Easy Spider Paper Plate Marble Maze

Halloween is a great time of year to make lots of lovely crafts and edible creations. We’ve combined a spider paper plate craft with a fun marble and magnet maze.

As well as a hands-on simple science activity, this is a great activity for learning about gravity and magnetism.

You’ll need

Paper plate

Googly eyes

Straws or pipe cleaners

Double-sided tape or glue

Scissors

White paper

Marble

For a magnet maze

Coloured card or small plastic bug

Paperclip

Instructions

Marble maze

Attach four straws or pipe cleaners to each side of the paper plate.

Glue googly eyes onto the plate.

Paper plate spider decoration for Halloween

Cut out 3-4 strips of the white paper and attach them to the paper plate in an arch shape.

Place a marble on the paper plate and move the plate to guide the marble through each arch.

Magnet maze

To make a magnet maze, cut out a small shape from a piece of card and attach a paperclip. A small plastic bug can also be used instead of a cardboard shape.

Place the small piece of card on top of the paper plate and use a magnet under the plate to move it around.

The paperclip is attracted to the magnet, which is why it moves around the plate with the magnet.

The science behind a marble maze or marble run

Objects only move when they are pushed or pulled.

When the plate is tilted, the marble drops down due to gravity. Gravity is the force that pulls everything down towards the earth.

As the marble drops downwards, potential energy is converted to kinetic energy.

The steeper the incline of the plate, the faster the marble will move.

To slow down the movement of the marble, the incline of the plate should be small.

Extension tasks

Find a way to slow the movement of the marble using friction. This could be by covering the plate with felt or another material that is not as smooth as the plate.