- Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit
- K'nex Design Challenge
Knex 2025 Challenge

K’NEX STEM DESIGN CHALLENGE
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The CSIU is one of 20 intermediate units statewide that hosts a K’Nex STEM Design Challenge, funded by Thermo Fisher Scientific.Teams of students participate in a two-hour Face2Face competition where they design, develop and implement a solution to an engineering problem.The winning team advances to the state competition being held in May.
The 2025 K'NEX DESIGN CHALLENGE IS HERE!
K’Nex Agenda March 18th
Grades 4-5 & Grades 6-8
8:30 AM – 8:45 AM Arrival/Registration
8:45 AM – 9:00 AM Welcome/Competition Overview
9:00 AM – 11:00 AM 2 hr. time limit for building
11:00 AM – 11:35 AM 2 min./team oral presentation
11:35 AM – 12:00 PM Awards Ceremony & Clean up
2025 Challenge
In this challenge, elementary and middle school students will focus on Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure (UN Sustainable Development Goal 9) by designing a prototype that addresses a real-world problem related to infrastructure, transportation, or urban development. The goal is to inspire students to think about how cities, roads, bridges, and systems can be built or improved to be more efficient, sustainable, and accessible.Additional Middle School Challenge:
Teams competing in the grades 6-8 division will also be asked to present a budget for their project. They will need to inventory each K’Nex piece they use and list a price for each piece.They will need to present their inventory and the overall cost of their project.Competition Rules:- A team of 2-4 students will work together on the project.
- Students must create their prototype using no more than 1400 K’Nex and/or Engino pieces. String, tape, and rubber bands are permitted.
- Teams must bring their materials to the competition and will have 2 hours to recreate their project for judging.
- There can be no pre-constructed components brought to the competition. Prototypes must be built "from scratch."
- Projects must fit on a 6-foot-long table. Water may not be used as part of the display.
- Each team will need to create and submit a design notebook and a blueprint for viewing at the competition.
- Each team will need to prepare a presentation (2 minutes or less) on their model and how it answers the challenge.
Judging Criteria:- Creativity
- Teamwork
- Challenge Success
- Design
- Presentation
Awards:
- Awards will be given to top three teams in grades 4-5 and grades 6-8.
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The 1st place team in each division (grades 4-5 and grades 6-8) at each Intermediate Unit regional competition will advance to the state competition.
Design Notebook
- This should be a journal of the team’s progress from start to finish.
- The Notebook should include elements of the Engineering Design Process.
- Resources for Design Notebooks
Blueprint
- A blueprint is a technical drawing or design plan for a project. It is used to represent the final product.
- Blueprints for the STEM Design Challenge can be a photo, drawing, cad drawing, online sketch, etc. Be creative!
- Resources for blueprint ideas
Prototype
- Teams will answer the challenge by creating a prototype of their idea using K’Nex and/or Engino.
- Teams may include a backdrop or artwork, but judges will not consider this in their scoring.
- Projects must fit on a 6-foot-long table. Water may not be used in the display.
Presentation
- Teams are asked to share their ideas in a presentation for the judges.
- Each presentation will be 2 minutes or less.
- Every student on the team should be a part of the presentation.
- Judges may ask the team questions after the presentation.
Save the Date:
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K'NEX STEM Design Competition will be:
Local: March 18, 2025 (Elementary & Middle School) | March 25, 2025 (snow-date)
State: May 9, 2025
Teacher on-boarding: November 19, 2024 at 4 p.m.






























