8 STEM Activities for Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate love and affection, and what better way to do so than by engaging in some fun and educational STEM activities for Valentine’s Day? As you know, STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, and incorporating these subjects into Valentine’s Day festivities can be both entertaining and enriching for all involved. In this blog post, we’ll explore STEM activities that are perfect for celebrating this special day.

STEM Activities for Valentine’s Day: A Fun and Educational Twist to Celebrate Love

Valentine’s Day is not just about exchanging cards and chocolates, although those are always my favorites! It is also an excellent opportunity to infuse some educational fun into the school day. By incorporating STEM activities into Valentine’s Day celebrations, you can promote critical thinking, problem-solving, and teamwork skills among students and they won’t even realize they are learning.

Candy Heart Science Experiment

Who doesn’t love candy hearts on Valentine’s Day? Turn this sweet treat into a learning opportunity by conducting a candy heart science experiment. This low-prep activity makes for one of the easiest STEM Activities for Valentine’s Day. Start by gathering a variety of different liquids such as water, vinegar, soda, and oil. Drop a candy heart into each liquid and observe how it reacts. Document your findings and discuss the scientific principles behind the results. Looking for more easy science experiments to do at home? Check out our 9 experiments to do at home today.

See the step-by-step instructions here.

Candy Heart Catapults

Here is another activity involving candy hearts that requires some engineering. Turn these sweet treats into a STEM engineering challenge by building a candy heart catapult. With just a few craft sticks, rubber bands, a bottle cap, and glue, you can create a simple catapult that launches candy hearts across the room. Encourage your kids to experiment with different angles and strengths to see how far they can make the hearts fly. Not only will they have a blast, but they’ll also learn about physics and engineering with STEM activities for Valentine’s Day like this one.

See the step-by-step instructions here.

Heart-Shaped Paper Circuits

Combine art and electronics by making heart-shaped paper circuits. Using conductive tape, LED lights, and a coin cell battery, your kids can create glowing hearts on a piece of paper. They’ll learn about circuits, conductivity, and the flow of electricity, all while making a beautiful Valentine’s Day decoration. Hang them up around the house or give them as unique gifts to friends and family.

See the full activity here.

Love Potion Slime is Kids’ Favorite STEM Activity for Valentine’s Day

Slime-making is always a hit with kids and it’s one of my favorite STEM activities for Valentine’s Day. Love potion slime adds an element of excitement and mystique to the traditional slime-making process. By incorporating the concept of love potions, you create a fun and thematic twist that aligns perfectly with Valentine’s Day. 

Materials Needed

Before diving into the instructions, let’s gather the materials necessary for making love potion slime:

• Clear school glue
• Liquid starch or borax solution
• Glitter (preferably red, pink, or silver)
• Food coloring (red or pink)
• Heart-shaped confetti
• Love potion labels (optional but desirable)

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Prepare the glue mixture: In a bowl, mix 1 cup of clear school glue with a few drops of food coloring until you achieve your desired color. Stir the mixture until well combined.
2. Add the glitter: Sprinkle a generous amount of glitter into the glue mixture. The glitter will add a shimmery and magical effect to the slime, further enhancing the love potion theme. Mix well to distribute the glitter evenly.
3. Incorporate the heart-shaped confetti: Gently fold the heart-shaped confetti into the glue mixture and attach funny labels and you’ve just completed this fun STEM activity for Valentine’s Day.

Build a Cupid’s Bow and Arrow

In this STEM activity, students will design and build their own Cupid’s bow and arrow using everyday materials like popsicle craft sticks, string or dental floss, rubber bands, q-tips, and/or straws. They could experiment with different designs to see which one launches the arrow the farthest or with the most accuracy. By measuring and recording their results, they can put their math skills to work.

See step-by-step instructions here.

Love-themed Light-Up Card

Students will combine art and technology to create a love-themed light-up card in this STEM activity. They will learn about circuits and basic electronics while designing a card that lights up when opened. To make a card, fold a sheet of cardstock and then follow the same steps you did for a heart-shaped paper circuit above to add a design inside of it. Students can use LED lights, copper tape, and a small battery to bring their creations to life. This activity not only encourages creativity but also teaches the basics of electrical circuits.

See step-by-step instructions here.

Valentine’s Day Coding Challenge

Introduce your students to the world of coding by setting up a Valentine’s Day coding challenge. Using block-based coding platforms like Scratch or Tynker, students can create interactive digital Valentine’s Day cards or design a game with a love theme. This activity promotes logical thinking, problem-solving, and computational skills while allowing students to express their creativity.

STEM Activities for Valentine’s Day with Lite-Brite

For those unfamiliar with Lite-Brite, it is a retro toy that has been around for decades. It consists of a lightbox with small, colored plastic pegs that fit into holes on a black paper backdrop. When the light is turned on, the pegs illuminate, creating a glowing picture. This simple yet captivating toy has been a favorite among children and adults alike, allowing for endless creativity and imagination. It’s a perfect tool for younger STEM students. 

Create a Valentine’s Day Greeting Card

Your child can design a unique and personalized Valentine’s Day greeting card using the Lite-Brite toy. They can create a heart-shaped design or spell out a special message using the colorful pegs. Once finished, they can remove the paper backdrop, place it on cardstock or construction paper, and outline the design with a marker. This project not only encourages creativity but also helps develop fine motor skills.

Explore Symmetry with Love Shapes

Valentine’s Day is all about love, and what better way to celebrate than by creating symmetrical love shapes with the Lite-Brite toy? Have your child create a heart shape on one side of the Lite-Brite and then challenge them to recreate the same shape on the other side applying the rules of symmetry.

Are you looking for more ideas to engage your students? Check out our 27 sensory play ideas or 14 STEM-based sensory activities.