Plan
- Do you want to do this adventure inside, outside or at camp? Do you have access to a sandbox or beach you could use instead of the paint tray?
- What do you know about beaver dams?
- Why do beavers build dams?
- What materials will you use to build your dam?
- Do you want to do this adventure alone or in small groups? How will you make your groups?
- Where will you get water to test your dam?
Do
- Build a dam across the middle of the container.
- Test your dam by pouring water on one side. Does any water make it through?
- Tweak your dam until it keeps all of the water on one side of the container.
- For an extra challenge, try building a dam without any glue.
Review
- What do you know now that you did not know before?
- What materials worked best? What didn’t work so well?
- How does your dam compare to a real beaver dam?
- What do you think would happen to your dam if the water was flowing instead of sitting still?
- What elements of STEM were in this adventure? Science? Technology? Engineering? Mathematics?
- What did you like about this adventure? What did you not like? How would you do this adventure differently?
Materials
- 1 paint tray per Beaver Scout or group
- Plasticine
- Popsicle sticks
- Toothpicks
- Straws
- Twigs
- Leaves
- Access to water
Keep it Simple
- Rather than building a dam, try drawing a beaver lodge. What would you want the inside of your lodge to look like?
- Some Beavers might find it easier to work in groups, and that’s ok to! Work in small groups to build your dam.
Take it Further
- Try building another animal’s home. Try a wolf den, bear den, a nest.
