Newspaper Tower Challenge
Are you ready to take on the challenge? How high can you build a newspaper tower?
- 1 Newspaper
- Sticky tape – one large roll
- Scissors – one pair
- Office desk fan or hairdryer
- Place 2 Lollipop sticks together and fix at each end with 2 elastic bands
- Cut a straw and insert 2 short pieces into the gap between the lollipop sticks
- Blow through the gap
- Can you hear a sound? What happens if you move the 2 straws closer together or further apart? Does the noise change?
The challenge is to build the tallest, free-standing newspaper tower using only the equipment listed above, no other resources are allowed.
The newspaper towers have to be free-standing – the tower can’t be supported or be resting against a wall.
The tower can then be tested by turning on an office fan (or a hairdryer if you don’t have one of these) and see how long it is until your structure falls over.
Health and Safety
Be careful when using scissors and ensure that the hairdryer is on the coolest setting and not too close to the Newspaper tower.