Travel Pipe Cleaner Architects
Using soft, flexible pipe cleaners and pony beads, children design and construct small 3D sculptures, abstract shapes, or wearable items that require careful manipulation.
- Takes
- 1–2 hr
- Your setup
- 3 min prep
- Ages
- Ages 5–10
- Mess
- No mess
- Cost
- $
- Where
- Indoors
How to do it
- 1Give the child a handful of pipe cleaners and define a small work area on the tray table.
- 2Suggest building challenges: 'A miniature airplane,' 'A wearable ring,' or 'The tallest tower that stands on its own.'
- 3Show older children how to twist and loop the cleaners tightly for maximum stability.
- 4If using beads, demonstrate threading them onto the cleaners before bending the shapes.
What they're practising
- Spatial Reasoning
- Engineering Principles
- Dexterity