Are you ready to become a young engineer?
In this fun and easy STEM activity, you will build a bridge using just paper, plastic cups /paper cups and coins. You’ll test how strong your paper bridge can be and learn how real engineers design bridges to hold heavy weights.
This is a great engineering project for students in Grades 2–5. You don’t need any fancy tools—just things you already have at home or in the classroom.
Get ready for hands-on learning with our exciting STEM activity printable and STEAM journal cover!
This engaging resource is perfect for young learners who love building, experimenting, and thinking like real engineers. With our easy-to-follow paper bridge challenge, kids will explore how shape and structure affect strength—all while having fun. The included STEAM journal cover helps students document their observations, make predictions, and reflect on what they learned, turning each activity into a meaningful learning experience.
What You Need:
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1 piece of paper (printer or notebook paper)
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Pennies or small blocks
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Scissors
How to Do the Paper Bridge Experiment
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Make a Simple Bridge:
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Place two plastic cups /paper cups .
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Put a flat piece of paper across the top of the cups.
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Add pennies one by one in the center of the paper.
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Count how many pennies it holds before the bridge falls.
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Make a Stronger Bridge:
What Are We Learning?
You’ll learn:
How engineers use shapes to make structures stronger.
Why folding paper helps it carry more weight.
How to test ideas and improve them — just like a real scientist!
This is called a STEM challenge, where you use Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math to solve a problem.
What Happened?
The flat paper bridge bends and falls quickly. But the folded paper bridge is much stronger!
That’s because the accordion folds spread the weight and give the paper more support.
This is a real trick that engineers use when they build bridges, roofs, and cardboard boxes!
STEM Vocabulary to Know:
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Engineer: A person who designs and builds things like bridges, machines, or buildings.
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Structure: Something that is built or made.
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Corrugated: A shape with many folds or ridges, like cardboard.
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Weight: How heavy something is.
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Strength: How much weight something can hold without breaking.
Try More Questions:
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What happens if you use a bigger or smaller piece of paper?
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What if you fold the paper with smaller folds or bigger folds?
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Can you make a paper bridge that holds 100 pennies?
Why This STEM Activity Matters
This fun hands-on activity helps kids:
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Learn how shape affects strength.
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Understand how testing and improving designs is part of science.
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Think like real engineers and problem-solvers.
Classroom or Homeschool Tip
This easy STEM experiment for kids is perfect for science class, centers, or homeschool.
Pair it with a short video about bridge types (beam bridge, truss bridge, etc.) to take learning further.
Ask students to draw their bridges and reflect on what worked and what didn’t.
The paper bridge STEM challenge is a simple, exciting way to teach engineering and critical thinking at a young age.
Whether you're a teacher, parent, or homeschooler, your students will love watching their folded bridge become a super-strong structure.
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Grab Your Free STEM Printable!
Download the Paper Bridge STEM Challenge activity sheet and the matching STEAM journal cover to get started. Just print, build, and let the learning begin! Perfect for classrooms, homeschool, or STEM centers.
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