Home-made Instruments

Your challenge is to create an instrument using only the following materials and tools:

Materials:

40 mm PVC reticulation pipe (or mailing tube)
duct tape
10cm length of garden hose
1 ordinary round party balloon
Two strong elastic bands

Tools

A pair of garden secateurs or strong craft knife
A tenon saw or a hacksaw
Tape measure
Pencil
Scissors

As always, send pictures and enjoy the challenge! Video would also be wonderful!

Twinkies

Given the recent news about Hostess Twinkies potentially disappearing, I thought it would be fun to invite solutions to this challenge:

Make something using one box of Twinkies. Good luck. Very eager to see pictures! Send your solutions to kidthinkers@gmail.com.

Robots

Save your boxes (or styrofoam filling) from holiday gifts -- any size, any number and use only duct tape and boxes to create a robot. Try to make arms, legs, etc. that move! As always, we love to see your solutions -- send them to kidthinkers@gmail.com.

Holiday Fun Solutions

Check out this awesome video sent from unschoolme!

Think Creatively!

There is a great need to foster creative thinking by our children. It will guarantee their success in the unpredictable future! Have them watch this and then try to make their own Rube Goldberg Machine (NO FIRE!!!). Good luck! Send us your solutions.

Melvin The Magical Mixed Media Machine from HEYHEYHEY on Vimeo.

Noodles

For a twist on the traditional pasta tower challenge, gather up your pasta and make a noodle tower using noodles, paperclips and 12 inches of tape and NOTHING else -- no glue allowed.

Holiday Fun

Gather up 10-12 old/preferably used gift cards or postcards or index cards and 3 colored pencils, a hole punch, 3 paperclips, and 3 feet of string. Create a puppet. Please please send photos to kidthinkers@gmail.com so that I can share you wonderful work!

Books

Materials: An old book, 3 writing utensils, water, a hair dryer, paperclips

The challenge: create something unexpected but you must use all materials in the object!

Crayons

Materials: the sun, 6 crayons, 6 pieces of paper, 6 paperclips

What can you make using just these materials? Be sure to use all of them!

Inspiration

If you need inspiration, check out this blog. They always have great solutions to our challenges!

Games

Use the following materials to make your own board game. It can only have 3 rules. Send us a picture of the game and a description of the rules. Good luck!

Materials: a cereal box
paint
markers
up to 24 bottle tops


You may use scissors and tape in construction.

Design a fish

Use the following materials to design a fish, then see if it will float!

a carboard toilet paper tube
1 sheet of paper
12 inches of aluminum foil
12 inches of packing tape

You may use scissors and permanent markers in construction.

Good luck!

Another Egg Drop

Use the following materials to protect your egg. Drop it from 15 feet and see if it worked -- try and try again -- you can protect it with these materials:


12 inches of string
6 cotton balls
2 small dixie cups
a freezer bag

You may use scissors and 6 inches of tape in construction.

Good luck. If you can film it, send in your film!

Revisiting the One Man Band

I posted this challenge a while back, but here it is again in another form:

Make your own one-man band using only the following materials :

3 rubberbands
2 cardboard tubes of any length
duct tape
a pencil and an eraser
12 inches of tissue paper
3 straws
an empty stapler (no staples)
12 paperclips
a key
a CD

You may use scissors in construction.

Catapult

Create a catapult using only these materials:

a popsicle stick or a ruler
hot glue
duct tape
a cup or a lid
a pipecleaner

Dolls

Use the following materials to create a doll:

2 12 x 12 inch squares of tissue paper
2 pipe cleaners
2 small dixie cups
12 inches of duct tape
one item of your choice

Good luck!

Shoes

Use the following materials to create a wearable pair of shoes: 2 12 x 12 inch squares of fabric or aluminum foil, 48 inches of duct tape, 2 12 x 12 inch squares of cardboard. You may also use scissors and hot glue if necesary. Good luck. Send picures!

Summer Challenges

Use the following materials to build a water wall:

a 4 x 4 foot piece of wood
2 feet of pvc piping
10 paper or plastic cups
10 straws
6 index cards (can be laminated if you want)
duct tape
4 nails
2 items of your choice

You may use a hammer and permanent sharpies as well. Be careful. Have fun. Get wet!

Look at this for inspiration:

Good luck! Send pictures.

Another Idea from Toadhaven

Materials: 100 craft sticks, as many dominoes as you can find, string, straws, and paper and 10 items of your choice.

Create a "bomb"

Watch this first for inspiration:

Frenetic Kinetics! from lunatim on Vimeo.

Inspired by Toad Haven

What you need: Imagination. Magnifying glass. Sun. Wood.

Create a magical piece of art using the sun! Send pics and we'll post. Be careful -- playing with fire is dangerous -- be sure to supervise this one!