STREAM Activity: Build a Summer Toy

Design your own summer toy!

Activity best for children ages 2 and up

Summer has arrived so lets have some fun! Did you know there are many ways to have fun with items found around your home? Today we will be using recycled material we have around our house to engineer a summer toy. Recycled materials are things that can be used more than once like water bottles, cardboard, egg carton, glass jars, and much more! Once you have gathered your materials and have an idea of what you want to engineer you can get started.

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Materials:

Glue

Tape

Recyclable materials

Coloring supplies (markers, crayons, paint)

Guiding Questions:

What recyclable material do you think will work best if you want your toy to float?

What is one material that many do not know can be recycled?

Directions

Step 1

Gather recyclable material and other things you might need to design your toy. (Ex: glue, tape, scissors, and markers)

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Step 2

Once you have found the material you would like to use, then you can start to craft your summer toy. You can create a boat or a robot or even a city for your other toys to live in!

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Step 3

Test out your toy and have fun!

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Grown Ups-Are you looking for more ways to extend your child’s learning? Check out these extension activities to build upon today’s STREAM activity!

Reading Connections

Made by Maxine by Ruth Spiro

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Real-World Connections

Recycling is great for our environment because it helps reduce waste that can potentially end up in our oceans and harm our sea creatures.