A completed popsicle stick catapult, one of GlueStick's many project tutorials

About this project

Sneak some science into your playtime! Kids love this simple popsicle stick catapult design. Experiment with different ammo to see what works best. Does something light or heavy fly the farthest? Large or small? Experiment and find out!

This project was originally featured on STL Motherhood, one of GlueStick’s many amazing content partners.

Popsicle Stick Catapult

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Supply List

  • 6 Popsicle Sticks

  • 1 Plastic Spoon

  • 3 Rubber Bands

  • Pompoms, balled up aluminum foil, or other small things to fling

Cartoon popsicle sticks
Spoon drawing
Rubber band drawing
Pompom drawing
Step 1 of building a popsicle stick catapult: Stack of wooden tongue depressors tied with a green rubber band on a wooden surface.

Step 1

Take 5 sticks and stack them, securing one end with a rubber band. Wrap the rubber band several times to make it nice and secure.

Step 2

Slide the sixth popsicle stick between the bottom stick and the rest of the stack. (Hint, you can experiment with this placement to see how it affects your catapult)

Step 2 of building a popsicle stick catapult: Two popsicle sticks tied with green rubber bands on a wooden surface
Popsicle stick catapult step 3: secure the spoon to the catapult with a rubber band

Step 3

Secure the other end with a rubber band.

Step 4

Secure the spoon to the end of the single stick with the last rubber band.

You’re done! How far can you launch your pompom? Do large pompoms or small pompoms fly the farthest?

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