Make an Aladdin Magic Flying Carpet

By Rachelle

Have you ever wanted to make something levitate? Maybe you have a child who’s fascinated by flight? In celebration of Disney’s release of the Aladdin Signature Collection on Blu-Ray™, I’m teaming up with Disney Studios to bring Aladdin’s flying carpet to life.

That’s right, today we’re making a flying carpet in this Aladdin-inspired STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math) project that will invite your child to draw and/or color, learn about the magic of magnets, and amaze family with their ability to make a carpet “fly.”

My kids and I recently watched both the live action Aladdin and animated Aladdin movies (they had never seen them before) and we were all smitten by the fun storyline, humorous genie, and catchy songs. Oh, and the magic, of course!

I’m including a few things here to make this extra easy for you: a printable template, step-by-step instructions, and a video to show you how the carpet flies. Fun! Are you ready to start?

Supplies

Template (download below)

Scissors

Coloring Tools

Strong Magnets

Tape

Table or Ceramic Plate

Warning: Please watch young children closely when using scissors and magnets. These are not toys.

Choose a magic carpet template to decorate. You can use the Aladdin theme carpet or invent your own design.
Cut the carpet out.
Tape a strong magnet to the back of the carpet. Place a few more magnets on top of the tape to make it extra strong. Watch the video to see how this looks.
Place the carpet on a table or ceramic plate.
Make another stack of magnets and hold them under the table or plate. Move the magnets and watch your carpet “fly.”

Aladdin Signature Collection is now available on Digital & Blu-ray™

STEAM Project: Design Challenge with Sticks, Clay, and a Mandarin

By Rachelle

This open-ended STEAM project encourages children to use creative and critical thinking skills to build a structure, with limited supplies, to support a mandarin. Once you set up the building invitation, stand back (or build side-by-side) and watch imaginations unfold. Sky is the limit, creativity is encouraged, and all solutions are welcome!

New to STEAM? STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math. A STEAM project incorporates at least two of these disciplines in one project. In this challenge, we will work with engineering and art.

This article may contain affiliate links

The Challenge

Build a structure, using at least 15 skewers, to support a mandarin.

Supplies

* Note: If you have a different size skewer, that’s fine, too!

The Set Up

The set up is simple. Clear the table and set up the supplies, including a small collection of Wonderful Halos mandarins. They are a great snack time treat, and can be included in creative engineering projects to teach kids that healthy snacking is fun. They’re in season from November to May, and I can’t forget to mention that Wonderful Halos are sweet, seedless and easy to peel, perfect for kids and adults!

Fill a cup with skewers.
Open box of modeling clay.
Gather Wonderful Halos mandarins
Print out a challenge table card (optional – see below for link to PDF)
Place all the supplies on the table and invite your child to build a structure, using at least 15 sticks, to support a mandarin.

The solutions we saw were wildly different.

The LOW structure

This totally stable structure was able to support multiple mandarins. Scroll down to see the results. None of the mandarins touched the table! This solution actually prompted a new challenge to build a structure that can support more than one mandarin.

The Speared Structure

This one gets points for ingenuity. Nothing in the challenge says that the mandarin has to balance on the sticks. Totally cracked me up. Genius!

The Tripod Solution (above)

The above structure was built with 4 tripods and exactly 15 sticks. Works like a charm!

All of these solutions prompted more challenge ideas!

We tested this with a group of Stanford students (so fun – they’re such a brilliant group!) who came up with more novel solutions.

Make the Tallest Free-standing Structure

Make the Tallest Free-standing Structure you can, using just 20 sticks. My 7-year old loved this one, especially with Wonderful Halos by her side. Just look at her face to see how proud she is to accomplish the task!

Build a Structure that can Support More than one Mandarin

This one was mentioned earlier. My 9-year old loved got wrapped up in aesthetics during the assembly process.

Build a Vehicle using sticks, clay, and mandarins

Two of the aforementioned Stanford students built this truck, inspired by the Stanford d.School Truck, an old fashioned truck, parked right inside the Hasso Platner Institute of Design.

Download the STEAM Mandarin Design Challenge Cards

Click the image below or click this link to download your FREE Design Challenge cards.

Thank you Wonderful Halos for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.

More Projects like this one

Spaghetti Tower Marshmallow Challenge

DIY Paper Tube Marble Run

Fort Building Kit

DIY Water Wall, it’s like a marble run, but with water!

Build an easy light table

Make Gumdrop Sculptures

Easy Contact Solution Glitter Slime

By Rachelle

I have yet to meet a kid who isn’t crazy for slime. We first made slime when my daughter was two. It was such a hit that we printed up the recipe (download it here) and I published it in my book, TinkerLab: A Hands-on Guide for Little Inventors.

TinkerLab has readers from all over the world, and I learned that not all of the ingredients in our original slime recipe can be found outside of the United States. So, I did some digging to find an incredible slime recipe that can be made with ingredients – worldwide.

Note: This post contains affiliate links.

Low and behold, I found a simple over-the-counter slime recipe, and it’s amazing! My kids tested it, loved it, stretched it, played with it endlessly, packed it away in plastic baggies, and have continued to use it for over the past few weeks. Plus, glitter!

We’ve always used Elmer’s school glue for our slime (I stock gallons of it – no joke!), and it’s no surprise that Elmer’s is also behind the Glitter Glue in this Glitter Slime recipe. Not only is Elmer’s a solid product that I trust for our crafting needs, but it’s also affordable, making slime an economical activity that keeps on giving.

Here’s how to make an easy GLITTER slime with just three ingredients…

Supplies for Glitter Slime

Bottle of Elmer’s Glitter Glue (6 oz.)
1.5 teaspoons (7.5 ml) baking soda – We are die-hard fans of Arm and Hammer Brand
1.5 teaspoons (7.5 ml) eye drops or saline solution (contact solution) with Boric Acid or Sodium Borate in the ingredients – We used Bausch and Lomb ReNu Contact Solution
Spoon or spatula
Mixing bowl

Steps for Glitter Slime

Empty the bottle of glitter glue into a mixing bowl
Stir in the baking soda. Mix well.
Add contact solution and mix until slime forms. You’ll notice it comes together immediately, and takes a few minutes to fully form.
Knead the slime with your hands to get it to a consistency you’re happy with.

Would you like our free recipe card for two kinds of slime? Go ahead and download it here >>> Click here to download the free Slime Recipe Cards

How to Make Saline Solution Glitter Slime

Empty the bottle of glitter glue into a mixing bowl

Stir in the baking soda. Mix well.

Add contact solution and mix until slime forms.

You’ll notice it comes together immediately, and takes a few minutes to fully form.

Knead the slime with your hands to get it to a consistency you’re happy with.

Note: Be sure to wash your hands after playing with slime, and always use your best judgement when using sensory and art supplies with children.

The Science Behind the Slime

Contact solution contains boric acid which is a disinfectant that keeps the eyes fungus-free. This makes contact lens wearer’s eyes super happy. School glue contains polyvinyl alcohol (also known as PVA) which is made up of ethylene, oxygen, and acetic acid (from vinegar).

Here’s how it the slime comes together: The polyvinyl alcohol molecules (found in the glue) and boric acid (found in the contact solution) combine and stick together. As they combine they make a polymer chain, which is the slime!

More Slime Recipes from our Slime Lab

Fluffy Snow Slime (it sparkles!)

4-Ingredient Fluffy Slime

3-Ingredient Slime

Cozy Christmas Slime for the Holidays

Sparkly Glitter New Years Slime Recipe

Slime Recipe Cards (Glitter and Easy Slime with Borax) – PDF

Borax vs. Boric Acid

Are you interested in the difference between Borax and Boric Acid? Click over to this slime recipe for the full scoop.

Thank you Elmer’s for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.

Engineering Kids | Rube Goldberg Machine

By Rachelle

Build a Rube Goldberg Machine with Kids

So, are you interested in building a Rube Goldberg-style machine with little kids? This post will give you a few tips and ideas to make your own complicated machine.

This project has long been on my to-do list with my kids. We are long-time fans of marble runs (see the resources page for recommendations), and extending our love for rolling balls and ramps into the world of Rube Goldberg was a no-brainer. And triple hurrah for projects that celebrate STEM and STEAM learning. We were on the hunt for easy Rube Goldberg ideas, watched a few videos, and came up with this fun solution that works for young children.

About Rube Goldberg

For the uninitiated, Rube Goldberg was an American Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer, and inventor, and his work is a classic example of the melding of art and science. Goldberg began his career as an engineer, and later became a cartoonist who drew elaborate illustrations of contraptions made up of pulleys, cups, birds, balloons, and watering cans that were designed to solve a simple task such as opening a window or setting an alarm clock. Interestingly, Goldberg only drew the pictures, and never built any of his inventions. However, these pictures have since served as inspiration for makers and builders who want the challenge of making wild inventions to solve everyday problems.

And apparently, Rube Goldberg is a now an adjective in the dictionary! You can read more about Goldberg here.

Step 1: Get Inspired

First things first, you’ll want to watch some Rube Goldberg contraptions in action to get inspired. My kids and I LOVE this video from OK Go. It’s incredible complicated, but oh-so-amazing, so don’t think for one hot second that you’ll be able to replicate this with little kids. I’ll add more inspiring videos below.

Step 2: Solve a Problem

Next, come up with a simple problem that you’re trying to solve. For example:

Ring a Bell
Pop a Balloon
Open a Door
Shut a window
Put out a candle

Once you have a problem sorted out (and don’t worry – you can change this later if you want), gather supplies…

Step 3: Gather Supplies

You can print out the following list here.

Collect a bucket-full of supplies and then lay them out so they’re easily seen. These can largely be found in your home or classroom — start with what you have! You will most likely start with some of these basics, and then forage your home or classroom for more supplies as you go. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Things that Roll

Marbles
Balls: Tennis, Baseball, Bowling, etc.
Toy Cars
Dominoes
Skateboard
Roller Skate
Mousetrap

Things that Move

Mousetrap
Dominoes
Toaster
Fan

Ramps

Toy Train Tracks
Marble Runs
Books
Trays
PVC pipe
Plastic tubing
Gutters

Recyclables

Cardboard
Cereal Boxes
Cardboard Rolls
Plastic Water Bottles
Cans
Aluminum Foil

Household Materials

Chopsticks
Popsicle Sticks
Ruler
Wooden Blocks
Bowl
String
Tape
Sand
Pins
Hammer
Balloons
Water
Fan
Vinegar and Baking Soda

Step 4: Build Your Machine!

Once you have the supplies ready, start building. While the OK Go video (and others like it) includes some pretty complex machines and concepts, keep this simple for preschoolers. The basic concept that we’re exploring is that of a chain reaction, so anything that tips something else over (and so one) is what you’re going for. Don’t worry too much about building things like pulleys and levers for young children.

Take a look at our machine to get a sense of what’s possible.

Our Rube Goldberg Machine in Action

5 Tips for Success

Success breeds enthusiasm, so keep the steps to a minimum. You can always add more as you go.
Keep your expectations low
Ask your child for ideas and input
Work collaboratively
Aim to have fun

A Note on Failure

As you test and try out different set-ups, you’ll undoubtedly fail a few times. I could have filled a 20 minute video with outtakes from all our misses (the balloon is a good example of that). But this is great news! Failure is an intrinsic piece of the invention process, and without these mistakes we won’t learn how things really work. So embrace failure and celebrate it as part of the learning process.

Next Steps: Full STEAM Ahead

Ask: What other simple problems could we solve?
Ask: What materials could we use?
Ask: Why didn’t that work? How could we fix it or try it again?
Encourage your child to problem solve by seeking out materials and moving objects.

Did you enjoy this project? Join the semi-secret Club TinkerLab on Facebook to swap and share more ideas like this.

Inspiring Rube Goldberg Machines

Watch this one light up a Christmas tree

Learn about Rube Goldberg Machines on Sesame Street

Easy Rube Goldberg Example

More Projects like this one

DIY Paper Tube Marble Run

Fort Building Kit

DIY Water Wall, it’s like a marble run, but with water!

Build an easy light table

Make Gumdrop Sculptures

Activate Learning with STEAM

If you’ve been a loyal TinkerLab fan (thank you! you mean the world to me.) you’ll know that I’m happiest sharing projects that live at the intersection of disciplines. Too often we’re quick to separate science from writing or math from art, but when we seek out ways to make interdisciplinary connections, learning can be more meaningful and novel discoveries can be made.

In that vein, you may also enjoy these projects that circle around STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) ideas. This week’s theme is REACT, and you can see the other reaction-related ideas here:

Stixplosions | Babble Dabble Do

Smoosh Painting | Meri Cherry

Color Changing Chemistry Clock | Left Brain Craft Brain

Zoom Ball | What Do We Do All Day?

Glowing Hands | All For The Boys

Rainbow Reactions | Lemon Lime Adventures

Colorful Chemical Reaction | Frugal Fun for Boys

STEAM on Pinterest

You might also enjoy following my STEAM + STEM Activities board on Pinterest for more ideas like this.