Marshmallow Blaster View larger

Marshmallow Blaster

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In this hands-on engineering design challenge, patrons use the engineering design process and air pressure to build a device that can blast a marshmallow across the room!

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Provides classroom connections, key concepts, connections to science standards, and additional resources.

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Hints for uses in your library Please be mindful of patron safety and ensure that no one points their marshmallow blaster at anyone else.

TIP: If the marshmallow gets gooey… Dust it with flour or use a new marshmallow.
TIP: If the inside of the tube becomes sticky… Rub the stuck bits of marshmallow off the walls of the tube. Also, dust it with flour.

Try this next!

Launch other items. Load your Marshmallow Blaster with other things like a grape, cherry tomato, or a table-tennis ball. Make sure to use things that can form a tight seal. Be careful where you aim!
Micro-size. Make a tiny Marshmallow Blaster that launches mini marshmallows.

Remind patrons to utilize the engineering design process. Failure is OK!
Originating Source PBS Design Squad
Related Books
[Suggest a book]
These children’s books all deal with various themes involved in engineering such as the engineering design process, specific projects such as building bridges or houses, and perseverance through failure.

• Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty
• Iggy Peck, Architect by Andrea Beaty
• Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty
• This Bridge Will Not Be Gray by Dave Eggers
• Cross a Bridge by Ryan Ann Hunter
• What To Do With an Idea? By Kobi Yamada
• Ish by Peter H. Reynolds
• Stuck by Oliver Jeffers
• The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
• The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires
• How a House is Built by Gail Gibbons

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Marshmallow Blaster

Marshmallow Blaster

In this hands-on engineering design challenge, patrons use the engineering design process and air pressure to build a device that can blast a marshmallow across the room!