Project Lead the Way (PLTW) is a nonprofit organization that provides a transformative learning experience for K-12 students and teachers across the U.S., in more than 8,000 schools nationwide. PLTW has collaborated with some of the best teachers in the country and come up with a list of educational activities for kids to enjoy doing this summer!
From creating their own science experiments, to making race cars out of cardboard boxes, to reading about famous inventors, the possibilities are endless. Check out a few of them below!
These activties are from Kelly Wheeler (@kwheeler_kelly), PLTW Launch Teacher of the Year – Menifee, CA
These activties are from Kelly Wheeler (@kwheeler_kelly), PLTW Launch Teacher of the Year – Menifee, CA1. Roly Poly Adventures: Science Experiments with Pill Bugs! My daughter Madison is obsessed with roly polies! I found a great blog with wonderful science experiments to do with her over the summers using the Pill Bug!
2. Marble Run (Purchased Product) – My kids love the Marble Run. The set comes with curves, chutes, and wheels for the kids to design amazing marble runs!
3. Cardboard Boxes! There are so many fun things you can create with cardboard boxes to inspire the inner engineer in your child!
- Design and build a car out of cardboard. Families could park their cars in the living room and enjoy a family night watching a movie in their own drive-in!
- Design an arcade game! Get some inspiration from a 9-year-old boy named Caine who created his very own cardboard arcade. http://cainesarcade.com
- Create a miniature golf course. Q-Tips and paper towel and toilet paper rolls work great!
4. Inventors Box! My son Colin who is 10 loves to invent and create at home. This activity is inspired by him.
By having a “Tinker” Box at a child’s disposal it will encourage them to use their imagination and natural curiosity to design and build, not to mention it can also store all their items for building. I have a couple of rules for my kiddos at home: if it’s in the box, they can use it how they see fit in their designs. However, if there is something they want to use that is not in the box, they must ask for permission.
Items to include in the box: small boxes, toilet paper and paper towel tubes, yarn, egg cartons, empty butter tubs, broken toys, old toy parts, tape of all kinds, empty cereal boxes, white glue, glue sticks, paper clips, string, left over craft materials, construction paper, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, cotton balls, and any recycled materials around the house. The list could really go on and on. Make sure all materials are safe for children to use.
One fun idea for your child’s tinker box is to design a boat that can hold 10 to 20 pennies and then try to float it in the sink, bathtub, or small pool.
These activite are from Dr. Julye Adams (@DrJulyeAdams), PLTW Biomedical Science Teacher of the Year – Georgetown, KY
1. STRETCH your body. Use stretching techniques to become more flexible. Then research the changes in your ligaments and muscles that have to happen for you to become more flexible. Record your observations.
2. Design your own toothbrush. What do you wish could be better about your current toothbrush? What issues do you see with it? Design a better version and test it. Record the steps you took to identify the problem, design a new toothbrush, and your final observations in a notebook.
3. Investigate a “crime.” Ask your parents to set up a mock crime scene. Then make observations and deductions from the scene to determine what happened.
4. Collect water samples from different areas in your house and backyard. Look at small drops with a high magnification magnifying glass. Do you see anything moving? Then research the various things contained in water.
What kind of activities do you do with your kids during the summer? Let us know in the comments below!
