Activity
Go the Distance!
The Challenge: Can you plan, track, and break your own records right from the comfort of your own home?
Materials and Equipment
- paper or notebook
- pen or pencil
- jump rope
- hula hoop
- cardboard tubes
- clothing (socks, t-shirts, etc.)
- books
- building blocks
- toilet paper rolls
- chalk
- board games
- dominoes
- playing cards
- yourself!
Procedure
Start your own book of records! Instead of competing against other people, set a challenge for yourself, and see if you are able to beat your own record.
- Use a notebook and pencil to keep track of your ideas and your challenge attempts.
- For this challenge the sky is the limit! You can try to challenge yourself to a skill you've always wanted to learn, or to improve something you already do regularly.
- Get creative and see what things you already have around the house to use for your record breaking challenges.
- Give your challenges different time requirements to mix things up. You can start with 5 minutes, 1 minutes, or 30 seconds.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
Dexterity challenges
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Most socks you can put on one foot in 30 seconds.
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Most t-shirts you can put on in 1 minute.
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Most toilet paper rolls balanced on top of your head in 30 seconds.
-
Greatest distance you can walk with a book balanced on your head without it falling off.
Building challenges
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Tallest toilet paper tower you can construct in 30 seconds.
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Most dominoes you can stack in 1 minute.
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Tallest house of cards you can build with playing cards.
-
Tallest stable tower constructed out of building blocks in 5 minutes.
Stamina challenges
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Most jumps while jump roping for 1 minute.
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Most rotations while hula hooping for 1 minute.
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Longest time you are able to stand on just one foot.
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Most number of times you can complete a hopscotch grid and run back to the start in 1 minute.
Brain challenges
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Most books you can read in a week.
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Longest you can go without an error in a typing game such as Keyboard Jump.
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Most state capitals (or states, presidents, countries, etc.) you can name without error.
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Longest word you can make in a word game (e.g. Bananagrams, Boggle, Scrabble).
Questions to Think About Afterwards
- What was your favorite challenge that you created?
- Which challenges did you get improve your record on? Why?
- What other challenges or contests have you participated in before?
- Which of your challenges would you compete against a friend or family member? Why?
Booklist
Go for gold with a good book from our booklist for elementary school students.
Explore More!
Explore more about the Record Breaking Challenge through these links to outside resources: