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.

  • 🎓 Grades 3–12
  • ⏱ 15–25 min
  • 👥 Teams of 4
  • 📦 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.
How to play Cup Tower Challenge: printable classroom rule card with the steps, time (15–25 min), grades 3–12 and prep

📌 Rule card to print or pin

The rules of Cup Tower Challenge on one card. Print it for the board or a sub folder, or save it to Pinterest for later.

Save to Pinterest Download / print rule card
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