NAEYC’s Week of the Young Child 2025: 6 Easy STEM Experiments for Early Learners

April 5–11 is NAEYC’s Week of the Young Child, and what better way to celebrate than with fun, hands-on STEM experiments that inspire creativity, teamwork, and real-world problem-solving? These activities use everyday items found in classrooms or homes — and they each connect to STEM skills used in real careers.

🎉 April 5 – Kick-off Saturday: STEM Surprise in a Bag!

STEM Focus: Engineering & Creative Problem-Solving

Materials:

• Brown paper bag

• Random classroom or household items (e.g., rubber bands, spoons, clips, pipe cleaners)

Steps:

• Place 3–5 safe, random items from around the house or classroom into a paper bag (e.g., spoon, paperclip, pipe cleaner, rubber band).

• Ask the child to pull out the items and look at them.

• Challenge them: “Can you build something with just these pieces?”

• Give time for free building—no wrong answers!

• Have the child name their invention and explain what it does.

🧠 Great for sparking engineering thinking and creative problem-solving!

What They Learn:

• 🧠 Creative engineering

• 🧪 Material exploration

• 🔢 Counting and sorting
  👩‍🔧 STEM Career Tie-In: Inventor, Mechanical Engineer, Toy Designer

🎶 April 7 – Music Monday: Water Xylophone

STEM Focus: Sound, Vibration & Measurement

Materials:

• 4–6 identical glass cups

• Water

• Spoon or pencil

Steps:

• Line up 4–6 clear glasses or jars.

• Fill each one with a different amount of water.

• Let the child tap each glass gently with a spoon.

• Ask: “What sound do you hear? Is it high or low?”

• Encourage them to play a little rhythm or tune.

What They Learn:

• 🔬 How sound waves and pitch work

• 🔢 Comparing volume

• 🛠️ Musical engineering
  👨‍🔬 STEM Career Tie-In: Sound Designer, Music Technologist

🍦 April 8 – Tasty Tuesday: Ice Cream in a Bag

STEM Focus: Chemistry & Temperature

Materials:

• Milk, sugar, vanilla

• Ice, salt

• 2 ziplock bags (1 small, 1 large)

Steps:

• Seal the small bag tightly.

• In a large zip-top bag, add ice and 4 tbsp salt.

• Place the small bag inside the large one and seal it.

• Let the child shake the bag for about 5 minutes (wrap in a towel or wear mittens).

• Open the inner bag and enjoy the ice cream!

What They Learn:

• 🔬 Salt lowers freezing point

• 🔢 Measure & mix

• 🧊 States of matter
  👩‍🍳 STEM Career Tie-In: Food Scientist, Chemist

🤝 April 9 – Work Together Wednesday: Cup Stacking Coding Game

STEM Focus: Intro to Coding & Engineering

Materials:

• Plastic cups

• Directional coding cards (left, right, stack)

• Stack pattern challenges

• Partners

Steps:

• One child is the "coder"; the other is the "robot."

• Show the coder a simple cup stacking pattern (e.g., pyramid shape).

• The coder gives step-by-step directions like “Place one cup. Now stack one on top.”

• The "robot" follows the steps exactly.

• Then switch roles and try a new pattern!

What They Learn:

• 📊 Sequencing & logic

• 🛠️ Basic programming

• 👯‍♂️ Collaboration
  👩‍💻 STEM Career Tie-In: Computer Programmer, Robotics Engineer

🎨 April 10 – Artsy Thursday: Salt & Ice Painting

STEM Focus: Chemistry & Observation

Materials:

• Large ice blocks or cubes

• Table salt

• Liquid watercolors or food coloring

• Droppers

Steps:

• Place a large ice cube on a tray or plate.

• Sprinkle salt on top—watch it start to melt and crack.

• Use a dropper or spoon to drip colored water (food coloring + water) over the ice.

• Watch how the color travels through the cracks.

• Keep exploring until the ice melts into a beautiful pattern!

What They Learn:

• 🔬 Chemical reactions

• 🎨 Creative data visualization

• 🔢 Color pattern observation
  👩‍🎨 STEM Career Tie-In: Geologist, Scientific Illustrator

🎈 April 11 – Family Friday: Balloon-Powered Car Race

STEM Focus: Physics & Motion

Materials:

• Water bottle or cardboard base

• Balloon

• Straws, tape

• Wheels (bottle caps or paper circles)

• Skewers or pencils for axles

Steps:

• Use a plastic bottle, cardboard, or LEGO piece for the car base.

• Tape straws to the bottom as axles and slide pencils or skewers through.

• Add round wheels (like bottle caps or cut-out circles).

• Tape a balloon onto a straw and attach it to the top of the car.

• Blow up the balloon (don’t tie it), place the car on the floor, and let go!

• Watch it race across the room!

What They Learn:

• 🔬 Newton’s Third Law

• 🛠️ Design testing

• 🔢 Measuring speed or distance
  🚀 STEM Career Tie-In: Automotive Engineer, Physicist

🧠 Why This Week Matters:

Each activity introduces a foundational STEM skill — critical thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, creativity, and hands-on experimentation. These are the same skills used in future STEM careers, just scaled for little learners!

📥 Want More Early STEM Lessons?

Check out the Little STEM Masters lesson plan bundles, teacher kits, and seasonal experiment guides. Perfect for PreK–2nd grade educators who want STEM made easy.

https://www.littlestemlab.com/virtual-lab