6th Graders Engineer Solutions in the “Toxic Beans Challenge”

6th Graders Engineer Solutions in the “Toxic Beans Challenge”

In a creative and collaborative twist on STEM learning, 6th grade students took on the “Toxic Beans Challenge” this week. The goal? Move a bucket of beans into a small cup—without ever touching the bucket with their hands. The twist? The beans were “toxic,” and the area inside a marked circle was off-limits to any body parts.

Using string, teamwork, and a good dose of problem-solving, students designed pulley-style systems to lift, balance, and pour the beans into the smaller target container. The setup included a hula hoop acting as the boundary for the "toxic forcefield," six ropes, a plastic cup, and a shared goal that required communication, strategy, and a steady hand.

The challenge reinforced key engineering principles like stability, force distribution, and iterative design. More importantly, it emphasized soft skills that will carry students far beyond the classroom—teamwork, persistence, and creative thinking.