Christmas Boats - STEM Challenges for Christmas

This simple Santa STEM challenge involves building different boats for Santa to cross a river. Children can experiment with different materials, shapes, and sizes of boats to find the best one.

Oh No! Santa’s sleigh has broken down, and he needs to cross a river.

Build two different kinds of Christmas boats that will float and hold the weight of some decorative bells or other Christmas trinkets.

Boats made from lolly sticks and a cardboard container with a DUPLO Santa and reindeer.

Materials

Lolly sticks
Jam jar lids
Cardboard
Small boxes or paper cups
Scissors
Sponges
Water tray
Small objects to add.

Instructions

Construct your boats. Don’t be limited to the materials above: use corks, egg cartons, half an orange, or anything else you think might float.

Test your boats by placing them into a container of water.

Christmas boats made with a sponge and jam jar lid for a STEM challenge

DUPLO reindeer on a lolly tick raft for a STEM challenge

Don’t worry if the boats sink. That’s all part of the fun.

Questions to ask

Did any of the boats sink? Is there anything you could add to the boat to help it float?

Do all the boats float? What happens when you add the Christmas items?

Which materials are the most waterproof?

How much weight can you add before the boat sinks?

Does it matter where in the boat you put the extra weight?

Does it make a difference if the water is deeper?

What do you notice about materials that float? Do they have any properties in common?

Boat for Santa STEM Investigation

Boat for Santa STEM challenge design and results sheet

Why does this happen?

Whether an object sinks or floats depends on its density.

Density is how tightly packed the material inside an object is. Heavy objects do not always sink. For example, ships are heavy but not very dense, so they float.

Extension Ideas

Playtivitities has some brilliant ideas for making boats from recycled items.

Try to build a bigger boat that will hold a Santa or reindeer figure.

Can you build a boat using four different materials, one of which you know sinks?

Try one of my easy Santa STEM challenges!

Christmas themed mini boat for a festive STEM challenge

Make a Mini Science Kit

We made a cute mini science kit containing a red sponge, red lollystick and paper for a sail. This would make a great little activity to give to friends.