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100+ Fantastical Carnival STEM Activities for Kids

Don’t you wish it could be carnival and fair season all year long?

I love the carnival with its fun games, rides, and of course, tons of fried food.

In some countries carnivals have parades, but where I live, carnivals are very similar to a state fair.

At a carnival you’ll see all sorts of really fun activities from fun house mirrors to hot dog eating contests!

Most kids love the carnival, so why not capture that love and convert it into the desire to complete carnival STEM activities?

Come one, come all! Over 20 creative carnival STEM activities for elementary! Bring carnival magic into the classroom with these STEM challenges.

Find our list of creative carnival STEM challenges for kids below!

Carnival Themed STEM Activities for Kids

There is a lot of science that goes into the carnival! From making sure that kids don’t win too often on games, to the science of creating cotton candy, to the engineering that goes into keeping riders safe on rides, there is so much you can learn at a carnival!

Use the ideas listed below to jumpstart your creativity and complete some of your most fun STEM challenges yet!

Carnival STEM Supplies

If you are looking to do carnival-themed STEM projects, then your students might like to have some of the following books and supplies on hand:

free science lesson plans

How to Set Up a STEM Challenge in Elementary

The first stem toward making fun STEM challenges in elementary is to set up a STEM lab. I have directions on how to set up a STEM center at home, and you can check out this guide on setting up a STEM lab in the classroom.

Basically, it helps to have an area of your home or classroom that is dedicated to STEM explorations so that kids can understand concepts better and don’t have to worry about putting their projects away between classes.

In general, your STEM lab should have creative supplies, age-appropriate science tools, inspiration ideas, and building tools. From there, let your students’ imagination run wild once you give them their prompts.

Creative Carnival STEM Activities for Elementary, Preschool, and Middle School

There are so many fun carnival STEM activities to try! Check out the links below to find a whole wealth of carnival STEM activities and carnival activities for the classroom.

Carnival Classroom Theme

Why not celebrate the carnival from top to bottom by setting up your own carnival classroom theme?

Carnival Activities for Preschoolers

Preschoolers love the carnival, and these Carnival Activities for Preschoolers are the perfect thing to bring the carnival to life right in the classroom!

Carnival Science Experiments

These carnival science experiments will blow your mind. They are tons of fun for kids in elementary and teach a lot of fun science, too!

Carnival Themed STEM Activities

These carnival themed STEM activities will activate STEM thinking in your students all while having a blast! As one teacher said, “I love giving hands-on activities to my students so they can learn without realizing they are learning!”

Kids will have a blast with these carnival STEM projects! Science has never been this fun before!

Carnival Art Ideas

Art doesn’t stop! There are tons of carnival art ideas that you can try out in the classroom as part of your STEAM projects.

Carnival Lesson Plans

Get a bit more technical with these carnival lesson plans.

Science Carnival Activities

Of course you need to try these science carnival activities! The carnival science experiments are too much fun for kids in elementary school.

LEGO Carnival Games

Why not try your hand at LEGO carnival games? These games are so much fun to build from LEGO and kids will enjoy building them and playing with them.

free science lesson plans

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