20 NASCAR Teaching Ideas To Rev Up Your Classroom

Do you feel the need—the need for speed? Then you’ll love these NASCAR teaching ideas. Build balloon-powered cars, race to read, paint with wheels, and so much more. The race to learn is on!

1. Check out NASCAR Acceleration Nation

Pages from NASCAR unit 2, Energy and NASCAR

NASCAR teamed up with Scholastic to create a series of free STEM lessons, complete with classroom activities and assessments. Build paper race cars and use them to learn about drag, drafting, energy, and more.

Learn more: Acceleration Nation

2. Hold a reading race

Bulletin board with race track and paper cars representing how many minutes students have read this year (NASCAR Teaching Ideas)

Everyone can be a champion with this reading racetrack! Set up a track with goals along the way to tally the number of books each student reads. Bonus: Offer extra points for reading NASCAR driver biographies or books about auto racing.

Learn more: Mrs. Pope’s Peeps

3. Take a virtual field trip

NASCAR Hall of Fame exhibit

If you’re close to Charlotte, North Carolina, plan a trip to the NASCAR Hall of Fame. But if you live farther away, no worries! The Hall of Fame offers virtual field trips, plus their SPARK! online education program.

4. Try race car blending

Matchbox car with Race Car Blending printable cards for sounding out words (NASCAR Teaching Ideas)

Accelerate reading skills by adding a toy car into the mix. Students will love racing a car along the track as they learn to blend letter sounds into words.

Learn more: Make, Take & Teach

5. Have a scooter race

Kids learn safety and teamwork (and get lots of exercise!) with this fun NASCAR teaching idea for P.E.

6. Propel cars with magnets

Student using a large magnet to move a toy car with a smaller magnet taped to it (NASCAR Teaching Ideeas)

Investigate the power of magnetism by adding bar magnets to toy cars, then see if you can move them along the track using only other magnets.

Learn more: The Science Kiddo

7. Practice your scissors skills

Scissors skills worksheets with a racecar theme

Race to the finish with these free printable worksheets, but be sure to stay on track!

Learn more: Look! We’re Learning!

8. Become a NASCAR Crew Chief

Text describing the goals of a NASCAR Crew Chief STEM project for middle school students

Turn middle school students into crew chiefs as they use percentages and equational reasoning to choose the best real-life car for the racetrack.

Learn more: Better Lesson Plans

9. Make cars move without touching them

Toy cars lined up on a race track (NASCAR Teaching Ideas)

Race your car down the track, but here’s the catch: You can’t touch it directly. Kids can alter their cars in advance, but once the race starts, they’ll need to find more creative ways to win the race!

Learn more: STEAM Powered Family

10. Turn a pool noodle into a race track

Blue foam pool noodle split in half and taped together side-by-side to create a race track for two matchbox cars (NASCAR Teaching Ideas)

Grab a couple of pool noodles from the dollar store and turn them into race tracks for toy cars. Use math skills to track how often different cars win the race.

Learn more: 123Homeschool4Me

11. Design a balloon-powered car

Two different balloon-powered race cars built by students (NASCAR Teaching Ideas)

Explore the laws of motion and encourage creativity when you challenge students to design, build, and test their own balloon-powered cars. Bonus: Use only recycled materials to make this project green!

Learn more: Science Buddies

12. Crash-test egg cars

Toy car built from wood craft sticks, rubber bands, and other items, protecting an egg (NASCAR Teaching Ideas)

Rev up the usual egg-drop project with crash-test cars instead! Engineer and test car designs that can protect an egg from cracking on impact.

Learn: LanceMakes on Instructables

13. Craft roadway letters

Large wood letter R painted to look like a road

Paint large wood or cardboard letters black or gray and add some striping to create road letters. Little ones can run cars around the shape for tracing practice, while older kids can practice sounds and spelling.

Learn more: Welke.nl

14. Use matchbox cars to paint

Three students using matchbox cars dipped in paint to draw on a sheet of paper (NASCAR Teaching Ideas)

Sure, it’s a mess, but think of how much fun your students will have when you let them use cars as paintbrushes! Discuss colors, patterns, mark-making, and other art concepts along the way.

Learn more: Paint With Cars at Housing a Forest

15. Build your own racetrack

This free printable has endless uses for all your NASCAR teaching ideas. Decorate your classroom walls, create a bulletin board, or laminate the pieces so students can build their own roadway designs.

Learn more: Picklebums

16. All Around the Race-Track Music Lesson

sheet music for simple song called All Around the Race-Track

Use this simple racetrack song to learn about syncopation, incorporating percussion instruments, and body movements for more interactive fun.

Learn more: The Yellow Brick Road

17. Put together cars on a sticky wall

Toddler putting together car pieces on a wall covered in contact paper

Tape a piece of contact paper (sticky side out) to the wall, then let little ones assemble various car parts to make their own racer.

Learn more: Happy Toddler Playtime

18. Draw with marker cars

Child using matchbox cars with markers taped to the front to draw on a piece of paper

Such a simple idea: Secure markers (or crayons or pencils) to the backs of toy cars and drive your way to a masterpiece! Experiment with different methods, from “driving” fast or slow to under control or with a push.

Learn more: Drawing With Cars at Housing a Forest

19. Go for a ride in drawer race cars

Dresser drawers turned into wood race cars for children

Add some excitement to your reading nook or story time corner with dresser drawers turned into race cars that kids can “drive” while they read or listen to stories. No drawers available? Use large cardboard boxes instead.

Learn more: Alphabet Academy on Pinterest