Sam the Worm: A Teambuilding Activity

August was all about getting to know each other, the staff and our environment. One of our favorite activities was Saving Sam!

The Challenge:
Sam is our friendly neighborhood gummy worm.



While on an ocean adventure, Sam's boat (the plastic cup) capsized and his life jacket (the Lifesaver Candy) is floating underneath it. Working as a team, the kids had to get Sam and his life jacket in the boat without touching him. The only tool they could use/touch was a straw.

Oh, and Sam can't fall in the water at any time because he CAN'T SWIM!

But Sam had no need to worry, because our team of bright engineers put their heads together and found a way to save the day. They had to use some very important tools to accomplish this goal: listening, patience, teamwork, cooperation and above all they had to remember that it was OK to make a mistake, start over, and learn from their peers.

Educated Guess Guessing Jar

Educated Guess Guessing Jar

Fill containers (varying sizes and shapes) with balloons, beans, baubles, or anything that will fit.  Children begin by making a guess, but then they refine their guesses by measuring and estimating. 

Don’t tell them to measure, just ask them how they could refine their estimations and let them figure it out.  Measure the container and calculate volume estimates. 

Give them some of whatever you use in the mystery container and some empty containers of varying sizes to experiment and estimate with.

On Monday's we count the previous week's jar and find out who the winner is. On the day of the announcement, kids volunteer to help count the previous week's jar (and practice their math skills).

It's usually a privilege if you get picked to help as one of the counters and we try to pick kids that have done positive things in their community over the past week. During our round-up (community meeting) the community does a drumroll and cheers when the winner is announced. They get to take home whatever the prize in the jar is. 

We vary what we put in the jar to try and get both small and large numbers of things that relate to our theme of the month – pumpkin seeds during fall harvest theme, balloons during hot air balloon fiesta theme, or pieces of gravel during our Science Rocks monthly theme.