At camp, kids love any project that mixes creativity, problem-solving, and a little friendly competition. This Halloween, bring that same camp energy home with a hands-on STEM activity: the Candy Corn Tower Challenge. It’s a sweet way to get kids building, experimenting, and laughing together. 

What You’ll Need

Before you start, gather a few simple supplies:

• Candy corn (plenty, because a few will get eaten along the way!)

• Toothpicks

• A flat surface to build on

• Optional: mini marshmallows, candy pumpkins, or gumdrops for variety

How to Play the Candy Corn Tower Challenge

#1 Set the Rules
Give each child (or team) the same amount of candy corn and toothpicks. The challenge: build the tallest, strongest, or most creative tower within a set time limit (10–15 minutes works great).

#2 Start Building
Show kids how to stick toothpicks into the candy corn to create connections. Encourage them to think about shapes. Triangles and squares are stronger than tall skinny stacks.

#3 Add Variations
For an extra challenge, assign goals:

• Tallest tower

• Strongest tower (can hold a mini pumpkin on top)

• Spookiest design (looks like a haunted house, ghost, or pumpkin patch)

#4 Test & Compare
When time is up, line up the towers and measure height, test strength, or vote on creativity. Celebrate every tower – even the ones that collapse, because that’s part of the fun (and the lesson in engineering).

#5 Make It Campy
Keep the spirit of camp alive by cheering each other on, playing some spooky background music, or even giving “cabin points” for teamwork and creativity.

The Candy Corn Tower Challenge isn’t just fun, it’s a sneaky way to get kids practicing STEM skills like problem-solving, teamwork, and design thinking. It’s low-cost, easy to set up, and works for a range of ages. And the best part? After the towers are built (and tested), kids can munch on the leftover supplies as a sweet Halloween reward.