Students will learn about the effects of chemical reactions while making an exploding snowman in this fun, science experiment for kids. In this activity, students will use the theme of Christmas to make a card model of a snowman and mix the bicarbonate and vinegar to see the effects of the reaction. This is one of a series of free STEM resources designed to allow learners to use the theme of the Christmas period to develop their knowledge and skills in Science and Engineering. This activity could be used as a main lesson to teach learners about chemical reactions when one or more substances are changed to a different substance. It could also be used to explain foams as liquids or solids containing gas bubbles. Small 50g containers are best for this activity. The teacher may either bring in small plastic bottles or get the learners to bring in the bottles/containers. Teachers should ensure that covers are placed on work surfaces, or trays are used to prevent spills and catch the exploding liquid. The products of the reaction are relatively safe, though caution should be taken not to get splashes in the eyes, and clothes should be protected. The exploding mixture produced can be disposed of by washing it down the sink with plenty of water. Equipment required A zip-lock bag (sandwich bag size is great to start off with) Permanent markers Baking soda White vinegar Kitchen roll The engineering context Engineers use chemical reactions to help solve a number of problems. For example, rocket engineers mix chemicals together to make a reaction that powers a space rocket. Suggested learning outcomes By the end of this activity, students will be able to make an exploding snowman using bicarbonate and vinegar, and they will be able to understand that a reaction is when one or more substances are changed to a different substance. Download the Make an exploding snowman activity sheet for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your experiment highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

In this fun and festive activity, students will explore drag, thrust, gravity and lift forces to design and craft their own sleigh for Santa. Download the How does Santa’s sleigh fly? activity sheets for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your sleigh designs with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

Design an emoji that reflects the festive season in this fun graphics activity In this fun and creative activity, learners will use the theme of the festive season to design an emoji. They will think about what the festive season means to them and list their favourite things about this time of year. They will then use this list to sketch initial ideas for their own emoji before producing a final design that could be used on a phone or computer. This is one of a series of free STEM resources designed to allow learners to use the theme of the Christmas period to develop their knowledge and skills in Design and Technology, and Engineering. This activity could be used as a main lesson activity to teach about sketching skills, following a brief and the use of modern communications technologies. It could also be used as part of a wider scheme of learning focusing on the design process or as a one-off transition activity. Resources required A round coin (e.g. two pence or ten pence) A4 or A3 paper Graph paper (or sheet from the resource) Pencils, coloured pencils, paints and/or felt tip pens A fine-liner pen for detailing on sketches A pair of compasses or round object to draw large circles (e.g. a drinking cup or mug) The engineering context The development of ideas is fundamental to the work of the engineer working to solve a problem. To be able to work to a brief is the start of all engineering problem-solving activities. Suggested learning outcomes By the end of this activity, students will know the purpose of emojis, they will be able to understand how to design an emoji using a given theme, and they will be able to sketch with confidence! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved U.K. nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your emojis with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

In this this fun Christmas STEM experiment, we see the effect that density has on objects and make some jingle bells dance! Download the STEM activity sheet below for free. If you’re up for an extra activity, help our jingle bell finds its way back to the Christmas tree in our maze. And please do share your learning highlights and final creations with us on social media @IETeducation #SantaLovesSTEM or send them via email to IETEducation@theiet.org to be featured in our online gallery.

Use a net to make a booklet, adding funny cracker jokes and designs to the pages where needed in this festive activity for kids. This activity could be a main lesson to teach learners how to use nets to make useable objects. It could also be used as one of several activities within a wider scheme of learning focusing on understanding the use of nets in maths. The testing of the jokes could be linked with learning in English, as they involve writing and oral expression of the cracker jokes. This is one of a series of free STEM resources designed to allow learners to use Christmas themes to support the teaching of the primary National Curriculum. They are designed to support the delivery of key topics within maths and design and technology. This resource focuses on the use of a net to make a small booklet of funny cracker jokes, and these could be used as an alternative to the corny jokes often found in Christmas crackers! Nets are important as they allow 3D objects to be made when folded. Making the booklet: Step 1 – Download the That’s a Cracker activity sheet. Identify the solid and dotted cutting lines. Step 2 – Add the Christmas jokes. Step 3 – ⚠ Safely cut out the booklet net using scissors. Steps 4a and 4b – Fold the booklet as directed. Step 5 – Now test out the jokes on friends! As an optional extension activity, students could create and add their own designs and jokes to the booklet pages. How long will this activity take? This activity will take approximately 40-60 minutes to complete. The engineering context Engineers must regularly use mathematics knowledge and skills as part of their everyday job. They use nets to make scale models of buildings and other structures, as well as packaging for other products. Suggested learning outcomes By the end of this activity, students will know that graphics products can be made from nets, they will be able to add text to a graphic product, and they will be able to make a booklet from a net. Download all the Christmas cracker jokes activity sheets for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your classroom highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

In this fun and festive graphics project designed for secondary school students, learners focus on the making of a lantern shaped like a Christmas star using folded card and paper. This activity allows the theme of Christmas to develop their knowledge and skills in Design and Technology and Engineering. A activity sheet, presentation and templates are available to download for free. And please do share your classroom learning highlights with us @IETeducation

How to make a toy parachute activity. In this Christmas STEM activity, kids will use items found at home to make two parachutes and test which one is faster. They will learn about gravity, air resistance and more. Download the STEM activity sheet for free. If you’re up for an extra activity, help our present find its way back to Santa’s sleigh through the maze. And please do share your learning highlights and final creations with us on social media @IETeducation #SantaLovesSTEM or send them via email to IETEducation@theiet.org to be featured in our online gallery.

In this Christmas STEM activity, kids can make their own decorations using salt dough, in any shape they like! They can even paint them and unlike normal baked goods, they will last a very long time. Baking is a great way for kids to learn about science and maths in a fun and rewarding way, so get your aprons on! Download the STEM activity sheet and watch our video for step-by-step instructions. If you’re up for an extra activity, help our ornament find its way back to the Christmas tree in our maze. And please do share your learning highlights and final creations with us on social media @IETeducation #SantaLovesSTEM or send them via email to IETEducation@theiet.org to be featured in our online gallery.

**This is a great outdoor activity for kids to learn about the change of seasons and the natural environment around them. ** The free printable activity sheets are provided for children aged 5 to 14. There is a wide variety of wildlife and plant life for kids to spot while wandering through the woodland or countryside looking for items to match the pictures. Along with the pictures, there are science questions and ideas for children to think about. This scavenger hunt helps children develop their scientific knowledge by encouraging them to observe and identify different species of plants, animals, and insects. This can help students learn about ecosystems, food chains, and animal adaptations, among other topics. It promotes gentle physical activity and fitness by encouraging children to walk while searching for items on their lists. It will give children the opportunity to learn about the science of winter, including animal adaptations, weather patterns, and seasonal changes. They are also a great way of fostering a sense of teamwork and collaboration as kids work together to find and collect all the items. The science context Winter scavenger hunts can create engaging and interactive learning experiences that encourage curiosity, observation skills, critical thinking, and a deeper understanding of scientific concepts. It allows children to become active participants in their own learning, igniting their passion for science and cultivating the next generation of scientific thinkers. Suggested learning outcomes By the end of the activity, kids will have gained a deeper appreciation for the natural world and the role that science plays in understanding it. The activity can also help to teach geography lessons by encouraging kids to explore different landscapes and geographical features, such as rocks and bodies of water. We have a choice of three different winter scavenger hunt games for you to download, for 3-6, 5-11 and 11-14 year olds. Each game asks a series of questions, so there is also a corresponding answer sheet to download. Make sure the participants wrap up warm! Going for a walk on or around Christmas? Please do share your pictures of what you find on your winter scavenger hunts with us on social media on Facebook and Twitter using our #SantaLovesSTEM hashtag. You can also send them via email to IETEducation@theiet.org to be featured in our online gallery.

In this Christmas STEM activity for kids, students will test a simple series electrical circuit in an attempt to make Rudolph’s nose light up. This experiment will encourage students to have fun with electronics and understand circuits. What equipment will you need? Rudolph template, Stiff piece of card the same size as the template, Block of wood, 2 crocodile leads, 1.5V or D size battery, A 2.5 bulb with holder, Sticky tape, Blu-tac How to do it Step 1 Please print off the Rudolph template and stick it onto a stiff piece of card. Step 2 Make a hole (large enough to put the bulb through) where the nose would be, keeping the bulb holder at the back. Tape the bulb holder to the cardboard to hold it in place. You can paint the bulb red with a felt tip pen or add some red acetate. Sweet wrappers work well for this! Step 3 Stick the block of wood to the bottom of the card so that the Rudolph template stands up. Step 4 Attach the crocodile leads to the metal part on each side of the bulb holder. Stick the battery down on top of the piece of wood at the back with a piece of Blu-tac. You are now ready. The science behind the experiment Electricity will only flow when there is a power source within a complete circuit of conductive material with no breaks. There is no need, at this stage, to explain what electricity is or how it works, but children can begin thinking about what electricity does. Encourage the children to look around the room to find other things which work on electricity. They could cut out pictures from magazines of things which work on electricity and then sort them into those which work on mains electricity and those which work on battery power. Download the Light up Rudolph’s nose activity sheet for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your experiment highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

In this fun science activity for kids, students will make play dough that can insulate or conduct electricity. Make colourful dough with salt and another with sugar to find out which one will work! Through this process they will learn about conductors and insulators. Students will also learn about ionic bonding. This is a resource that encourages learners to have fun with science. An activity sheet is available to download for free. We have also included a bonus wordsearch using terminology from the activity to promote sticky learning. Oh ho ho, and please do share your experiment highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM

Turning a book into an artistic present! In this fun activity designed for secondary school students, learners will be given the opportunity to make folded book art by manipulating paper products. This free resource allows learners to use Christmas themes to develop their knowledge and skills in Design and Technology and Engineering. A free activity sheet is available to download. And please do share your classroom learning highlights with us @IETeducation

Evaluate strength and durability of materials that Santa could use as wrapping paper This fun and festive activity is suitable for 5-11-year-olds and will take approximately 1-2 hours to complete. What equipment will you need? At least six different types of wrapping paper. You can use more if you like (try and find ones which feel and look different, such as shiny metallic paper or tissue paper.), Some tape for wrapping, A large bin liner or a Christmas sack if you have one Five bricks/ large stones of equal size. (It works best if they aren’t perfectly smooth or round.) How to do it Step 1 – Wrap up each brick or stone with a different piece of wrapping paper. These will be your ‘presents’. Step 2 – Put them all in the sack together. Step 3 – Ask an adult to act as Santa and shake the sack for 30 seconds as though carrying it around. You could sing Christmas songs while you are doing it. Step 4 – Take each ‘present’ out and look at it carefully. Record any changes in the wrapping paper on a results sheet. These are your observations. Step 5 – Put them all back into the sack and get your helper to shake them again. Step 6 – Complete step 5 another three times (if your presents survive the shaking!). Record any changes each time. Once you have determined which paper would be best, you could write a letter (or even a poem) to Santa to let him know how you tested the paper and which paper you think he should use. You can also look at packaging materials to see which protects items delivered by courier or the post the best. For full instructions, download the worksheet and lesson plan for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your experiment highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

Get kids thinking about 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional shapes, as well as faces, edges and vertices. In this easy activity we are going to make paper cone Christmas trees which are fun to decorate and make a great centrepiece for any Christmas table. Download the STEM activity sheet below for free, And if you’re up for an extra activity, try our wordsearch where you look for words used in the experiment to increase sticky learning. Please do share your learning highlights and final creations with us on social media @IETeducation #SantaLovesSTEM or send them via email to IETEducation@theiet.org to be featured in our online gallery.

In this festive activity designed for secondary school students, learners will design a high-tech, environmentally friendly replacement for Santa’s sleigh. The sleigh will use a sustainable method of allowing it to fly through the air to deliver the presents. This free resource will build knowledge and skills in Design and Technology and Engineering. A activity sheet, presentation and design sheets are available to download for free. And please do share your classroom learning highlights with us @IETeducation

Choosing materials for a new design It is essential that products used in our everyday lives are fit for purpose. To design a product which will be useful to the customer it is important to understand how different products function and why different materials and components are suitable for different applications. With this in mind, students will dismantle an engineering product to help them better understand its construction and function. They will then use this experience to create a test that will help in choosing which materials are fit for purpose when designing a new product. This is one of a set of resources developed to aid the teaching of the secondary national curriculum, particularly KS3, supporting the teaching in design and technology (DT). The lesson accompanies our Reverse engineering activity, which should ideally be completed before this lesson. Activity: Choosing materials for a new design In this activity students will be given a pair of headphones to dismantle (this must be done carefully, as the headphones will need reassembling afterwards!). Using our Product investigation booklet, students will conduct a product analysis to investigate its construction. They will be asked to create a test that will help manufactures determine if different materials are fit for purpose to aid choosing materials for new designs. The engineering context Engineers may choose to review older products, or competitor products, in order to help them choose materials for certain design or engineering projects. These materials may be the same as what has already been used in what they’ve examined, or the examination may lead them towards producing superior materials. Suggested learning outcomes At the end of this lesson students will be able to effectively dismantle and investigate an engineered product to determine how it was made along with its function/purpose. Download our activity sheet and related teaching resources The activity sheet includes teachers’ notes, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. Download our classroom lesson plan and presentation below. Please do share your highlights with us @IETeducation.

In this fun maths activity, students will look at the way the length of the day changes over the year. They will use a data sheet to plot a graph, then interpret the data to work out the date of the longest and shortest days of the year in the United Kingdom. A free activity sheet can be downloaded. And please do share your poetry highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM

Try out this fun science experiment, designed for primary school students, to catch Santa as he delivers your presents by creating an electronic trap! The engineering context Engineers need to be able to understand how electrical circuits are drawn and communicated; This includes the use of circuit symbols to produce circuit diagrams and schematics. This knowledge could be used when investigating, designing or making electrical and electronic circuits in the future. What equipment will you need? A thin piece of sponge – a washing up sponge is great, but make sure it is completely dry, Scissors, Masking or sticky tape, Aluminium kitchen foil, 3 crocodile leads (you will need another 2 if you do the extension task), A 2 x AA battery pack, A 3V buzzer How to do it Step 1 - Cut a square of the thin sponge approximately 10cm x 10cm. In the centre, cut a hole approximately 4cm in diameter. ⚠ Be careful when using scissors. Always have an adult on standby in case you need help. Step 2 - Cut two pieces of aluminium foil slightly smaller than your piece of sponge. Step 3 - Using masking or sticky tape, tape one piece of aluminium foil to the top of the sponge and the other to the bottom. The tin foil pieces MUST NOT touch if the sponge is not pressed down but should once it is pressed. Step 4 - Attach one crocodile lead to the top piece of foil and one to the bottom piece. You have now built the pressure pad for your Electronic Santa Detector, but you need to put it in a circuit for something to happen. Follow the diagram in the activity sheet below to connect the components with your crocodile leads. When you gently press the centre, the buzzer should sound. Now all you need to do is leave it somewhere you think Santa will stand when he delivers your presents. Just inside your bedroom door, perhaps, or at the end of your bed with your stocking. When he steps on the pressure pad, the buzzer will sound and alert you to him being in the room. You might also want to disguise it so it is not noticeable. Santa is old and wise, and if he sees it, he will know not to step on it! Download the Make a trap to detect Santa activity sheet for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your experiment highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

Protect Santa’s packed lunch with this fun insulator experiment This activity can function as a fun science experiment for kids in which students will observe the effects of thermal energy on change of state. What equipment will you need? Ice cubes with a small Christmas toy frozen inside (cake decorations are ideal for this or any small Christmas toy/decoration), 5 different types of material, which could include bubble wrap, plastic bag, wool, cotton, foam, tin foil etc., Small containers big enough to put wrapped ice cubes in. How to do it Step 1 - Choose which materials you think will keep his lunch cold for the longest. Step 2 - Wrap up each ice cube singly, in one material each, being careful to have the same number of layers for each material. Put each wrapped ice cube in a container. Remember, we are trying to make this a fair test, so what else do you need to keep the same? Step 3 - Decide where to put your ice cubes and how often to check them. What signs will you look for to tell you which material works best? Step 4 - Why do you think some ice cubes are melting more quickly than others? Do you think the cold from the ice cube is getting out, or the warmth from the air is getting into the ice cube? Step 5 - Which material kept your ice cube frozen for the longest? When you have decided which material is best, design a lunchbox to keep Santa’s lunch cool this Christmas Eve. What is thermal energy? Materials melt because of heat, a form of energy (thermal energy). All objects are made up of particles which are in a constant state of motion. Cold objects have less thermal energy than warm objects and the particles which make them up will be moving much more slowly. If we put a cold object next to a warm object, they will exchange thermal energy until they achieve thermal equilibrium – and become the same. We can stop or slow down this energy exchange by using a thermal insulator. Good thermal insulators have very strong bonds to hold their particles in place, stopping the particles from moving around easily and transferring energy to other particles. Download the Insulator experiment activity sheet for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your experiment highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.

In this festive STEM graphics project, students will use a net to make a naughty or nice gauge and customise it to their own design. This activity could be used as a main lesson to teach learners how to use nets to make useable objects. It could also be used as one of several activities within a wider scheme of learning focusing on how maths can be utilised to understand the use of nets. Nets are important as they allow 3D objects to be made when folded. This activity is one of a series of free STEM resources designed to allow learners to use Christmas themes to support the teaching of the primary National Curriculum. They are designed to support the delivery of key topics within design and technology, and maths. The graphics could be added by hand or using IT. The examples at the end of the presentation were made by learners using computers at home during a lesson delivered using conferencing software. Resources required A4 paper or thin card for handouts Scissors Rulers Brass split pin fasteners Drawing and colouring equipment If available, the handout should be printed on a thin card, as greater rigidity improves performance. The engineering context Engineers use gauges to give visual displays of the amounts or levels of things. This can range from the volume control on a television to the fuel tank on a car to a temperature gauge on a machine. Suggested learning outcomes By the end of this activity, students will understand that gauges are used to measure things, and they will be able to make a graphic product by cutting and folding a net. Download the Naughty or nice activity sheet for free! All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs. The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Oh ho ho, and please do share your classroom highlights with us @IETeducation! #SantaLovesSTEM.