Looking for some fun team-building activities or icebreakers for the first week of school? Especially in a STEM classroom, the start of the year is an ideal time to build connections, encourage creativity, and plant the seeds of a STEM mindset focused on perseverance, curiosity, and collaboration.
Every year, our students absolutely loved the classic cup stacking challenge. It was always a hit! Not only did it get them talking and working as a team, but it also introduced essential skills like coordination, strategy, and communication. These simple yet impactful challenges are perfect for setting the tone for STEM education in the early weeks of school. Download the Cup Stacking STEM Challenge with free editable task cards on Google Slides! Fun, hands-on activity for all ages kids. Works with Google Workspace.
Cup Stacking STEM Challenge with Free Task Card
Cup Stacking STEM Challenge with Free Task Card
Object:
How to Play:
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Download and print the task card (Download from the bottom).
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Place all cups in a pile on the Table.
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Using those cups, players begin to build a tower that matches the stack shown on their chosen task card.
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Keep rolling, grabbing cups, and stacking carefully. Don’t let your tower fall!
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If your tower topples, you're out.
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The last standing tower wins the challenge!
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You can edit the task on the Google Slides card and modify.
What Kids Practice:
- Number recognition & sequencing
- Teamwork (if played in groups)
- Fine motor skills & hand-eye coordination
- Critical thinking & problem-solving
Use during:
STEM Centers
Early Finisher Activities
Indoor Recess
Team-Building
Days
Morning Tubs
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| Cup Stacking STEM Challenge with Free Task Card |
STEM is about more than just science and math; it's about creativity, problem-solving, and critical thinking. These are life skills that stay with students far beyond the classroom. Giving them a fun task like building a tower with cups allows them to collaborate, adapt, and think outside the box.
That’s why we bring this back every year. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel when a classic STEM activity is so effective. In fact, students often ask for it! It’s engaging, purposeful, and reinforces key skills. It’s a brilliant way to kick off your STEM activities for elementary students and even adapts well for preschool STEM activities and STEM activities for kindergarten.
One of our favorite resources for this is a set of editable cup-stacking challenge cards. Students loved these cards! They were easy to prepare and worked wonderfully in sensory bins, STEM bins, or as part of a group task. The good thing is that they’re editable in Google Workspace, so you can easily personalize the challenges in Google Docs or Slides—just make sure you're using Google Chrome (you can do a quick Google Chrome download if needed).
These cards have been used across our school day in multiple ways:
- As team-building stations during a glow party
- For indoor recess and early finisher tasks
- As part of our center rotations
- As quick, fun brain breaks that still involve skill-based learning
- Even during our 120th Day of School celebration, students race to build the tallest tower with 120 cups!
Our students loved the variety and hands-on nature. It was so engaging that they began challenging each other in small groups, practicing hand-eye coordination, copying patterns, and learning to work cooperatively. These STEM cards have truly been a time-saver for us and brought joy to many classroom moments.
Whether you’re a new teacher or pursuing a Master’s in STEM education, or even just exploring what STEAM education is, resources like these offer practical examples of theory in action. And yes, activities like this tie beautifully into STEAM education, adding art, design, and creativity to the classic STEM structure.
So, why is STEM education important? Because it builds future-ready thinkers and doers. Whether a child grows up to explore technology, engineering, or even cybersecurity (yes, cybersecurity is a STEM degree!), the core values begin with playful challenges like these. The benefits of STEM education are clear—students become collaborators, problem-solvers, and innovators.
Ready to start your year with energy and purpose? Add this editable, flexible, and fun STEM activity to your first week of school. Whether you're using it in a classroom or prepping through Google Workspace, it's one of those activities that’s easy to manage and hard for students to forget.
Download Cup Stacking STEM Challenge with Free Task Card
Download the cup stacking task card from here
Editable on Editable on Google Slide from here
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