DIY Electric Popsicle Train

This time Abzy fused Arts and Crafts together with Electronics to see what happens and came up with a DIY Electric Popsicle Train.

This activity / kit could help kids:

• Collaborate with siblings
• Express their creativity
• Work hands on
• Experience Basic Electronics

Estimated Time:

• 1.5 – 2 Hours

• Dual Shaft Motor
• 2 Wheels (attachable to dual shaft motor)
• On/Off Switch
• 9v Battery
• Battery Connectors
• 10 cardboard Wheels
• String / Thick thread
• Electric Wire
• Popsicle Sticks
• Skewer Sticks
• Drinking Straws

Tools Required:

• Glue Gun
• Large Scissors

Here we highlighting just one way how these can be used to make a train which is what Abzy (our 7 year old) did. We encourage trying something on your own and do share with us to post on our Facebook / Instagram.

So without further ado let us get started.

Abzy spread out the popsicle sticks on a work table, got creative with colors and thought of a theme for his train. (In our kit we include colorful popsicle sticks so kids can try different colorful themes).

His mom helped him cut 10 – 12 round wheels from the cardboard cuttings provided. It’s a bit difficult to cut cardboard in a round shape but we have included a guide marks in the kit to facilitate.

For his 1st train carriage he chose a mix of yellow & green. Then lined up 5 equally spaced green popsicle sticks as shown below.

Then used glue gun on the edges of all green popsicle sticks. While the glue was still molten, he carefully placed two yellow popsicle sticks to make a fence like structure.

Next he glued the longer side of the green popsicle so it sticks to structure just made. Used the same technique for all four sides. For a good fit he had to cut two of the sticks to size. All steps are visualized.

Then he cut straws in equal length and glued them to the underside of the structure.

He repeated the same process for the 2nd carriage. Although this time Abzy tried a variation and lined up 9 purple popsicle sticks without any space in between.

Next he used Glue gun on yellow popsicles to stick them all together and just repeated all steps as previously shown for the 1st carriage.

The wheels also required the same steps after which the 2nd carriage was complete.

Half the activity was complete by now so he took a break after all the above mentioned steps. We could also smell the tempting oven fresh chocolate cookies prepared by his sister Yati (5 years old) and Grandma which made it difficult to resist.

Take a look, Tempting no?? 🙂

The next part includes very basic electronics, a practical way to learn. #learningthroughplay.

Now it was time to get the Train engine ready. For this he lined up 4 yellow popsicles and stuck them together using 3 pink ones cut to length. This was done to reinforce the structure which needs to be strong enough to support the motor and big sized wheels.

He then glued 2 yellow popsicle sticks slightly in a manner so that they extend beyond our main structure. This was an important step as the dual shaft motor would be attached here.

Next he inserted both the big wheels in the dual shaft motor.

For the front wheels he had to cut the drinking straw according to the width of the train structure and glued it to the bottom. On / Off switch was also attached to one side of the train structure or chassis. The battery was glued to avoid it falling off when the train runs. Lastly, he attached the battery connector, 1 – 2 – 3 steps below.

Take a minute to understand the circuit diagram displayed below as this should be really helpful to make connections.

He used the same procedure to make the front wheels using a skewer stick cut to size and 2 cardboard wheels after which Connections were done as per the circuit diagram.

Optional step: if you can solder the wires that would be excellent as it will ensure there are no loose connections.

The results were beginning to show, but we just have a little more remaining.

As a last step he glued the thread provided and attached it to connect all 3 carriages. Voila, finally his train is ready for departure.

We hope you enjoyed reading these instructions as much as he enjoyed making this train. Be sure to buy the glue gun as well if you don’t already own one, it is a must for this project and also is an extremely handy multipurpose tool to have in the house.

That’s all for today, take care folks. 🙂