Pirate Ship: STEM At Home Activity

Originally Posted: April 22, 2020
Updated: April 2024

STEM Space At Home Video Challenge

STEM Space At Home is a video series led by an engineer using materials you can find at home. The videos are intended to support elementary and middle school students through fun engineering design challenges with a real-world connection. Find all episodes here.

STEM Space At-Home is brought to you by Vivify STEM and Communities In Schools of San Antonio through the NASA program “New Worlds Await You” led by the WEX Foundation.

---

Pirate Ship STEM Challenge

Mission: Build a boat that can hold treasure without sinking and then turn it into a sailboat that can sail across a small body of water!

Materials needed: Watch the video for ideas of materials to use around the house.

1. Scissors

2. Tape

3. 10 Coins

4. Materials for the boat: waterproof items like a styrofoam cup or plate, plastic cup or plate, or foil.

5. Materials for the mast and sail: Construction paper, straw, stick, or other recyclable materials

Before starting the video, download the activity guide found in our The STEM Space library.

Additional Resources:

• Vivify’s Sailboat Challenge: Check out our complete classroom lesson on our product page with engineering design process handouts including STEM career connections, science connections, math extensions, and more! Includes an editable digital STEM journal for distance learning.

• Click here for an elementary Pirate Ship lesson plan.

• Check out these STEM career links:

  • Marine Engineering Information

  • Naval Architecture Information

  • Marine Engineering & Naval Architecture video

• Want to learn more about boats? Check out these videos and apps:

  • video: Why do ships float?

  • video: How does a sailboat actually work?

  • Sail For Gold game app

Good luck engineers! We can’t wait to see your pirate ships! Don’t forget to post your design using #𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗠𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 and tag us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter!