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Balance Tower

Make teal cubes, amber beams and purple prisms. Turn 80 flat panels into 12 hollow, reinforced blocks for three arrangements and your own balancing challenges.

Age
8–12 years
Length
approx. 7 h
Level
Medium
Where you teach
Home
Purpose
Creative
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How to run this session

Stages and timing
  1. A1: Outlines and ribs
  2. A1: Filling
  3. A1: Assembly and checking
  4. B1: Outlines and ribs
  5. B1: Filling
  6. B1: Assembly and checking
  7. C1: Outlines and ribs
  8. C1: Filling
  9. C1: Assembly and checking
  10. A2: Outlines and ribs
  11. A2: Filling
  12. A2: Assembly and checking
  13. A3: Outlines and ribs
  14. A3: Filling
  15. A3: Assembly and checking
  16. A4: Outlines and ribs
  17. A4: Filling
  18. A4: Assembly and checking
  19. B2: Outlines and ribs
  20. B2: Filling
  21. B2: Assembly and checking
  22. B3: Outlines and ribs
  23. B3: Filling
  24. B3: Assembly and checking
  25. B4: Outlines and ribs
  26. B4: Filling
  27. B4: Assembly and checking
  28. C2: Outlines and ribs
  29. C2: Filling
  30. C2: Assembly and checking
  31. C3: Outlines and ribs
  32. C3: Filling
  33. C3: Assembly and checking
  34. C4: Outlines and ribs
  35. C4: Filling
  36. C4: Assembly and checking
  37. Tower: six levels
  38. Four pillars
  39. Three towers and your own game

What gets built

Build a set for a creative balancing game.

What it practises
  • Accurate panel making and deliberate choice of contact faces.

Success criteria
  • The set contains 4 cubes A, 4 beams B and 4 prisms C; 12 blocks and 80 panels in total.
  • Contact faces are flat and the blocks do not rock on the worktop. Light pressure on the corners does not open the welds.
  • Each of the three illustrated arrangements stands unsupported for 30 s; dismantle it and repeat the test. This is a test criterion, not a recorded test result.

What you need
Filament
PLA
Colours
teal, amber, purple
Also
PLA 3D pen with power supply: 1 set, Flat 3D pen mat: 1 item, Ruler with mm graduations: 1 item, Small flush cutters: 1 item, A4 paper patterns: 10 sheets, Storage box: 1 item

Files

The files for this plan are part of full access

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Version a4eee7e5-0aa5-4ee1-b913-cff4c01afe5a Updated 2026-10-07

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