STREAM Activity: Everyday Inventions – Sticky Notes
Design a town with sticky notes!
Activity best for children ages four and up
Let’s celebrate everyday inventors! In the 60s, a scientist named Spencer Silver worked for a company called 3M. Spencer was on a mission to create an ultra-strong adhesive, but things went differently than planned. Instead, he stumbled upon another glue that was not as sticky and easy to remove. While Spencer faced this problem, his friend, Art Fry, kept losing his bookmarks. Art was a creative thinker and said, “What if I use Spencer’s low tack adhesive to make bookmarks that are easy to remove?” And that is how Post-its or sticky notes were made. Now, let’s see how we can use sticky notes to design a town!
Vocabulary:
Invention: New things someone has made.
Discover: Find new things.
Scientist: People who discover new things and learn how they work.
Guiding Questions:
Do you use sticky notes?
What would you invent to make your life easier?
Materials:
Colorful construction paper
Glue
Scissors
Pencil
Post-it notes
Crayons
Butcher paper (or 3 white construction papers taped together to create a long white paper)
Directions
Step 1
Start by gathering the materials for your sticky note town.
Step 2
If you do not have butcher paper, grab three pieces of construction paper and tape them together to create a longer page for your town.
Step 3
Now, grab 3 to 4 pieces of construction paper and start drawing buildings on them. You can make them as simple as rectangles or add a triangle shape to the top for a city skyline look. Once you are done drawing them, you will cut them out.
Step 4
Next, arrange your buildings on white paper. Once you like how they look, you can start gluing them down.
Step 5
Grab the sticky notes and cut them into small pieces to create the windows for your buildings.
Step 6
Stick the sticky notes on your buildings and let the colorful post-it notes light up your city. You can add more details like clouds, the sun, trees, or anything else that you might see in a city.
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
Be a Maker by Katey Howes
This book encourages children to do hands-on activities and create a maker space. Readers will embrace their creativity and explore new ideas.
Share your shining city skylines with us on Instagram by tagging @sdcdm320!
Questions about this activity? Email education@sdcdm.org
