The Arizona STEM �Acceleration Project

2025

Cardboard Automaton

A 4th - 6th grade STEM lesson

June 15, 2025

Bridget Hagest

The Arizona STEM Acceleration Project

Notes for teachers

This lesson should take 2-3 hours to complete. The timeframe will vary depending on a few factors.

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One of the main considerations is if you already have boxes to use or if you need to build boxes before you get started with the other pieces.

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If you are working with a big group, you may not have access to enough shoe boxes. If you have to build the boxes first from scrap cardboard, expect that part to take about an hour.

Another thing to consider is how many moving parts will be in the automaton. The more complex (more cylinders), the more time it will take to create.

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I suggest starting with only two moving parts. It may be overly ambitious to create an automaton with say five moving parts, and with many more opportunities for it to not work smoothly, it may lead to frustration on the students’ part.

List of Materials

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• Cardboard
• Cardboard box; an old shoebox works well
• Cardboard tube or toilet paper rolls
• Cardstock or paper
• Scissors or utility knife
• Hot glue gun with glue
• Drinking straw
• Skewers, at least one that is 2 inches longer than the shoebox
• Beads with smooth surface or small styrofoam balls
• Pencil
• Materials to color and decorate your creation

The procedure will walk you through building an automata that has the character Plankton moving up and down, and a silver bucket spinning in a circle. This automata will have two cylinders. You can use the procedure to make this automata or choose to have other objects move up and down. Your automata can have as many moving parts as you’d like. (The fewer cylinders, the less time it will take.) There are examples of other automaton shown at the end of the directions.

Standards

Arizona Science Standards

6.P4U2.5

Analyze how humans use technology to store (potential) and/or use (kinetic) energy.

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5.P3U2.5

Define problems and design solutions pertaining to force and motion.

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4.P4U1.1

Develop and use a model to demonstrate how a system transfers energy from one object to another even when the objects are not touching.

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Arizona Engineering Technical Standards

STANDARD 2.0

Create engineering solutions by applying a structured problem-solving / decision making process

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STANDARD 4.0

Apply scientific laws and principles relevant to engineering technology

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STANDARD 5.0

Apply technology and tools to engineering solutions

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STANDARD 7.0

Apply project management tools and techniques to engineering solutions

Objective:

Today we will use cardboard, skewers, and craft supplies to build a moving automaton.

Agenda

• Create the Case (30 min.)
• Build the Driving Mechanism (30 min.)
• Create the Characters (30 min.)
• Put the Pieces Together (30 min.)

* If you don’t already have shoe boxes and need to build them, do this first.

Create the Shoe Box (45 min.)

Intro/Driving Question/Opening

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The Parts of an Automaton

All automata have three parts; a mechanism that drives the movement, a case that houses this mechanism, and the showcase parts that move.

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Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Shoe Box

• Cut out three sections of cardboard that measure 10 inches by 6 inches.

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• Cut out two sections of cardboard that measure 6 inches by 6 inches.

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Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Shoe Box

• Glue two of the larger sections together first.

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• Then, glue the smaller sides.

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• You will have one larger piece leftover. You will use this later.

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Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Case

• The cardboard box will house the driving mechanism of the automaton.
• Whether you built the box or used a premade one, make sure your skewer is about two inches longer than your box.

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• If the skewer is shorter than your box, you will need to make a shorter box or find a longer skewer.

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Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Case

• The character(s) will sit on top of the cardboard box. The height of your box needs to be at least one inch more than twice the diameter of your cardboard tube.
• Place the box open side down.

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• The box will hold the driving mechanism. If using a shoe box, cut out the side of the box facing you so you can access and view the mechanism once it is created.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Case

• Cut a piece of cardboard similar in size to the top panel of the box. This piece should fit snugly inside the box when it is placed parallel to the top panel of the box. It will be used to keep the moving pieces upright.

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• If you saved the lid from the original shoe box, trimming that leftover piece will work well. If you followed the instructions on slides 10-11 to make your own box, you already have this piece cut out.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Case

• Draw a pencil line on the top of the box where you want the moving objects to be placed. The line should be about midway and parallel to the front of the box. Extend the line down the side panels of your box. Your driving axle will be under this line.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Case

• On each side panel, mark a point one cardboard tube diameter from the bottom edge of the box.

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• Make a hole at those points (one in each side panel) and glue a 1 inch section of drinking straw in the hole.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Case

• Place a long skewer through these straw pieces and make sure it spins easily without getting stuck. This rotation will drive the movement of your automaton.

straws

skewer

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• The Plankton and Chum Bucket automata has two parts that move independently. Each of them is driven by a short cylinder.

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• Trace and cut out four identical cardboard circles the size of a cross-section of the cardboard tube. These will become the top and bottom faces of the two short cylinders.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• Cut two sections about 3/4 inch long from the cardboard tube.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• Draw a diameter on two of the circles and measure its length.

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• Draw a dot at a quarter of the diameter length from the edge on one of the circles.

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• Draw a dot at the center of the circle on the other circle.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• Make two stacks of two flat circles, each with a circle marked with a dot on top of an unmarked circle.

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• Align the two circles well and poke a small hole through both circles on the dot you just drew.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• Take the stack of circles where the hole is off-center. Thread a circle, a piece of cardboard tube, and the second circle onto the skewer.

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• Glue the two circles to the piece of cardboard tube, but do not glue them to the skewer yet.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• Next, take the stack of circles where the hole is at the center. Thread a circle, a piece of cardboard tube, and the second circle onto the skewer.

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• Glue the two circles to the piece of cardboard tube, but do not glue them to the skewer yet.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• You should now have two short cylinders threaded on a skewer. This skewer will be the axle.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Build the Driving Mechanism

• Put the axle with cylinders in the box, resting in the pieces of straw. Spin it and watch how the rotation of the axle makes the cylinders rotate.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Create the Character

• You can make your moving parts out of craft supplies, draw your own, or print them and cut them out.
• If printing a character, copy your image, flip it horizontally, and print it again. Cut both images out, then glue them together with a skewer in between.
• For the chum bucket, make a cardboard base and glue that to the bucket. It will be easier to attach the skewer to the cardboard base.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Put the driving axle on top of the box, with the skewer parallel to the pencil line you drew before. Make sure the axel is still longer than the box on both sides.

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• Adjust the cylinders on the skewer right or left so their position matches the location you want for the moving pieces.

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• Mark the middle of each cylinder on the line on the box. This is where the skewers that hold your characters will poke out of the box.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Place the extra piece of cardboard you cut in the Create the Case section so it is pressed against the top of the box. You may have to trim it to fit it in snugly.
• Pierce the box and the piece of cardboard on the two marked spots with skewers.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Move the skewers up and down and wiggle them a bit to widen the hole.
• Widen the holes just until the skewers will fall if you let go of them. Make sure the skewers are still vertical.
• If you don’t make the holes big enough, the skewers will get stuck. If you make them too wide, the skewers won’t stay vertical and may get caught on your axel.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Put your driving axle through the straw pieces of your case again. Line up the cardboard cylinders below the holes in the top of the box.

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• Move the extra cardboard piece down about 1 inch and glue it to the box.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Place skewers for your characters through the holes and let them rest on the driving cylinders.

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• Determine how long they need to be and cut the skewers accordingly.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• You will need to attach something to the bottom of the skewers so they can glide easily over the driving cylinders.

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• Mini styrofoam balls work great, or you can hot glue a bead to the bottom of the skewer.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• In order to make the Chum Bucket spin in a circle, hot glue the styrofoam ball to another circular cut-out of cardboard.

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• The circular cut-out should not sit directly on top of the center of the driving cylinder, it should be off to one side. This is what will make it spin.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Glue a folded piece of cardboard to the end of the axle that sticks out just a bit to make a handle. When the cardboard handle is pressed against the straw, the styrofoam balls on the two skewers should rest in the middle of the driving cylinders.

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• Shift the driving cylinders along the axle if adjustments are needed.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Turn the handle and see how the characters move.

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• Once you have found a configuration you like, glue the cylinders in place on the axle.

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Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Make another handle for the other side. This will make it easier to move the automata.
• Try moving the handles forward and backward. There may be one direction that moves more smoothly. If so, draw an arrow on the handle so others know which way to turn it.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

Put the Pieces Together

• Turn the driving axle and watch how the pieces move up and down and spin in a circle.

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• Finish decorating the characters and box.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

How to Make Other Movements

• Different driving cylinders (cams) create different movements.
• Circular cams produce a smooth, steady rise and fall of the follower.
• In our example, the Chum Bucket rests on a circular cam.

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Hands-on Activity Instructions:

How to Make Other Movements

• The Chum Bucket doesn’t rise up and down much, but it spins in a circle. That is due to the vertically spinning force from the cylinder on the axel turning into a horizontally spinning force (or two wheels at right angles to each other).
• One wheel’s edge runs on the surface of the other to drive the spinning motion of the Chum Bucket.

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Hands-on Activity Instructions:

How to Make Other Movements

• Eccentric cams produce continuous movement. This example is similar to our circular cam, but the center of rotation is positioned off center.
• By offsetting the hole, more dramatic ups and downs can occur.

Plankton moves up and down because of the eccentric cam.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

How to Make Other Movements

• A Snail Cam produces a slow rise, followed by a sudden drop of the follower.

Squidward will rise up slowly, then quickly drop down.

Hands-on Activity Instructions:

How to Make Other Movements

• In this example, Mr. Krabs is on an eccentric cam, so he moves up and down, smoothly.
• The pots of gold are on eccentric cams that have circular cam followers, so they cause the pots of gold to spin in a circle while moving up and down.

Other Automaton Examples

This automata had 5 different moving body parts. When rotating the handle, it looks like the caterpillar’s body moves up and down in different segments. All of the eccentric cams had holes in different positions.

Other Automaton Examples

The center circular cam on this automata didn’t cause much motion up or down so the bird’s body pretty much stayed in the same position. The wings however, are attached to eccentric cams that move further up and down, so when the handle is turned, it looks like the bird is flying.

Assessment

There are different ways you can assess a student’s understanding of automaton and this lesson.

1. Understanding of Automaton Theory Concepts
1. Assess if students can formerly identify terms like cam, cam follower, driving mechanism, axel, case, etc.
2. Design and Implementation
• Assess if their device works as planned and how well it fulfills its intended function.
3. Communication and Documentation
• Assess students’ ability to clearly explain how their automata works (both orally and in writing).
• Review their design process documentation (initial sketches, iterations, decision-making)
• Check for comprehensive and accurate working drawings and other supporting material.
4. Problem-Solving Process
• Assess students’ ability to clearly identify and define the problem they are addressing with their automata.
5. Feedback and Revision
• Provide students with feedback on their work, highlighting areas for improvement and suggesting strategies for addressing errors.
• Allow students to revise their solutions based on feedback they receive to enhance their understanding and performance.

Differentiation

Remediation

Extension/Enrichment

• Make an automaton that uses one of the other driving mechanisms or look up more complicated driving mechanisms and try them out.
• Make an automaton to decorate a scene from your favorite book.
• This automaton was made of cardboard. Can you make one of wood, of metal wire, or recyclable materials?
• This automaton was powered by a human turning the axle. Can you make one that is powered by a stream of water or the wind?

• Have a cardboard box premade (like a shoe box).
• Create an automata with only one moving character.
• There are automaton kits available for purchase online. The pieces are already cut out to the perfect sizes. These kits tend to be very expensive though.
• You can have pre-cut pieces for students to use instead of having them cut out the cardboard.