October has flown by. With all the running around that seems to happen when you have kids, it’s easy to lose track of time.
Thankfully there is still time for some fun Halloween STEM Activities.
Making a craft stick pumpkin catapult is fun for kids of all ages. And once it’s made, kids will have fun using it for a Halloween game that will keep them busy and having fun.
Ocotober is perfect for pumpkin STEM activities like this one.
Kids love flinging things. That’s what makes this activity such a huge hit.
If your child enjoys this project, you may want to check out our catapulting Peeps post, too.
Craft Stick Pumpkin Catapult
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Materials Needed:
- 7 Jumbo Craft Sticks
- Plastic Bottle Cap
- 3 Rubberbands
- Hot Glue Gun
- Candy Pumpkins
- Pumpkin Bucket
To make your simple catapult, you will follow the same basic craft stick catapult directions. The only difference is you will use a bottle cap as a basket to hold the candy instead of a plastic spoon. We also used jumbo craft sticks instead of the smaller ones.
Start by stacking 5 craft sticks and securing the ends together with 2 of your rubber bands.
Hot glue your plastic bottle cap to the end of one of the remaining sticks.
Stack the stick with the bottle cap on top of the last craft stick and fasten them together with the last rubber band.
Slide the stack of 5 craft sticks from earlier in between these 2 to make the catapult’s crossbar.
To help hold it all together, and to make it have a bit more “oompf” when you use it, criss-cross the rubber band holding the 2 stacked craft sticks so it goes around the crossbar.
We found that the catapult worked better when we twisted that last rubber band around the end of the sticks extra tight.
Catapulting Pumpkins Halloween STEM Activity
Once you have your catapult ready, it’s time to test it out.
What better target than a smiling pumpkin candy bucket?
Place your bucket on a flat surface in front of your pumpkin catapult.
Load the basket of the catapult with a piece of candy and get ready to play.
To fire the catapult, use one hand to hold the crossbar down against the table. Use your other hand to press the basket of the catapult down, and then let go.
The candy will shoot up into the air.
Can you get the candy to land in the bucket?
Experiment with where you need to place your catapult.
You can also experiment with how the catapult is made. Try adding another craft stick or 2 to the crossbar. Will this make the candy fly further? What if you take away a craft stick?
Try using a different rubber band to hold the catapult together. Or, try moving the crossbar further to the end of the catapult. Does this affect how far your candy goes?
You can turn this STEM activity into a fun DIY Halloween game.
For solo play, start with 10 candy pumpkins and see how many you can get into the bucket. Or, see how many pumpkins you can get into the bucket in 1 minute’s time.
You can also compete with a friend. Who can get the most points for pumpkins in the bucket?
When your child finishes, challenge them to build a toothpick and candy pumpkin tower.
This simple craft stick pumpkin catapult is a fun Halloween STEM activity for all ages.
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