Tallest Tower Challenge

Supports this milestone

• persists in tasks. — Head Start ELOF
• develops the ability to show persistence in actions and behavior. — Head Start ELOF

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Materials

• A set of stacking blocks of varied sizes
• A flat, stable building surface

Steps

• Pose the challenge: "Let's see how tall a tower you can build."
• Let children build and notice what makes the tower steady or wobbly.
• When a tower topples, respond calmly: "It fell, what could you try next time?"
• Encourage a new strategy, such as a wider base, and invite another attempt.
• Celebrate the effort and the strategy, not only the finished height.

Variations

• Challenge children to build a tower as tall as their knee or waist.
• Use cups or cardboard tubes instead of blocks for a different building problem.

Differentiation

• For younger children, use large soft blocks that stack easily.
• For older children, add a rule such as alternating block sizes to raise the challenge.

Accessibility

• Offer blocks with grippy surfaces for children still refining fine-motor control.
• Give brief, specific encouragement at the moment of difficulty, not only at the end.

Safety

• Use lightweight blocks so a falling tower cannot hurt a child.
• Keep towers below standing head height to avoid pieces falling on faces.

Practices these skills

• Persists Through Challenges

Evidence

• Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs (4th ed.) — National Association for the Education of Young Children · 2022 · National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)