PLASTIC BOTTLE TOWER BUILDING CONTEST

Have teams build towers! Who can build the tallest tower or who can
stack 50 bottles the fastest?

Props Needed:
– One long rope approximately 30 feet per team (clothesline, old
shoe laces, retired climbing rope) – As many water bottles as
possible per team.
– Ensure that each team has an equal number of water bottles

Group Size:
4 – 6 per team

Instructions:
Take 5 minutes and plan for this team challenge. Each team is going
to build the largest tower, vertically, using the water bottles and the
ropes. The bottle tower must be free standing, standing on its own
without any team member touching or holding the bottles or the
rope.
During the 5 minute planning period you may not touch any of your
resources except the rope. You may do whatever you wish with your
rope, short of cutting it and physically altering the rope.
Following the 5 minutes I will say “GO”.
All teams will then have 10 minutes to build the tallest free standing
bottle tower.

The idea behind the planning time is to give the team time to
develop a system for thinking through, and discussing a problem.
Walk around while they are planning and pay attention to the teams
thoughts, actions, and behaviors. I have found that the team that
spends time actually planning as well as delegating roles and
responsibilities to team members, usually builds the tallest tower.

Riddles
I am a god, a planet and I can measure heat. What am
I?

Answer
Mercury

Many have heard it, but nobody has ever seen it. It will
not speak back until spoken to. What is it? An echo
What did the scientist say when he found 2 atoms of
helium? HeHe

What is black when you buy it, red when you use it
and gray when you throw it away? Answer
Charcoal

What is the center of gravity? The letter “v”

What does a cat have that other animals do not

have? Kittens

Blindfolded
Yarn obstacle

Balloon relay. Each team gets a fresh balloon for each

member. All balloons should be identical in material,
size, and shape. Team members must blow up their
balloons repeatedly, and only move forward while the
balloon is losing air. What’s happening to the balloon?
(The elastic material stretches as you blow air into it.
When the air escapes, the balloon returns to its
original size and shape.)

BALLOON BURST

Several balloons and string needed.

Each player is given two balloons to be inflated and tied
around each ankle with a piece of string.
Object of game is to burst the other players balloons with
their feet—no hands allowed.
Winner is last person with a balloon or balloons. Game can
be played with or without boundaries.

Balloon Rockets
Blow up a balloon and put it into the bag.
Let go of the balloon and replace it with inflated balloons.
Allow the balloon rockets to travel on the string and reach the finish line.