St. Patrick's Day STEM Activity - Catch a Leprechaun Print & Paperless Bundle

Looking for St. Patrick’s Day activities that your students will love but are more than just a craft or activity to pass the time? This St. Patrick’s STEM Challenge (or STEAM Challenge) will keep your students engaged in brain-busting work disguised as fun!

The basic premise:

You may know that leprechauns have the ability to grant three wishes to human captors in exchange for their freedom, but capturing leprechauns is trickier than it sounds!

Working in groups against criteria & constraints and equipped with a Leprechaun Lore List, students will design and build a device to lure and safely capture a leprechaun.

Resource includes:

NGSS aligned standards, Grades 2 – 8

Teacher Tips

- Links to my 5-part video series on getting started with STEM challenges

- Materials and timing

- Criteria & Constraints (including modifications to increase difficulty for older students)

- Measuring results

- Universal STEM Challenge Notes & How to Use Student Handouts Post-design extension activities list

- Link to a video walk-through of the challenge

Student Handouts

- Criteria & Constraints List (in color and B&W; editable)

- Results and Design Analysis (2-page regular spacing and 4-page expanded spacing for primary students included in color and black & white; editable)

- Leprechaun Lore List (color and black & white; editable)

- Discussion Questions (color and B&W; editable)

Extension templates

- Process Flow Map

- Writing Templates

- Create Math Problems Based on Designs

- Math Extension Option: Practice dividing by 2 (editable)

- Math Extension Option: Identifying addition/subtraction fact families (editable)

- Math Extension Option: Identifying multiplication/division fact families (editable)

- Math Extension Option: Identifying equivalent percents, fractions, and decimals (editable)

Plus, you'll get the 1:1 version for use with Google Slides (TM). See the previews of each resource above for details.

Feel free to reach out using the Product Q&A tab.

Sample/suggested materials for each student or group:

(Materials you’ll need to do the activity are easily modified.)

For each student or group:

– Leprechaun (1)

• Represented by bouncy balls, marbles, or grapes

– Small cups or bowls (1)

– String/yarn (24 – 36 in.)

– Shoeboxes, cereal boxes, tissue boxes and/or or cardboard scraps (distributed evenly among groups)

– Tape (12 - 24 in.)

– Cotton balls (5 – 10)

– Rubber bands (5 - 10)

– Lunch bags or plastic baggies (1 – 2)

– Foil (12 in. sheet)

– Paper and markers

– Scissors

– Leprechaun Lore List (included)

– Design analysis handouts (included)

– Optional

• Single hole punch

• Pipe cleaners (5 - 10)

• Craft sticks (5 – 10)

• Paperclips (10 – 20)

• Straws (5 – 10)

• Brass brads/fasteners (4)

• Toothpicks (10 – 20)

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What do teachers have to say about this resource?

"We love your stem challenges. It promotes so much creativity, collaboration, and FUN. Thank you!"

"One of my most favorite class activities. Thank you!"

"This was a lot of fun to do with my kiddos!"

"Excellent resource!"