STEM challenges with marbles and play dough

Today we share with you two STEM challenges with marbles and play dough from the blog Frugal fun 4 boys

They are both a ton of fun for a wide range of ages and the materials are cheap and can be used again on another day.

Challenge #1: Play Dough, Cups, and Craft Sticks

Perfect for older preschoolers with adult help

You can build a marble run with a play dough path. Paper cups make the perfect material for supporting the structure, and they can be cut to any height. The play dough is easy to mold and shape into curved pathways, and if the marble bounces over the side, you can easily make the side a little taller. All in all, it’s such a great material to work with!

Kids can use scissors to cut the cups down to whatever height they’d like for supports.

You can use a cookie sheet or a a large, flat cardboard box to make a nice base for our marble run.

It's recommended to start at the bottom and work your way up

As you keep building taller, you may need a little more support for the play dough pathways. You can use a craft stick under each section to made it much more stable.

Also you can join a couple of cups together to make the supports taller using duct tape.

What a great project for a rainy day!

Challenge #2: Cookie Sheet Marble Run

This challenge is super awesome for younger kids and it’s fun to work on either alone or with a partner.

The set-up for this challenge is so simple. Just prop up one end of a cookie sheet using a couple of building blocks or chapter books. Then roll play dough into “snakes” and build pathways for the marbles to roll down!