These summer STEM Challenges are great fun, no matter the weather, and they all use materials you’ve probably already got around the house.
Make treasure maps, play dough models, fizzy potions, sugar cube towers, and find rainbows in bubbles.
Gather together friends or family and start experimenting. We’ve got enough ideas to keep you busy all summer long.
We teamed up with the lovely Mrs Mactivity to create the 16 printable STEM challenge cards, which can be downloaded below.
Enjoy your summer of science!
Summer STEM Challenges
Sugar Cube Structures
Make sugar cube towers and place different materials, such as kitchen foil, cling film, etc, between the cubes to investigate which material is the most waterproof.
This is a great activity to turn into a game of who can build the tallest tower before it collapses!
Treasure Maps
Use cold coffee or tea to make white paper look old, then draw a map of your garden, house or even a map from a story!
It’s an old-school activity ( I remember making treasure maps as a child ), but they are easy, creative, and great fun for the summer holidays.
Secret Messages
Write secret messages with lemon or lime juice!
Lemon and lime juice look almost invisible when painted on paper, but react with oxygen, which makes them turn brown when they are exposed to heat.
Fizzy Potions – Summer STEM Challenge
There’s nothing better than a fizzy potion outdoors on a sunny day. Add baking soda, vinegar and dish soap for a super eruption!
To make this extra exciting, add a little red cabbage indicator to make colour changing potions!
Ice Painting
Freeze a sheet of ice and paint over the top. Once you’ve finished, wipe the ice clean and start again! The ice sheet is a lovely surface to paint over, it feels sticky at first and then smooth as it starts to melt.
Flower Dissection
The best way to learn about the different parts of a flower is to take one apart! Can you spot all the different parts?
Once the stem, petals, leaves and roots have been identified, try to spot the male and female parts of the flower.
Jump Up!
Make jumping frogs, jumping unicorns and anything else you fancy with this easy static electricity experiment.
Build a Raft – Summer STEM Challenge
Make a raft from whatever materials you have around the house and test how much weight it can hold.
Play Dough Models
Make a play dough model of a brain, bone, heart, or anything else you fancy! Play dough brains are a fantastic way for kids to learn about the different hemispheres of the brain and their functions.
Bubble Wands
Build your own bubble wands with pipe cleaners and straws! This is also a fun activity to learn about how rainbows form.
Bean in a Jar – Summer STEM Challenge
Did you know you can grow a bean in a jar? Or use paper or a sheet of card to construct a beanstalk for Jack! This is a great activity for learning about germination.
More STEM Challenges for Kids
Try our fun newspaper STEM Challenges, make shoes, towers, dens and more.
I’ve also got some easy Fairy Tale STEM Challenges to try! Make a beanstalk for Jack, a raft for the Billy Goats and more!
We’d love to see your summer science adventures, so don’t forget to share them!
Last Updated on June 12, 2025 by Emma Vanstone
STEM activities and challenges like these are perfect for helping kids in developing some life essential skills. Thanks for sharing these ideas!