STEM Sailboat Challenge Math & Engineering Activity

STEM Sailboat Engineering Activity Description

Updated to include an editable digital STEM journal for distance learning.

The Sailboat STEM activity is a great way to incorporate the engineering design process into your classroom or afterschool program! Many are familiar with the boat buoyancy challenge, and this takes it one step further by adding a sail! Now students must build a boat to hold a specific weight as well as incorporate aerodynamic principals to make it move. This is also a great activity for Thanksgiving by connecting the Sailboat Challenge to the voyage of the Mayflower! Read more about this challenge here.

This hands-on activity is an engaging design challenge that allows students to work in teams, apply the engineering design process, and connect math topics to real-world applications. As a student-driven assignment, the purpose of the teacher is to act as a facilitator. You will provide the structure to the project, but students will take an active role in designing and building their sailboats. Our students have loved this activity, and we know yours will too!

Engineering Challenge: Students use the engineering design process to design and build a sailboat to carry a mass across a set distance. Students will also learn about buoyancy and surface area as well as the forces acting on the boat.

As with many STEM activities that are student-driven, this challenge can be tailored to students of various skill levels and abilities. We have used this challenge from elementary through high school levels with great success.

Included in this product:

• Detailed teachers guide with links to resources
• Photos of student examples
• Student handouts to guide them through the design process
• Editable Google Slides STEM journal for distance learning
• STEM Career Connection on Marine Engineering & Naval Architecture
• Student recording sheet for each step of the process
• Math connection problems including angles, ratios, geometry, and graphing

Looking for more STEM lessons? Find the Vivify resource guide here: bit.ly/VivifyResourceGuide

About STEM Challenges: Click here to learn more about the 3 Stages of STEM. STEM challenges are an engaging way to incorporate the engineering design process into your classroom or afterschool program! These hands-on activities allow students to work in teams, apply the engineering design process, and connect science topics to real-world applications. The teacher will provide the structure to the project, but students will take an active role in designing and building their own device.

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