engineering projects 8th grade

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45 8th Grade Engineering Projects To Prepare For High School

June 28, 2021 //  by  Sarah Dobbs

STEM/STEAM has become hugely popular in recent years as educators and parents have realized the importance of incorporating each of these disciplines (science, technology, engineering, art, mathematics) into a child’s education. The best part of this is all the hands-on learning that can occur as students prepare for future STEM careers and realize how much they use each area in everyday life. Below is a list of engineering projects for 8th graders to try. Most (if not all) include multiple elements of STEM that will help you build a more fun, collaborative, and interactive science curriculum.

1. Build a robot that can see light

Students who are interested in robotics and coding can use the above guide to build a robot. By following the engineering design process and using some simple tools, students will build and test out their robot, making adjustments as needed.

Learn more: Light Detecting Robot

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2. Reach further with a mechanical hand

Use primarily materials that you have around the house, such as straws, rubber bands, and masking tape, to create this mechanical hand. Students will design, build, and troubleshoot to make sure the hand opens and closes properly.

Learn More: Mechanical Hand

3. Save the aliens by building them a space lander

A twist on the classic egg drop experiment, the Space Lander uses cups, tape, paper, and more to protect the alien marshmallows. Eighth graders can design their space landers, then compete to see who can drop theirs the furthest while keeping the aliens safe.

Learn More: Space Lander

4. Create your own Ferris Wheel

Problem solving and persistence are key in this STEM activity. Students will use craft sticks to build their own turning Ferris wheels. It might take a few tries, but the results are epic!

Learn More: ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy

5. Send marbles on the ride of their lives

This might be my favorite project on this list. Give your eighth-grade science students a chance to design and construct their own roller coasters using paper, tape, and printable templates for each piece.

Learn More: Rileyman256

6. Launch your paper airplane to new heights

Students can use wood, cardboard, or posterboard to design and construct their own paper airplane launchers. They will have to test angles and plane modifications to see how far they can send their planes.

Learn More: Airplane Launcher

7. Create a structure that will balance cups

For a quick STEM activity , give students ten minutes and a few materials to see who can build a structure that will support two cups as high and as far apart as possible. You’ll be amazed at what each of them comes up with.

Learn More: Cup Holder STEM Challenge

8. Race your balloon car to the finish line

This classic science experiment can be adapted for any grade level by providing different or fewer materials, making students create their own wheels, or having them research car design before they build.

Learn More: BrainSTEM

9. Challenge your friends with your JudoBot

Eighth grade STEM students can customize these robots before sending them to the ring to see which one lasts the longest. It comes with a lesson plan and complete instructions for your students to complete the project.

Learn More: STEM Inventions

10. Make your own Newton’s Cradle

Instructions are given at the link above, but you can make this more of an 8th grade science experiment by having students test out different materials for the balls in the middle and using different-sized structures.

Learn More: Newton’s Cradle

11. See how far you can throw items with a handmade catapult

This hands-on project has students using engineering design to build catapults. You can provide materials from around the house for students to select from, then test the catapults on accuracy, power, and ability to knock down a set of items.

Learn More: Eureka

12. Incorporate fidget spinners

Even 8th graders love using toys in class. Use fidget spinners and attach lights or other small anchors to see how the extra weight affects the toy’s ability to spin.

Learn More: Christina Saludares

13. Let your artsy side show

Do you have any budding architects in your science class? Give them some Legos and have them build a tower from which to swing a cup of paint. Students will experiment with angles, height, and weight to make beautiful designs.

Learn More: Lego Pendulum Painting

14. Channel your inner Da Vinci

Have students work in teams to build a model of the Da Vinci Bridge, giving options for materials and testing each one to see how much weight it will hold. This activity will have them using the engineering design process like pros!

Learn More: Da Vinci Bridge

15. Build a boat

Another great middle grades science project is the foil boat project. Students will design a boat, then test its buoyancy by slowly adding weights to see if it will stay afloat.

Learn More: What Floats Your Boat?

16. Play some pinball

Have students test out their engineering skills by creating a pinball machine with working, moving parts. Test their ability to think through obstacles and show creativity in their designs.

Learn More: Creativity Buzz

17. Blast off into space

This STEM curriculum provides several weeks of science activities focusing on teamwork, engineering, and mathematics as students design and constructs rockets, landing devices, and other space-themed devices.

Learn More: Mission to Mars

18. Save a life with biomedical engineering

Engineering covers a massive range of fields and disciplines. Students will learn about heart processes in this project before working to create a prosthetic heart valve and explain why it works.

Learn More: No Valve in Vain

19. Connect engineering to real life with this hydraulic bridge

Real bridges use hydraulic systems to move parts when necessary. Bridge design and construction will get your students’ engineering minds going as they create bridges, test their strength, and try to build an appropriate lift.

20. Find a new way to power your school

Focus more on the data analysis side of engineering by having your students evaluate different ways to keep the school running using renewable energy sources. Lesson plans and data from around the country are provided.

Learn More: Power Your School

21. Construct an infinity mirror

Infinity mirrors use multiple mirrors and LED lights to create an optical illusion. This requires students to plan and does require a few more materials than other projects, but the results will be worth it!

Learn More: Science Buddies

22. Create tools for those who cannot speak

Connect engineering to the real world by having students create a communication board for someone who can’t speak for themselves. It includes coding, construction, and the engineering design process.

Learn More: Jen Leban

23. Use cups to hold up a human

Inspire your budding architects to see if they can build a structure that will support the weight of a human using only paper cups and cardboard. See if they can build a tower with more than one level.

Learn More: Paper Cup Challenge

24. Test a plant’s smarts

Plants will seek out light to grow. Can they grow through a maze by reaching toward the light? Have students engineer different mazes to see what effect it has on the plants.

Learn More: Plant Light Maze

25. Elevate your science class to new heights

Students can design an elevator that will lift and lower using popsicle sticks, rubber tubing, and a few nails. Add a challenge by seeing whose elevator can lift the most weight.

Learn More: Hydraulic Elevator

26. Build your own furniture

Need to redecorate your classroom? Have students use the engineering design process to build life-size furniture out of cardboard, paper, and simple adhesives. Have them build prototypes beforehand to test out the functionality of their designs.

Learn More: Design and Engineer Furniture

27. Balance heavy items on eggshells

Eggshells are stronger than most people think. Students can test this by putting eggshells in different ways and planning how to space them out before balancing items on top of them.

Learn More: Fallen Arches

28. Save a friend during the zombie apocalypse

Draw students into this engineering challenge by creating a silly scenario (zombies!) and having them use their engineering skills to build a prosthetic leg for a friend. They can test out their weight-bearing abilities with their teammates.

Learn More: A Zombie Got My Leg

29. Create your own version of the Golden Gate Bridge

Remind students of the value of recycling and test their building abilities with this bridge engineering project. Level this project by providing directions or having students try to design it themselves after looking at real-life suspension bridges.

Learn More: DIY Recycled Suspension Bridge

30. Keep things cool

Here is another challenge that focuses on student choice and the engineering process. Students must choose the right materials to insulate a water bottle and keep it cold for as long as possible.

Learn More: Design a Cooler Challenge

31. Kick their brains into gear with foosball

Foosball is not just for break times! STEM Education brings it straight into the classroom as students plan and construct their own working foosball tables that they can use to play against each other.

Learn More: Foosball Table Challenge

32. Design a mousetrap car that can zoom

This classic project will have your eighth grade students engaged from the start. They will have to use math, physics, and design processes to create a vehicle that can move with just one snap of a trap.

Learn More: Mousetrap Car

33. Take a trip to Italy

Pasta is an inexpensive, classic building material for STEM projects. Combine it with marshmallows for students to construct a tower that will hold large amounts of weight.

Learn More: Leaning Tower of Pasta

34. Feel the effects of friction

Friction is critical to everyday life. 8th Grade Science Students can test its effects by launching items across different surfaces to see how far they travel. How they launch things will also test their engineering prowess.

Learn More: Effects of Friction

35. Take a trip to Egypt

Most students have learned about the pyramids at some point, but have they built one that will stand on its own? The variations here are many- use different size toothpicks, provide a variety of choices for “mortar,” or time the activity.

Learn More: Pyramid Building STEM Challenge

36. Slip into summer with a homemade water slide

What could be more fun than a paper towel tube waterslide? Challenge students to not only build the water slide but to find materials to make it waterproof so it can be used again and again.

Learn More: Having Fun Repairs

37. Blast a bottle into space

For a twist on the classic coke and mentos activity, have students create bottle rockets. Combine exploring chemical reactions with engineering to see whose rocket can launch a bottle the highest.

Learn More: The Sci Guys

38. Cook up some gingerbread fun

While this could work well for younger students as well, turn this Christmas activity into an eighth grade project by having students experiment with and bake the gingerbread themselves before building their own Christmas scene or historical monument.

Learn More: Gingerbread Nativity

39. Tell time with a water clock

Use this water clock activity to help your eighth grade students begin engineering more complex systems. This project uses robotics and household materials for students to try and create a water clock that will accurately tell time for 2 hours.

Learn More: Simple Steps

40. Build a classroom aquarium

More accurately, this 8th grace science project will have students building an aquaponics system, complete with plants AND animals that rely on each other to survive. Make it the appropriate level for your students by purchasing a pre-made kit or letting them create the pieces independently.

Learn More: Aquaponics Project

41. Go back to medieval times

Can your students build a modern-day battering ram? Provide materials, then let them try to create the most efficient design so the wheels and the battering ram both move effectively. Extra points for making it look cool!

Learn More: Battering Ram Challenge

42. Get Rube Goldberg to help you with simple tasks

One of the most common engineering science fair projects is probably the Rube Goldberg machine. These machines follow a series of procedures to make a simple task happen, such as switching on a light or feeding a fish. There’s no end to the possibilities!

Learn More: Build our Own Rube Goldberg Machines

43. Make marbles jump

Again testing students’ building design abilities, this STEM challenge has them making a trampoline that a marble (or other small items) can bounce off of. You could give awards for the highest bounce or greatest number of bounces.

Learn More: Trampoline Challenge

44. Take your paper airplanes to the next level

Paper airplanes in middle school? Absolutely! Students will not only design and make more complex airplanes, but they will also track and graph data to go along with it.

Learn More: Dragon Paper Airplanes

45. Construct a working water wheel

What materials could be used to make a working water mill? This piece of technology from the past can still challenge students today as they test their design and building plans.

Learn More: Water Mill Stem Challenge

These are just some of the options out there for helping your 8th grade science students use the engineering design process and learn more concretely. You can level these based on your students’ needs, the materials you have available, and the amount of time you have to spend on experiments and projects. No matter how many or which ones you choose, your students will enjoy the experiential learning and use their brains in new and better ways!

Frequently Asked Questions

What topics are covered in 8th grade science.

This will depend on your location and curriculum, but most 8th grade science classes focus on physical science, with a blend of chemistry, physics, and life science.

Ideas for Engineering Science Fair Projects

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• Ph.D., Biomedical Sciences, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
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Engineering science fair projects can involve designing, building, analyzing, modeling, or improving a device. You can also test or create materials. Here are some specific ideas for engineering science fair projects.

• What is the best material to put in a sandbag to block water, such as during a flood ?
• How tall can you build a tower using only a sheet of ​paper? You can cut it, fold it, crumple it, but only use that single material. What works best?
• Compare the characteristics of a structure that is made using different materials. You can compare strength, corrosion resistance, and elasticity. Be creative. The trick is to make certain your measurements are truly comparable to each other.
• What can you do with a swim cap to optimize its ability to decrease drag in water? Can you alter the shape? Does one material work substantially better than another?
• Which type of paper towel absorbs the most water? Which brand absorbs the most oil? Are they the same brand?
• What differences do you note in the ability of different soils to support a structure?
• What type of paper airplane flies the furthest and stays aloft the longest?
• How can you map a magnetic field ? Can you construct a device, using iron filings, that can be reused for field mapping?
• Construct a Lego building. Now try to make the same building on an incline, such as a 30-degree slope. What changes do you need to make in order to make it stable?
• How does a change in the construction of a parachute affect flight? Parameters you could examine include size, shape, material, and/or method of attachment.
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