Heart Engineers: Valentine’s Day STEM Activities for Kids

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I absolutely love planning themed sensory activities for my kids. When Valentine’s Day comes around, it’s all about the hearts, of course! Most Kindergarteners are all about building and creating with anything they can get their hands on. So your students are sure to “love” becoming engineers with these hands-on Valentine’s Day STEM activities that incorporate math, science, and structured play!

*Pair with our Valentine’s Day Centers and Activities for Pre-K & Kindergarten!

Heart Engineers: Valentine’s Day STEM Activities

These Valentine’s Day STEM activities would be a great addition to your math centers, science block, or even a classroom Valentine’s Day party!

Lego Heart Engineers

Supplies Needed:

• Legos or connectable building blocks

For this activity, I start by showing an example of what a lego heart could look like. Then students are free to construct a heart with their building blocks as best they can.

I am always amazed when my kids get to creating and I see what they come up with. It is so fun to see how they persevere.

Building a heart with no guidance other than an example can be a tricky task, but one that they are always determined to figure out.

Of course, we can’t be engineers without talking about our structures after! Our free printable recording sheet (download below) will have your kids observing the makeup of their creation.

RELATED RESOURCE: Counting Activities and Centers for Pre-K & Kindergarten

Play Dough Heart Engineers

Supplies Needed:

• Play Dough
• Toothpicks (optional)

This can become a simpler activity than the others by taking the toothpicks away.

In that case, students would explore molding just the play dough into a heart. For a challenge, encourage students to create a 3D heart structure.

Pattern Block Heart Engineers

Supplies Needed:

• Pattern Blocks

I love this activity because there are so many ways to construct a heart with pattern blocks!

I think you’ll really be amazed at the different pieces your students can use to engineer their pattern block hearts.

Pipe Cleaner Heart Engineers

Supplies Needed:

• Pipe Cleaners

This activity combines engineering skills with fine motor practice for even more STEM fun.

Don’t let these simple tools fool you, maneuvering pipe cleaners into a heart will be just the right amount of a challenge for your kids.

Peg Board Heart Engineers

Supplies Needed:

• Peg Boards
• Pegs

My kids love using peg boards and I love watching them explore with them! Their creativity and perseverance are truly inspiring.

Marshmallow Heart Engineers

Supplies Needed:

• Marshmallows
• Toothpicks

Just like most of the other heart structures, students can complete this self-guided activity independently.

They’ll need to use trial and error to construct their marshmallow heart and they can describe their structure on the additional free printable recording sheet (download below).

This recording sheet is perfect for adding a reflection piece to ANY of these activities!

I hope your children have fun playing, exploring, and learning!

Grab Your FREE Copy

Ready for some engineering fun? Get your free recording sheets for these awesome Valentine’s Day STEM activities by clicking the large, yellow download button at the end of the post!

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Stephanie

Stephanie is a Kindergarten teacher who believes that learning should be fun, positive, and student-led. She strives to create a healthy work-life balance with lots of coffee, yoga, and family time. Stephanie shares ideas on how to maximize teacher organization and student independence on her blog, Teaching Little Leaders, Instagram, and Pinterest.

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