I'm sure a lot of you are doing a lot of your holiday shopping online which means a lot of BOXES!  While I like to reuse and recycle, I really like to cut up the boxes into flat pieces for STEM challenges!  

I bought a $10 Slice Box Cutter from Amazon (well worth it if you have a lot of boxes).  I cut the top flaps first, then slice open the bottom and cut the sides off.  You end up with a pile of cardboard sheets!  I am alsways looking for cardboard sheets for our STEM challenges!  I store these cardboard sheets in a large clear plastic tub with a lid!  My storage bin is 132 quart size and it is huge!  I grabbed it from my local Target store.

You will be so glad you saved all these boxes!  I actually look forward to this time of the year because all the boxes I cut up can be used throughout the next calendar year!  The storage bin helps me keep these cardboard sheets neat in my own classroom!

Start saving those boxes and turning them into cardboard sheets now!

  

While you can use found objects in most STEM @ Home projects, you can also use natural materials!  In this age of digital or virtual teaching and learning a walk outside could probably do all of us some good!  Especially in the fall, there are things everywhere for kids to grab and use for STEM challenges!

Here is a list of some of the things you can find...

- pincones

- various nuts

- leaves, leaves, and more leaves

- sticks, twigs, logs

- rocks

- grass

- flowers

- mulch

- old bird nests

- weeds

Depending on where you live, there are things that you can pick up and use everywhere outside!

I usually tell my kids to grab a baggie, talk a nature walk, and start collecting things.  I do this the day of the STEM challenge since most things do not stay "fresh" for long!

Add some natural items to your STEM challenge materials today!