Rubber Band Contest for Young Inventors

2026 ARTS & LEISURE DIVISION:

First Place Winner Arts & Leisure (awarded $150):

Lea Branstetter - Grade 8 - Lancaster, PA - Spring Will Arise

Runner-Up Arts & Leisure (awarded $100):

Clara Litherland - Grade 6 - Ravenna, OH - Our Internet Trap

Remaining Finalists Arts & Leisure (each awarded $50):

Graham Frericks - Grade 5 - Cincinnati, OH - The Great Grilled Cheese

Lyla Kelsey - Grade 6 - Ravenna, OH - This is Me, Inside and Out

Taylor Noelle-Moore - Grade 8 - Clearwater, FL - Breaking the Cycle

Mahi Shetty - Grade 6 - Frisco, TX - Bound Together

2026 SCIENCE & ENGINEERING DIVISION:

First Place Winner Science & Engineering (awarded $150):

Jayden Lee - Grade 7 - West Hills, CA - Pokémon Pinball Machine

Runner-Up Science & Engineering (awarded $100):

William Jewett - Grade 5 - Oviedo, FL - Ball Bouncer

Remaining Finalists Science & Engineering (each awarded $50):

Henry Farina - Grade 6 - Rochester Hills, MI - Camp Doorbell

August Jung - Grade 5 - Hixson, TN - Band Bouncer

Viktor Kramer - Grade 5 - Geneva, FL - Shoot for Points

Jalia Webb - Grade 7 - Trenton, MO - Ferris Wheel

2026 Top 10 Schools with the Most Entries

Each school receives a $50 award for their achievement.

• C.P. Weber Middle School - New York
• Indian Hill Elementary School - Ohio
• Rootstown Middle School - Ohio
• Manheim Township Middle School - Pennsylvania
• Splendora Independent School District GT Dept. - Texas
• Bridgeport Middle School - Texas
• Grand Center Arts Academy - Missouri
• Ephrata Intermediate School - Pennsylvania
• Holy Family Regional School - Michigan
• Geneva Elementary School - Florida

CONGRATULATIONS to this year's winners, runners-up, finalists, and top schools!

CONGRATULATIONS to each student that entered this year's contest. Thank you for your hard work and for sharing your creativity with us.

Thank you to all of the teachers, parents, and mentors who helped our students along the way. And thank you to our judges for their time.

Special thank you to our Gold sponsor:

Stay tuned to our website and be sure to sign up for our mailing list to find out about next year's 19th annual Rubber Band Contest!

ABOUT THE CONTEST

Join the fun and get ready to learn about the rubber band - one of the many amazing inventions created from a unique class of materials known as polymers! This educational contest was designed to give students a new opportunity to have fun learning about Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics. Each year students from across the nation come up with new ways of using rubber band(s) to create amazing inventions, games, artworks, and more!

THE CHALLENGE:

• To design and create a working invention/artwork that incorporates at least one (1) rubber band.

TWO SEPARATE DIVISIONS:

   

AROUND $2,000 IN PRIZES:

• The first place winner in each division will receive $150.
• The runner-up in each division will receive $100.
• The four remaining finalists in each division (who are not a first place winner or runner-up) will receive $50.
• Schools can earn cash prizes too! The top ten schools with the most student entries will each receive an equal cash prize shared from a prize pool of $500*. (*The prize pool will be divided equally by the total number of schools in the top ten including any schools that are tied for spots in the top ten. In-eligible and disqualified entries do not count towards school awards, and a minimum of 2 student entries are required to qualify for the school awards.)

OUR CONTEST LESSON PLAN MAKES IT EASIER: standard aligned and easy to integrate with your curriculum

• Alignment with multiple standards:
  • Next Generation Science Standards
  • Common Core Standards
  • National Standards (Grades 5-8)
  • Ohio Academic Content Standards for Science
  • Ohio Revised Science Education Standards and Model Curriculum

• Learn more about the Rubber Band Contest Lesson Plan