3 Simple Plastic Bag STEM Challenges

Plastic Bag STEM Challenges

While plastic bags are not an ideal material to seek out due to their impact on the environment, it is inevitable that there are likely plenty of plastic bags that you can make use of first! Three STEM challenges that you can easily try with plastic bags are:

• parachutes
• wind-powered cars
• kites

These all happen to be great activities for outdoors as well! If you haven’t gone outside for STEM challenges before, now is definitely the time to give it a whirl.

Parachute STEM Challenge with Plastic Bags

Parachutes are one of my favorite STEM challenges! It is so easy to iterate the design and test it out again! Students love dropping their parachute and watching it fall. *If you want to be more environmentally conscious, you can try parachute STEM with GIANT coffee filters.

Set up the STEM challenge: Design and build a parachute using a plastic bag, some string, and a payload (a washer works well). Test the parachute by dropping it from a height and see how slowly it falls to the ground. Experiment with different designs to see which one works best (canopy size or material, string length, weight).

Want to be more intentional and methodical about the process? Scroll to the bottom to find my Parachute STEM resource.

Here are two student samples of parachutes from the parachute challenge shown below. One is a plastic bag! It looks pretty fun but the student was disappointed the heavy weight plastic from a target bag didn’t descend nearly as slowly as a generic grocery store plastic bag!

Wind-Powered Car STEM Challenge with Plastic Bags

This next challenge can be made much easier or more difficult depending on which age group you’re working with. If you are working with lower elementary students, start with large toy vehicles, and provide them with support options (straws, pipe cleaners, dowels), plastic bags, and tape. They can simply work on constructing a sail for the car. Try to do this on a windy day for the best effect, but you can also use a leaf blower outside or a desk fan inside for the “wind.”

If you have upper elementary or middle school students, challenge them to first build the vehicle. You can use easier materials like LEGO wheels and pieces, or have them construct the cars from bottle caps, straws, and plastic bottles. Experiment with different sail sizes and shapes to see how they affect the car’s speed and direction.

Design a Kite STEM Challenge with a Plastic Bag

For this plastic bag STEM challenge, you will need 1-2 plastic bags, dowels or sticks, heavy duty tape, string, and a windy day to test the finished prototype! First, research with students about different types of kites. Let them decide which type of kite they would like to try to make. If they are feeling stuck, review these search results together. For the best result, you may need to help secure the plastic bags with wires like twist ties or hot glue.

Testing out kites can be tricky! You really need to watch the weather forecast, make sure you have a wide open area, and then work on the launch. Find some tips about launching kites here.

I hope you can try some of these STEM challenges with plastic bags. If you do be sure to tag me on social media so I can see what your kids came up with! (@meredithanderson_momgineer on Insta is the best way!).

If you are looking for a read aloud to go with these challenges, I would recommend One Plastic Bag by Miranda Paul: *

Please note that I may earn a small commission if you purchase the book through my link. Click here for our full disclosure policy.

Go Deeper with Your STEM Challenges!

To get the most out of your STEM challenges, students should record their process. Using the 5-step EDP process (Ask, Imagine, Plan, Create, Improve) is the perfect way to do this! You’ll also then have a record of their initial design, modifications they’ve made, testing data, and their thought process throughout. You don’t need to spend a lot of time in effort on a full STEM journal! I have simplified the process to a 1-page sheet. The page below is included in the Parachute STEM Challenge resource.

You’ll also get vocabulary cards that go with the challenge, teacher instructions, and bonus pages:

Grab this challenge now or get the bundle of 20 Quick STEM Challenges and try them all! While plastic bag STEM challenges like the parachute challenge is one of my favorites, there are so many more to tinker with and try!