By Rameen Naviwala

Are you seeking engaging family activities to enhance your elementary school child’s STEM experience before they embark on their high school and college journey? Look no further. This article presents three activities the whole family can enjoy: fostering STEM knowledge while creating lasting family memories. These activities stimulate your child’s interest in STEM education and strengthen family bonds through fun and timeless experiences.
1. Tower Building
Who doesn’t love Jenga or Legos? Engage in a friendly family competition to build the tallest tower using materials such as Jenga blocks, Legos, paper cups, cards, or random household items. Set a timer to add a competitive edge and track the time spent constructing the towers. This activity brings laughter and knowledge about engineering, emphasizing the intricacies of creating tall and stable structures. It might even ignite an interest in real-life building design. Consider making this activity a regular part of your family game night.
2. Paper Circuits
Transform arts and crafts time into a STEM learning opportunity with paper circuits. Gather paper, copper tape, LED lights, coin batteries, and clear tape. Follow the Science Buddies.org website instructions to create a paper circuit that lights up, teaching your child about circuits and conductivity. Make it a friendly competition to create the fastest or most elaborate paper circuit. This activity combines creativity with STEM education, making it an enjoyable and enlightening experience for the whole family.
3. Can This Float?
Turn everyday household items into a science experiment with “Can This Float?” Collect items such as cups, paper plates, paperclips, candle holders, pencils, erasers, and golf balls. Fill a bucket with water and challenge your child to predict whether each item will float or sink based on size, shape, weight, and density. Test their hypotheses by placing the items in the water. This activity teaches concepts of density and volume while encouraging educated guesses. Add an element of fun by having everyone guess, awarding points to those with correct predictions. It is a playful way to explore science and make a splash!
These are just some activities you can do at home with your family to help boost your elementary school children’s STEM experiences. Encouraging your child to take an interest in STEM will help advance their future and education, and participating in these activities will allow them to feel more comfortable with the unknown. So have fun with these family activities!
Do you want more resources on the topic of STEM family activities? NSTEM’s vast resources database provides thousands of searchable STEM resources by category, school level, and state. This comprehensive library includes info on enrichment activities, curricula, internships, scholarships, and more. Check out a free sampling here. Or get an NSTEM membership today to unlock the complete list.
Grades 3-5 continue the STEM education journey, where students are interested in the natural world and in how things work, responding to stories told by teachers that give purpose and meaning to STEM disciplines, which molds them into thinkers, problem solvers, and creators. The National STEM Honor Society sees grades 3-5 as a critical point in the NSTEM journey. To start your grade 3-5 chapter of the National STEM Honor Society, click here.