STEM Competitions for K-12 Students

Spring into Engineering Design Student Challenge

STEM Competitions for K-12 Students

Deadline: On or before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, May 31

CALLING ALL STUDENTS!!

Get ready to be creative with your spring cleaning! ORISE invites students to repurpose something around the house and walk through the engineering design process to determine a new use for it. Create a 1–3-minute original presentation that creatively explains or demonstrates how you used the engineering design process to revitalize your item. EIGHT prizes will be awarded with two winners per grade band— two for K–2nd, two for 3rd–5th, two for 6th–8th, and two for 9th–12th.

Prizes

K–2nd grade:

  • Creative STEM Building Kit and Electronics Exploration STEM Kit

3rd – 5th grade:

  • Snap Circuits Green Alternative Energy Electronics Exploration Kit

6th – 8th grade:

  • Makey Makey + Expansion Pack and Chromebook

9th – 12th grade:

  • Arduino + Electronic Fun Kit, Arduino Without Prior Knowledge book, and Chromebook

Steps to participate:

  1. Identify an Item: Find something at home that needs a new purpose! This could be anything from broken toys to a cereal box.
  2. Complete the engineering design process:
    1. Ask: What is the problem with this item? Why does it no longer serve its original purpose?
    2. Imagine: What could this item become? Brainstorm all possible uses for it.
    3. Plan: Sketch your new design and think through the steps needed to repurpose the item.
    4. Create: Gather materials and start crafting your new item.
    5. Test: Does your new design work as intended? Does it solve the problem? If not, refine your design and test again!
  3. Document Your Process: Take pictures or record videos as you step through the design process. Explain how the engineering design process helped you arrive at the new purpose for the item.
  4. Submit your project: Submit a 1–3-minute presentation of your choice (video, info-graphic, stop-motion, etc…) that explains the items new purpose and how you used the engineering design process.
    1. To submit your project, complete the form at https://orausurvey.orau.org/n/May25StudentCompetition.aspx and attach your file. Make sure you include your parent or guardian’s contact information so we can get their permission to post your file on our website. The contest opens on Thursday, May 1, 2025. The deadline to submit is 11:59 p.m. EST on Saturday, May 31, 2025.
    2. If your submission is a link (example: WeVideo, Vimeo, or Google), make sure the privacy and sharing settings allow reviewers to access it. If it is not accessible, it will not be scored.
    3. Winners will be announced in late June.

Additional Details:

  • Projects will be graded based on a rubric (.DOCX).
  • Do not include your last name in your presentation- just first name and state. You can put your personal information on the submission form, but for your privacy when we upload, we will need your presentation without personal identification.
  • You must be a student in a U.S., U.S. territory, or DoDEA School.
  • Students in any schooling situation, including public, private, and homeschool are eligible to enter the competition.
  • Students are eligible to win 2 ORISE competitions in a 12-month period.

If you have any questions, please contact: STEMEd@orau.org.


Past competitions and winners

Are you curious about life on other planets? ORISE invites you to unleash your creativity and imagination! We are looking for original presentations where you design a unique creature and explain three adaptations that would make it able to survive on the planet you have chosen. The planet can be real or make believe, but remember, your creature’s adaptations should be appropriate for the environment and your presentation should include scientific evidence to back up your design.

Twelve prizes will be awarded with three winners per grade band— three for K-2nd, three for 3rd-5th, three for 6th-8th, and three for 9th-12th.

Prizes

K-2nd grade:

  • GeoSafari Jr Telescope, Ozobot Evo Kit

3rd-5th grade:

  • Telescope & Tripod, Ozobot Evo Kit, OzoGoes Solar System Kit

6th-8th grade:

  • Lego Technic Solar System Set, Celestron Telescope & Tripod, Mars Puzzle Set

9th-12th grade:

  • Celestron Telescope & Tripod, Este 3 Rocket Kit, Recovery Wadding, Engines, and platform
Winners announced soon!

Get ready to blend curiosity and creativity by exploring how systems in the human body help us to participate in everyday activities. The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) is asking you to pick an activity (like running, eating something, crafting, etc) and explain how a system in the human body (endocrine, muscular, lymphatic, etc) helps to complete that activity. To enter, read the instructions for your grade level below! THREE prizes will be awarded to each grade band.

Prizes

K-2

  • Interactive Human Anatomy Model for Kids
  • Human Anatomy Floor Puzzle for Kids
  • Amazon Fire HD 10 for Kids

3-5

  • Interactive Human Anatomy Model for Kids
  • Human Anatomy Floor Puzzle for Kids
  • Amazon Fire HD 10 for Kids

6-8

  • Anatomicum-Hardcover
  • Beats Solo 4
  • Grey Stanley Flip Straw Tumbler

9-12

  • Anatomicum-Hardcover
  • Beats Solo 4
  • Grey Stanley Flip Straw Tumbler

Winners announced soon!

Is there a topic in your school that has not been covered that you would like to learn about? ORISE wants you to teach it! We are asking that you create an original activity to teach your topic, and then make a 2–3-minute video pretending like you are teaching the activity to your classmates. It must be a STEM topic of your choosing that has not been covered in your school. Make sure you explain how you designed your activity in your video!

Prizes for Winners:

Winners will be given the opportunity to spend up to $200 on an approved STEM prize. See below for some ideas and ORISE’s favorite STEM prizes.

  • Telescope
  • Snap Circuits
  • Coding Robots
  • Chemistry Sets
  • Rock Tumblers

Winners announced soon!

Join us for an exciting opportunity to explore the fascinating connection between art and STEM! ORISE wants you to choose an existing piece of art or create your own masterpiece and create a 2-3 minute original visual presentation that creatively connects back to a STEM concept that helped to plan it or create it.

Eight prizes will be awarded with two winners per grade band—two for K-2nd, two for 3rd-5th, two for 6th-8th, and two for 9th-12th.

Winners:

  • Alice K. from TN
  • Helen K. from TN
  • Shanaya P. from FL
  • Heidi S. from TN
  • Shane S. from TN
  • Yuno Y. from KY
  • Tiara C. from FL
  • Mariana B. from TX

Prizes:

K-2nd grade:

  • Spirograph Deluxe Arts and Crafts Set, 3Doodler Start+ (3D Pen), 3D Coloring Puzzle Set, Vtech Smart Watch, Lite Brite

3rd-5th grade:

  • Spirograph Deluxe Arts and Crafts Set, 3Doodler Start+ (3D Pen), 3D Coloring Puzzle Set, Vtech Smart Watch, Lite Brite

6th-8th grade:

  • 155 Piece Painting Kit, SCRIB3D 3D Pen, Amazon Fire 10 tablet

9th-12th grade:

  • 155 Piece Painting Kit, SCRIB3D 3D Pen, Amazon Fire 10 tablet

Have you ever wondered why the leaves change color in the fall, why the days are longer in the summer, or how snowflakes form in the winter? ORISE wants you to figure it out! We are asking that you create a 2–3-minute original presentation that creatively explains or demonstrates a seasonal phenomenon of your choice. Eight prizes will be awarded with two winners per grade band—two for K-2nd, two for 3rd-5th, two for 6th-8th, and two for 9th-12th.

Winners:

  • Amelia M. from NJ
  • Sami S. from TN
  • Hudson S. from TN
  • Laila H. from TN
  • Elin T. from KY
  • Lucinda M. from KY
  • Favour O. from ND
  • Israel M. from FL

Prizes

K-2nd grade:

  • Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro tablet and Osmo Kit

3rd-5th grade:

  • Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet and Sphero Bolt+

6th-8th grade:

  • Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet and Sphero Bolt+

9th-12th grade:

  • Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet and Sphero Bolt+

If you have any questions, please contact: STEMEd@orau.org.

Get ready to mix up some fun in the kitchen! ORISE is inviting students to create a delicious dish while uncovering the science behind it. Whether it's baking bread, making ice cream, or crafting the perfect pizza, students will explore concepts like chemistry, physics, and biology as they cook. After preparing their dish, participants will present their culinary creations by creating a presentation of their dish and the scientific explanations behind it! It's a tasty way to learn and compete - let's cook up some science!

Twelve prizes will be awarded with three winners per grade band—three for K-2nd, three for 3rd-5th, three for 6th-8th, and three for 9th-12th.

Winners:

  • Ezri C. from TN
  • Mayukha K. from VA
  • Jai V. from TN
  • Hannah P. from TN
  • Blair C. from TN
  • Jane Y. from TN
  • Aprameyan R. from VA
  • Nozima Z. from IL
  • Luke L. from TX
  • Lynn N. from CA
  • Kylie C. from CA
  • Adrian M. from FL

Prizes

K-2nd grade:

  • Erupting Volcano Cakes Cooking Kit
  • Science of Cooking Ice Cream Kit
  • Food Science of Candy Chemistry Kit
  • Garmin Vivofit Jr 3 Watch

3rd-5th grade:

  • Erupting Volcano Cakes Cooking Kit
  • Science of Cooking Ice Cream Kit
  • Food Science of Candy Chemistry Kit
  • Garmin Vivofit Jr 3 Watch

6th-8th grade:

  • Interactive Cooking Set - Explore Japan
  • The Super Easy Teen Cookbook
  • Apple Watch

9th-12th grade:

  • Pasta Making Kit
  • The Super Easy Teen Cookbook
  • Apple Watch

Looking for a way to beat the heat this summer? ORISE wants you to have fun with water! We want you to show the journey of water as it moves through the hydrologic cycle in your neighborhood and discuss how humans interfere with the cycle. TWELVE prizes will be awarded with 3 winners per grade band— three for K-2nd, three for 3rd-5th, three for 6th-8th, and three for 9th-12th.

Winners:

K-2

  • Cunxi H. Towne Acres Elementary School, TN
  • Alexander M. APT Homeschool Academy, TN
  • Keerthi S., Oliveira Elementary School, CA

3-5

  • Lily B., Honor School, TN
  • Urvi T., Saint Joseph Elementary school, MA
  • Reagan U., Lipscomb Academy, TN

6-8

  • Aparna A. Park Forest Middle School, PA
  • Hana E., Homelife Academy, TN
  • Annie N., Stacey Middle School, CA

9-12

  • Sofia A., Miami Palmetto Senior High School, FL
  • Liam F., Jupiter High School, FL
  • Sankarsh M., Farmington High School, CT

Prizes

K-2nd grade:

  • Waterproof digital camera with accessories, ORISE Summer Swag, Splashology Water Kit

3rd-5th grade:

  • Waterproof digital camera with accessories, ORISE Summer Swag, Water Science Lab Kit

6th-8th grade:

  • Waterproof digital camera with accessories, ORISE Summer Swag, LifeStraw

9th-12th grade:

  • Kodak Waterproof digital camera kit, ORISE Summer Swag, LifeStraw

Throughout the school year ORISE hosts STEM competitions where YOU could win SWEET prizes! We want you to share the love for a chance to win!

Winner:

  • Karee H., Jupiter Community High School, FL

Prizes:

Grand Prize: iPad mini, Apple Pencil, iPad case, and Sphero with case

Tagged friends: ORISE Summer Swag pack

Force is all around us – and we see examples of it every day without realizing it! The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) wants you to go on a scavenger hunt and find an example of force! We are asking that you explore in your local community to find an examples of force, photograph/draw them, and then write an explanation about the science behind each example of force. TWELVE prizes will be awarded with three winners per grade band—three for K-2nd, three for 3rd-5th, three for 6th-8th, and three for 9th-12th.

Prizes

K-5th grade:

  • Amazon Fire Pro Kids Tablet with Case and Gyroscope

6th-8th grade:

  • Amazon Fire Max 11 with Stylus and Gyroscope

9th-12th grade:

  • VR Headset Quest 2 and Gyroscope
Winners:

K-2

  • Saachi A., Homeschool, OR
  • Iva B., North Clarion Elementary, PA
  • Alexander M., APT Homeschool Academy, TN

3-5

  • Aya A., Dr. Cleveland Steward Jr. Elementary School, PA
  • Vivienne A., Picadome Elementary, KY
  • Olivia E., Lake Ridge Elementary, TN

6-8

  • Carley C., Andrew Jackson Middle School, WV
  • Kaylyn G., Hollow Rock-Bruceton Central High School, TN
  • Layla G., South Doyle Middle School, TN

9-12

  • Evan C., Farragut High School, TN
  • Danial K., Farragut High School, TN
  • Linh N., Westminster High School, CA