Plan
- Have you ever opened up a toy to see what is inside and how it works?
- What are some of the toys you have always wanted to see inside of?
- What toy do you want to bring to the meeting to break apart? (You might not be able to put it back together, so think of a toy you do not play with very much.)
- What tools do you think you will need?
Do
1. Imagine:
- What do you think you will see when you open up the toy? You can draw your ideas and talk about it with your friends.
2. Break the toy apart:
- Gather the tools you will need to open up your toys.
- Open up the toy and see what you find.
- What do you notice about the parts? Group similar parts together. How many groups do you have?
- You can also make a new drawing based on what you saw inside. How is it different from your first drawing?
Review
- What do you know now that you did not know before?
- What other toy can you think of that might use the same parts to work?
- Do you think you could put the toy back together? Why or why not?
- What new thing could you create from the parts?
- What did you like about this adventure? What did you not like about it? How would you do this adventure differently?
- What elements of STEM do you think you used in this adventure? Science? Technology? Engineering? Math?
- Remember to submit your activities on our Scouts for Sustainability Take Action Map
Materials
- Old or used toys (one for each person). You can also do the activity with items like a toaster, hair dryer, clocks with large gears, or a rotary telephone. The toy may not work again after this activity.
- A set of tools to open up the toys for each group of 3-4 people (Robertson screw drivers, Phillips screw driver, slot screw driver, hammer, sockets, pliers)
- Papers and crayons
- Safety goggles (1 pair for each person)
Keep it Simple
- Try taking apart a baby toy, or doing surgery on a stuffed animal!
Take it Further
- Try dissecting an appliance! https://www.scouts.ca/activity-finder/dissect-an-appliance.html
