November Kindergarten STEAM Challenges
UPDATED FOR 2026 - please note there are VIDEO links to vimeo and Youtube
Six Play-Based Investigations, Teacher Guides, Student Portfolio and Assessment Tools
Bring purposeful, hands-on STEAM learning into your November Kindergarten classroom with six engaging investigations designed for curious young learners!
Children will wonder, predict, plan, create, test, compare, improve and share as they explore colour movement, absorption, 2D shapes, spatial reasoning, plant stems and open-ended design.
Each investigation emphasizes learner thinking and evidence—not creating a perfect or identical final product.
Six November STEAM Challenges
-
Skittles Colour STEAM: Predict and observe coloured coatings dissolving and travelling through water.
-
Travelling Colours: Explore absorption as coloured water moves through paper-towel bridges.
-
Building 2D Shapes: Construct and compare closed shapes using craft sticks and reusable connectors.
-
Design a Geoboard: Plan a grid and use an adult-prepared geoboard to compose, transform and compare shapes.
-
Coloured-Water Plant Test: Observe and document coloured water travelling through plant stems.
-
2D Shape Homes: Combine paper shapes to design an original home or neighbourhood for a purpose.
What’s Included
- Challenge overview pages
- Detailed teacher guides
- Suggested timing and materials
- Minds On, Action and Consolidation guidance
- Teacher prompts
- Assessment look-fors
- Differentiation and extensions
- Activity-specific safety notes
- Individual and half-page challenge cards
- Fuller-format “I Can” signs
- Five photo-rich vocabulary-card sheets
- Student planning and reflection templates
- Six-page learner STEAM portfolio
- Whole-class observation tracker
- Ontario Kindergarten observational comment bank
- U.S. standards observational comment bank
- STEAM Inquiry Cycle poster
- STEAM questioning and reflection prompts
- Teacher Quick-Start Guide
- Teacher Implementation Card
- Four-week implementation calendar
- Bonus STEAM choice board
- Suggested read-aloud companion
- Product preview and marketing images
Six-Page Learner Portfolio
The included portfolio supports drawing, labelling, dictation, emergent writing and photographic documentation:
- My STEAM Portfolio
- My STEAM Challenge
- My Design Changed
- My STEAM Learning Evidence
- My STEAM Reflection
- My STEAM Celebration
Skills Learners Explore
- Asking questions and making predictions
- Observing and describing change
- Planning and selecting materials
- Creating and testing ideas
- Comparing shapes, materials and results
- Measuring and recording evidence
- Identifying sides and vertices
- Exploring absorption and colour movement
- Improving and redesigning
- Communicating and collaborating
- Reflecting on learning
Curriculum Connections
This resource includes planning connections to:
- Ontario Kindergarten’s Four Frames
- Relevant Kindergarten Common Core ELA and Mathematics skills
- Kindergarten NGSS science and engineering connections when applicable
Curriculum connections are provided as planning supports. Educators should select and adapt expectations to match their learners and local reporting requirements.
Designed for Kindergarten Classrooms
The activities are suitable for:
- Junior and Senior Kindergarten
- STEAM centres and independent activities
- Whole-group introductions
- Partner investigations
- Small-group learning
- Educator-guided inquiry
- Indoor classroom exploration
- Portfolio documentation
- Assessment and reporting evidence
Activities are play-based, inquiry-driven, adaptable and designed to encourage multiple solutions.
Please Note
This is a digital resource. Physical materials are not included.
Food-based materials are used for investigation only, and allergy and safety guidance is included.
Make November a month of colourful discoveries, mathematical thinking and joyful problem-solving with meaningful STEAM experiences created for Kindergarten learners!
