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T.A.S.K. Club will build self-esteem, self-discipline, time usage, and higher order thinking skills through the STEAM activities such as stop motion animation, green screen technology, coding, rocket building, and creating websites.

WHO?
3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students

Club Directors: Mrs. Copeland and Ms. Klim

WHEN?
Once a week, On Thursdays after school from 2:45-5:30

Fall Session:  September 20th through December 13th, 2018

Spring Session: February 7th through May 2nd, 2019

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We have a bit of a tradition here at Left Brain Craft Brain. Every February when the winter seems like it will never end, we warm things up with a bit of STEAM. And STEM, too, with 28 Days of STEM Activities and STEAM Activities for Kids. Be sure to follow along this month as I share 60+ Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, & Math projects that will get your kids and your classrooms excited about learning again. I've partnered with a huge crew of creative bloggers and we'll be sharing the coolest STEM & STEAM activities you'll see all year.

This post contains affiliate links.

Why Do Kids Need STEM & STEAM?

STEM is the abbreviation for Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math. In STEAM we add an A for Art, too. Both are integrated approaches to learning that encourage students to think more broadly about real-world problems. This interdisciplinary approach has helped create innovations like the iPhone, the original laptop computer, and is even revolutionizing cooking in third world countries, and improving air quality as a result.

It helps students ask questions, connect the dots, problem solve, think creatively, and be innovative. And not only can STEAM save the world, but it can also save our kids too by making their future bright. STEM jobs are expected to grow by 16% in the US between 2014 and 2024 compared to only 11% for other sectors*. And right now, science & engineering careers earn more than double the income of the median job in the United States.*

So let's get more science, technology, engineering, art, and math into our kids' lives. Ready for the fun?!?

You're Gonna Love 28 Days of STEM Activities and STEAM Activities for Kids

This year we're doing the weekly topics a little bit differently... I hear a lot from readers asking for a tech project or an art project for their kids or students. So this year we're going to round-up some amazing projects with a focus on each of the buckets in STEM & STEAM. But don't worry, they're still going to be integrated projects that check off more than one bucket!

Science Activities for Kids

Experimentation is one of the foundations of STEM. Check out these amazing science projects for kids!

Check out descriptions and pictures of all of these posts and more amazing Science Projects for Kids in this round-up!

February 1st - 6th

Need Help While School is Out?

Check out our Boredom Buster Activity Plan! I pulled together a TOTALLY FREE activity plan for you to do at home with the kids. It's filled with entertaining hands-on STEAM projects, printables, snack ideas, and most of all it's filled with FUN. Plus, you'll have all the supplies you need on hand (or in the backyard!).

Technology Activities for Kids

Coding, circuits, and computers, oh my! The world of technology is our children's future. Let's get them ready with some fun activities! You can see descriptions and photos of all these activities in 20+ Technology Projects Your Kids Will Love.

February 7th - 11th

Engineering Activities for Kids

Kids are born builders. Encourage those early skills with some engineering activities they'll love. You can see photos and descriptions of all these activities and more in 50+ Awesome Engineering Projects for Kids.

February 12th - 17th

Get the kids creative juices flowing with some amazing art projects that have some science and engineering built in.

Art Activities for Kids

Check out the entire pictures and descriptions for all the projects in this list of 40 of the Best Art Activities for Kids!

February 18th - 23rd

Math Activities for Kids

Don't fall for the worksheet trap for math! Hands-on activities help kids really internalize what they're working on and are a lot more fun. You can see photos and descriptions of all these activities in Math = Fun Math Activities for Kids.

February 24th - 28th

Looking for some more STEAM inspiration that you can use right now? Instant gratification style? Check out STEAM Explorers!! The coolest new creative experience for kids is here! Think digital magazine meets online project portal in a safe, kid-friendly environment. (No more worrying about what might be hidden in that YouTube vid!) All engineer, teacher, and mom approved. And most definitely KID APPROVED!⁣

What's included?⁣

A monthly digital magazine with cool themes that's fun to read

Hands-on, exciting projects the kids will love.⁣

Science, tech, engineering, art, and math learning YOU'LL love.⁣

Delicious recipes the kids can make.⁣

Fun printables and games⁣

Check out our latest Sports issue, inspired by your favorite sports and the athletes who love them!

All packed up in an easy-to-do package, ready for kids ages 6-12 to have fun.

Follow Along with 28 Days of Hands-On STEM

Want to stay up to date on all the cool projects? I'll be sharing them daily on the Left Brain Craft Brain Facebook page and pinning them to my Pinterest STEM board. Or come join the STEAM Kids Challenge on Instagram. We'll be posting new projects and cool ideas every day.

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28 Days of STEM Activities and STEAM Activities for Kids

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We have a bit of a tradition here at Left Brain Craft Brain. Every February when the winter seems like it will never end, we warm things up with a bit of STEAM. And STEM, too, with 28 Days of STEM Activities and STEAM Activities for Kids.

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Please draw your rough design idea for Club 

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Please draw your rough design idea for Club 

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Follow us what is happening with our club at T.A.S.K Club Classroom. This classroom is ONLY for T.A.S.K. club.  If you would like to join the club, please send me a request at yklim@greenvilleschools.us.

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Fall of 2018 - Shrinky 🤬

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This would be good for final project.  Do mixtures vs. solutions and make bouncy balls, chex mix, and ice cream.

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Looking for a fun and simple science activity that's sure to entertain the kids?! In this quick, five minute experiment, little chemists mix up their own homemade bouncy balls.

Making bouncy balls is a hands-down science favorite for kids! And for more kid-approved science, check out our awesome 30 Science Experiments in our shop!

Getting Ready

To prep for this activity, I gathered:

1 tablespoon of borax (found in the laundry section of the grocery store)

1/2 cup or warm water

2 tablespoons of white glue (Elmer's school glue works the best)

1 tablespoon of cornstarch

Food color (optional)

Making the Bouncy Balls

The first step to making the bouncy balls was to prepare the borax and water mixture. My 5 year old daughter measured out 1/2 cup of warm water and 1 T of borax. Then she gave the mixture a good stir to dissolve the borax.

Next, she prepared the bouncy ball mixture by combining the glue and cornstarch.

The measurements are a little forgiving so we found it easiest to use a 1/4 cup measuring cup filling it halfway with glue (2 T) before adding the 1 T of cornstarch. Using a measuring spoon to measure the glue turned out to be more messy than estimating the 2T of glue in the 1/4 cup wearing cup.

She stirred the glue and cornstarch until they combined using a kid-sized butter knife.

Then she added a couple drops of food coloring to the glue/cornstarch mixture and gave it a little stir. She was hoping to get a swirled bouncy ball but it turns out the food color really gets mixed thoroughly when forming the ball.

This is good to keep in mind when choosing to mix colors: complementary colors probably will end up looking muddy. If you want a multi-colored ball, it's best to divide the glue/cornstarch mixture and add the color individually. Then add each color to the borax water separately and, when the glue mixtures begin to firm up, add them back together and roll into a ball.

Now my daughter was ready for the fun and gooey part. She poured her glue mixture into the borax water and let it sit for about 10-15 seconds. The glue mixture started to harden and could be removed easily with a fork.

She immediately grabbed the gooey blob and squished it between her hands. The blob was still a bit sticky but as A rolled in between her hands the stickiness disappeared.

Note: If your ball still feels sticky give it a little dunk in the borax water and it should firm up.

Once the ball was formed, it was ready to bouncy. Although it didn't bouncy nearly as high as the super bouncy balls she was familiar with, my daughter still had a ton of fun throwing it around the house.

Note: If let to sit, the ball will become flat on one side. Simply rolling it between your hands should make it round again.

If you plan to keep your ball, you should store it in an airtight container as it will dry out and crack.

The Science Behind It

When the glue was added to the borax water, the glue became firm and bouncy. That's because the borax reacted with the glue causing the polymers, or long chains of molecules, in the glue to stick together and form an elastomer.

To understand how polymers act, think about how cooked spaghetti behaves. When fresh cooked spaghetti is strained, the pasta strands flow like a liquid, slipping and sliding over one another. After a few minutes pass and the water has drained off the pasta, the strands start to stick to each other a little. The pasta becomes a bit rubbery.

If you leave the pasta for even longer, the spaghetti strands will really stick together and the spaghetti will be one solid rubbery chunk that bounces!

Polymers, long strands of molecules, behave in a similar way as the long strands of spaghetti. If the long molecules slide past each other, the substance acts like a liquid (like the liquid glue).

If the polymers stick together in a few places, then the substance will be a rubbery solid, an elastomer (like the bouncy ball).

When the glue mixture was added to the borax, the borax acted as a cross-linker, hooking the glue's molecules together to form the rubbery bouncy ball.

The cornstarch was added to help bind the molecules together so the ball would hold its shape.

The ball can bounce because of the cross-linked polymers. Since the long polymer chains are flexible, when the ball hits the ground, it is able to momentarily deform or squish.

The polymers also make the ball elastic meaning it tends to retain its shape. Once the ball hits the ground and becomes flattened, the elasticity causes the ball to return to its round shape and pushes the ball back into the air.

More Fun for Little Scientists

Save time piecing together science lessons! Hop over and grab 30 Science Experiments -complete with a no prep journal to record results!

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Looking for a fun and simple science activity that's sure to entertain the kids?! In this quick, five minute experiment, little chemists mix up their own homemade bouncy balls. Making bouncy balls is a hands-down science favorite for kids! And for more kid-approved science, check out our awesome 30 Science Experiments in our shop!

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About Cherrydale Elementary School

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My class created a balloon car and it was a fun and successful project. Would you like to try to make it? We still have materials that can make about 15 cars.

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How to build a cardboard chassis car