DIY science projects that elementary school boys will love: ideas you can make with everyday materials
For a summer vacation independent research craft project, you’ll want ideas that really grab boys’ interest.
In this article, we introduce craft ideas that boys can get absorbed in—like making a capsule toy (gachapon) machine out of cardboard, creating genuine fishing gear with a reel, and handcrafting air hockey or a basketball game.
They all look impressive yet can be made with everyday materials.
How about creating fun summer memories by playing with your favorite project together with friends?
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Hands-on science projects that elementary school boys will love! Ideas you can make with everyday materials (61–70)
Rubber band gun made from disposable chopsticks and clothespins
This is a chopstick rubber band gun whose trigger is a clothespin, launching rubber bands with impressive speed—its muzzle velocity is the main attraction.
The basic build is to fix one jaw of a clothespin to the end of a chopstick bundle, then create a notch at the tip to hook the rubber band.
How you bundle the chopsticks and how you secure the clothespin are both important; the firmer the attachment, the more stable it will be when the rubber band is stretched.
Its simple look—chopsticks extending from the clothespin—also makes it a great canvas for decorations to add your own personal touch.
Spinning piggy bank
@silk_haru3mama [Summer Vacation Craft] A Spinning Piggy Bank 🌻 “At-Home Crafts” book 📕 on sale now! (Available on Amazon, Rakuten, and bookstores nationwide) Purchase via the link in my profile 🔗 ⇨ @silk_haru3mama ————————————— Thank you for watching∗︎*ﾟ I’m Silk, and I share easy crafts and at-home play ideas that make you think, “I can do this!”✩︎⡱ This year, I’ll be introducing various ideas perfect for summer vacation crafts again 🌻 This time, I came up with a fun piggy bank whose blades spin every time you put in a coin! The direction of the spin changes with each coin, so you’ll want to keep putting more in 🤭 Give it a try if you like ♡ We’re using an empty seaweed container, so you can easily take the money out from the bottom lid 👍🏻 Materials • 2 empty seaweed containers (cylinders, 10 cm diameter, 11 cm tall) • 1 milk carton • 2 bamboo skewers • 1 straw • Colored vinyl tape • Clear tape • Awl • Scissors • Ruler How to make it *A more detailed tutorial will be posted on YouTube. You can get to YouTube from the link in my profile, so check it out there too. 1) Cut out the bottom of the seaweed container with a utility knife. 2) Make a hole from the lid side at a height of 6 cm that’s wider than the bamboo skewer. 3) Cut off the bottom of the milk carton, open it flat, then cut two strips 4 cm wide and four strips 2 cm wide. 4) Fold the 4 cm strips into a cross as shown in the video and secure with clear tape. 5) Cut the four looped tips of the cross, then fold about 5 mm from the edge outward to open them up. Wrap the entire piece with colored vinyl tape (large blade). 6) Fold the 2 cm strips into a cross in the same way, and wrap vinyl tape around the four root sections. Cut off the outer parts that were not taped (small blade). 7) Cut the straw into four 5 mm pieces. 8) Thread a bamboo skewer through the hole in the seaweed container, then slide on: straw → small blade → large blade → small blade → straw. 9) Make another unit the same way, stack the two containers so the lids are at the top and bottom, and tape them together. Trim the protruding bamboo skewer, leaving about 1–1.5 cm. 10) Cut a coin slot about 3 cm wide into the top lid, and you’re done!! I’d be happy if you check out my craft book too!! ↓↓↓ About the “At-Home Crafts” book 📚 All crafts use recyclables, familiar materials, or items from 100-yen stores, so even busy caregivers or those who feel clumsy can think, “I can do this!” It’s full of easy-to-make, repeat-play handmade toys for kids ☺️ Whether you want to make a toy by hand, enjoy crafting with your child, or need ideas for an elementary school craft assignment, I hope it helps in many situations as your child grows. ———————————— “Build fine-motor skills and sensory growth! Parent and child will get hooked! At-Home Crafts for ages 3 to elementary school” 𖤘 Publisher: KADOKAWA 𖤘 Price: 1,500 yen (tax excluded) (1,650 yen incl. tax) *Available on Amazon, Rakuten, and bookstores nationwide ———————————— At-home play, educational toys, making#HandmadeToysSimple crafts for home play by lsilk, home crafts by ilsilk, summer vacation crafts and research
♬ Everyday/Cute Piano Solo(1512061) – Sumochi
Why not make a fun piggy bank where the coins spin as they go in? It’s a perfect idea for a summer vacation craft.
First, slice a milk carton into rings, press the corners to flatten the center space, and make four “blades” to form a propeller.
Decorate the edges with vinyl tape, and make two large propellers and four small ones in the same way.
Skewer a large propeller on a bamboo stick, then add two small propellers on each side to create a spinning mechanism.
Insert this into a clear tube, make a coin slot in the lid, put the lid on, and you’re done.
High-performance Gatling gun made of disposable chopsticks
If a regular rubber band gun isn’t exciting enough for you, why not try making this Gatling-style version? The base is cardboard; for the rotating center section use chopsticks, a plastic wrap tube, and twine, and for the handle use a toilet paper tube.
It takes patience—cutting and layering parts to glue together, and attaching chopsticks at equal intervals around the wrap tube—but each individual step is simple.
By running twine across the central chopstick section and setting rubber bands over it, the twine gets pulled as it rotates, launching the rubber bands.
pinhole camera
Let’s try making a pinhole camera, a classic for independent research projects.
A pinhole camera is a camera that forms an image using a tiny pinhole instead of a camera lens.
There are methods using a milk carton or a paper cup, and it’s surprisingly easy to make.
If you choose a pinhole camera for your project, after building it you should observe how the image actually appears, think about why it appears that way, and compile your findings into a report.
seaweed specimen
This is an idea to make specimens using seaweed, similar to the ones often made with flowers and plants.
When you think of seaweed specimens, you might imagine they’d get brittle and crack, or that it would be hard to remove the moisture since they’re from the water.
First, wash the seaweed thoroughly and carefully to remove the salt.
Then place it on a plastic base, arrange it into shape, and dry it thoroughly.
The trick is not to let it dry as-is, but to press it with cardboard or blotting paper, changing the paper frequently, and dry it while blowing air from the side.
Bug catching with a banana trap
When it comes to classic summer vacation science projects, bug catching is a staple.
Sure, you can grab a net and head into the fields and hills—that’s perfectly fine—but you won’t always catch the exact insects you’re after, like rhinoceros beetles or stag beetles.
So how about trying a banana trap for your bug catching? Cut a plastic bottle, flip the top part upside down and fix it in place, then put a banana inside.
The idea is that insects are lured in by the sweet smell of the banana and drop into the bottle, and because the entrance is shaped like a one-way trap, they can’t get back out.
Go snag a big one!
Radio-controlled car
When you think of RC cars, you probably picture ones sold at toy stores, but this is a hands-on science project that tickles a boy’s adventurous spirit by making one from scratch.
The body is made from cardboard, and a small motor provides the power.
If you follow the video as-is, you’ll need to do wiring with a soldering iron, so it’s geared toward upper-grade students.
Kids who love machines or vehicles will definitely enjoy it.
It’d be fun to build them with friends and have races, too.
There’s also a research aspect—like investigating how to make it go faster.