Ignite Innovation: Online Contests to Spark Makerspace Inspiration

Educators, are you looking for ways to spark your classroom’s makerspace inspiration and ignite a love for learning in your students? Look to the incredible world of contests and challenges available online!  From engineering marvels to artistic expressions, these opportunities offer students a platform to showcase their talents, build critical skills, and have some serious fun in the process.

This blog post explores a variety of contests and challenges across different disciplines, from the classic Rubber Band Contest to the innovative Rube Goldberg contraptions. Whether your students are passionate about science, art, technology, or something in between, there’s a challenge out there waiting to be explored.

Rubber Band Contest for Young Inventors

The University of Akron’s Rubber Band Contest challenges students in grades 5-8 to design and create a working invention or artwork that incorporates at least one rubber band. This competition allows students to explore their creativity and problem-solving skills while learning about the properties of rubber. Participants can compete in two divisions: Arts & Leisure or Science & Engineering.

The information for the 2024-2025 school year has not been released. But I would think the contest would follow the same timeline. Contest opens in October and runs through February with finalists announced in April.

Global Cardboard Challenge

The Global Cardboard Challenge ignites the spark lit by Caine’s Arcade. In case, you have never heard of Caine’s Arcade. Here’s the story: In mid-2011,  9-year-old Caine Monroy built a mini-arcade out of cardboard boxes in his father’s East Los Angelese auto parts store. A local filmmaker becomes his first customer and then creates a 11-minute short documentary film released in April 0f 2012. Check it out here.

The Global Cardboard Challenge encourages teamwork, problem-solving, and imagination as students transform cardboard into structures, costumes, or fantastical creations. With no entry fees or limitations, it’s a fantastic opportunity to showcase ingenuity and have a ton of fun – all while following in the spirit of Caine’s inspiring cardboard legacy!

Rube Goldberg Contests 

Perhaps the most classic and well known source of makerspace inspiration is that of the Rube Goldberg. The Rube Goldberg Institute is a non-profit organization celebrating creativity and problem-solving through the lens of Rube Goldberg machines. They host annual contests where people design and build overly-engineered contraptions to complete simple tasks, inspiring innovation and fun through applied science.

My favorite video for a Rube Goldberg machine is from Audri that was posted on YouTube 12 years ago. It is priceless and shows the joy in failure.

As the website’s tagline states, “There’s a competition for everyone!” The Rube Goldberg Institute for Innovation & Creativity has several contests happening throughout the year all with different problems and deadline dates. Check out this list of Rube Golberg contests:

• Cartoon
• Miracle Machines Playground
• “Feed a Pet!” Rube Goldberg Machine Online Contest
• NASEF Minecraft Challenge
• Unreal Engine Challenge
• The Rube-A-Thon Contest

Red Heart Crochet Challenge

While the Red Heart Crochet Challenge may be over, that doesn’t mean the fun of learning and creating with yarn cannot go on! Crocheting fosters creativity, improves hand-eye coordination, and promotes mindfulness – all qualities that contribute to a well-rounded educational experience while providing quality makerspace inspiration that carries over into other subjects. The repetitive nature of crocheting can also be incredibly calming and reduce stress, contributing to students’ mental well-being. Still available are the teacher’s guide and four guides:

• The Basics of Crochet
• Making a Red Heart Crochet Banner
• Making a Red Heart Smiley Emoticon Key Chain
• Making a Red Heart Crochet “Egg Guy” 

3D Printing Contests

There are a ton of 3D printing and 3D design competitions on the internet. Usually these are geared toward older competitors or company-sponsored, but perusing the websites might give you ideas for K-12 challenges. Check out these blog posts for inspiration and entry requirements:

3D Printing Competitions 2024 – List of Contests

3D Design Contests on Printables.com

Instructables Current Contests

Duct Tape

A quirkier makerspace inspiration source is the Duck® Brand Stuck at Prom Scholarship Contest, a unique competition for high school students (individually) to design a prom outfit made entirely of Duck® Brand Duct Tape and/or Crafting Tape. The contest period runs from March to June. Students are encouraged to impress the judges with their dazzling constructions of gowns, tuxedos, or other creative ensembles. Substantial scholarships are awarded in various categories. 

Perler Beads 

This is not really a contest, but you could certainly turn this idea into a design challenge during any month of the year. Each month, makers try their hand at a different mini Perler bead challenge. A calendar of mini Perler bead challenges are set up for each month. The above web page has a bunch of ads so be prepared.  A library or classroom certainly could  set up their own challenge where the design is not provided.  Students are encouraged to create their own design within the 9 X 9 grid. Ideas off the top of my head:

• January – snowflake
• February – hearts galore
• Spring – flower or insect
• July – fireworks
• October – Halloween
• November – fall leaf

The competitions and challenges highlighted in this post are just a starting point. With a little creativity, you can tailor these themes to fit your curriculum or classroom focus. Remember, the most important ingredients are fostering a supportive environment for exploration and celebrating the ingenuity of your students. So, get ready to unleash their creativity and empower your students to become the next generation of innovators.

And have you discovered a fantastic contest that would be a perfect fit for your students? Please share it in the comments below. I certainly believe that inspiring content should be shared, so let’s add to this resource together.