Team building

Cup Tower Challenge

Teams stack plastic cups into the tallest tower, or a Christmas tree shape, without touching them with their hands. A STEM team-building challenge for any season.

  • πŸŽ“ Grades 3–12
  • ⏱ 15–25 min
  • πŸ‘₯ Teams of 4
  • πŸ“¦ Some prep
🎲 Another game

How to play Cup Tower Challenge

  1. Tie four strings to a rubber band so it looks like a star. Give one to each team with 10 cups.
  2. Each teammate holds one string. Together they stretch the band to pick up and place cups.
  3. Nobody may touch the cups with their hands.
  4. Teams build a pyramid (or a Christmas tree shape) as fast as they can.
  5. Debrief: who led, how did you communicate, what would you change?

Variations

  • Silent round: no talking allowed.
  • Height challenge: tallest tower in 5 minutes wins.

Keep playing

Similar classroom games

Review games

Classroom Escape Room

Teams solve a chain of puzzles built from your unit content to unlock the final "lock" before time runs out.

  • ⏱ 30–50 min
  • πŸŽ“ 3–12
Review games

Fishbowl (Salad Bowl)

Teams guess the same bowl of words in three rounds: first with any clues, then with one-word clues, then with acting only.

  • ⏱ 20–40 min
  • πŸŽ“ 3–12
Review games

Grudgeball

Teams answer review questions to win the right to erase X's from other teams, then take a bonus shot at a trash can to erase even more.

  • ⏱ 20–45 min
  • πŸŽ“ 3–12
Review games

Jeopardy Review Game

A quiz-show board of categories and point values where teams pick a square and answer the question behind it.

  • ⏱ 30–50 min
  • πŸŽ“ 3–12
Team building

Marshmallow Challenge

Teams build the tallest freestanding tower from spaghetti, tape and string that can hold a marshmallow on top.

  • ⏱ 25–40 min
  • πŸŽ“ 3–12
Review games

Classroom Scavenger Hunt

Students search the room for hidden clues or items, answering questions to unlock the next clue.

  • ⏱ 20–45 min
  • πŸŽ“ K–12