave overnight undisturbed and watch how the crystals grow over time!
9. Lego Engineering Challenge
STEM Focus: Engineering, Problem-Solving
Materials Required:
Lego Bricks
Object to support and suspend a bridge
Objects of different weights to test the strength of your bridge
How: Create challenges like building a bridge that holds a various weights or designing a tall tower structure. Test it’s stability and function. Watch the video above to get ideas, but remember not to try exactly what you see at home because they use some really heavy weights - like a bowling ball!
10. Make a Sundial
STEM Focus: Astronomy, Earth Science
Materials:
Cardboard
Pencil
Blue tac
String
Scissors
Tape
Ruler
How: Here is an overview of the instructions in the video. For more detailed instructions, please watch the video - it’s fun! Basically, you create your sundial by first cutting out a circle base. Using some tac, some string, and a pencil, trace out your circle on the cardboard and cut it out. Nanogirl recommends using 11 cm of string to create the circle. Then measure and cut out a right-angled triangle (also 11 cm) to fasten on top of the circle with tac. Mark the shadow's position every hour to create a functional sundial.
Learn With EZ-Teach
We hope you’ve enjoyed learning about these 10 STEM activities for homeschool. That’s right because EZ-Teach aims to make learning easy - and fun! For more inspiration, browse the curriculum we have available on our site or check out our other blogs. And, if you have questions or are looking for more resources, please contact us!
