Are you looking for a fun yet challenging holiday activity for your students or your child? Why not try out some Christmas STEM challenges?

What is STEM?

STEM combines Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math to make learning hands on and fun for your kiddos! Your kiddos will not only be engaged, but they will use problem solving and creative thinking skills as they complete these fun activities. 

The Jingle Bell Maze is a really fun Christmas STEM activity, and you might even already have all of the materials you need to complete this specific challenge.

What is the Engineer Design Process?

I like to use the engineer design process with my students when we compete STEM activities and challenges. This is optional, but if you wish to try it out, I have a free download below!

What is the engineer design process? The engineer design process is a series of steps that engineers, in this case your child, will follow to come up with a solution to a problem.

• Ask: What is the problem? What do you already know?
• Imagine: Brainstorm Ideas. Choose the best one. Draw a diagram.
• Plan: Gather materials needed. Refer to your diagram.
• Create: Follow your plan! Test it out! 
• Improve: What worked well? What could be better? Repeat steps to make changes and improve your design.

Jingle Bell Maze STEM Challenge

Materials:

• Legos or Building Bricks
• Building Plate
• Jingle Bells
• Engineer Design Planning Sheet (optional)
• Timer or Stop Watch (optional)

The Problem: How can I create a jingle bell maze with Legos?

Step 1: Provide your child with the necessary materials and optional engineer design process planning sheet 

Step 2: Tell your child their challenge/problem.

Step 3: Let your child imagine, plan, and create their maze using Legos.

Step 4: Have your child test the maze by rolling the jingle bell through the maze. Do they need to improve anything to make it work better?

Step 5: FUN CHALLENGES! Use a timer to see how fast you can get the jingle bell through the maze! Check out some other fun challenge ideas below:

• Who can roll the jingle bell the fastest through the maze?
• Who can roll the jingle bell the slowest through the maze?How large can you create your maze?
• Who can use the most Legos to create a maze?
• How many turns can you make in your maze?
• Who can make the most challenging maze?

Enjoy this fun Christmas themed STEM activity!

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