Northeast Nodaway fourth grade students in Denise Henggeler’s class created superhero helmets on September 22.

Lindsey Jackson and Kenneth Schieber put the final touches on their helmet.

Lindsey Jackson and Kenneth Schieber put the final touches on their helmet.

The activity was part of a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) lesson. STEM encourages hands-on, collaborative activities, designed to encourage higher-level thinking, while connecting multiple subject areas. STEM activities help students develop investigative, reasoning, teamwork and creative skills.

For this activity, students were given a water balloon representing a human head. They were tasked to create a helmet that would protect the head and keep the brain safe during a collision.

Students worked in teams using engineering skills to construct the helmets. To test their helmets, students threw them against the school’s brick wall.

Lindsey Jackson and Kenneth Schieber used foam and tin foil to create a helmet, which did not break on the first throw. However, their design left the top of the balloon exposed, causing it to break upon the second throw.

“I learned that you have to have something on the bottom and the top of the helmet,” Schieber said.