Build Your Own Viking Ship and Race It!

Set sail on a Viking adventure with this fun and easy Viking longship craft! Using simple household and craft supplies, children can design and build their own Viking ship before putting it to the test in a Viking boat race.

This activity is perfect for:

• Viking history topics
• Homeschool activities
• Viking Day at home
• STEM challenges
• Imaginative play
• Rainy day crafting

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What Was a Viking Longship?

Viking longships were some of the most impressive boats of the Viking Age.

They were designed to travel across rivers, lakes, coastal waters and open seas.

Many Viking ships were long, narrow and lightweight, allowing them to travel quickly through the water. Their shallow hulls meant they could travel into shallow water and land close to beaches.

This was especially useful for explorers and traders.

Some longships had oars as well as sails, which meant they could move even when there was little or no wind.

Did Viking Ships Really Have Dragon Heads?

Some Viking ships may have had carved animal heads or other decorations at the front, although not every Viking ship had a dragon figurehead.

A dragon or serpent design would make a fantastic decoration for your own longship!

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What You’ll Need for this Viking Longship Craft

For the basic longship:

• A small cardboard box or food tray
• Cardboard
• Wooden lolly sticks or drinking straws
• Paper
• String
• Glue or sticky tape
• Scissors
• Pens, crayons or paint

Optional:

• Bottle tops
• Corks
• Craft sticks
• Recycled packaging
• Small toy figures
• Cardboard dragon or serpent head

There is no single right way to build your ship. Viking shipbuilders had to use the materials available to them, so experimenting is part of the challenge!

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Step 1: Build the Hull

The hull is the main body of your longship.

You could use:

• A small cardboard box
• A clean food tray
• A folded piece of thick cardboard
• A recycled plastic container

For a more boat-shaped hull, cut the ends of a cardboard box into a point.

An adult can help with any difficult cutting.

You could also test different materials to see which ones float best.

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Step 2: Decorate Your Longship

You could add:

• A cardboard dragon head
• A serpent
• Shields along the sides
• Viking patterns
• Your own family crest

Important: Cardboard is not naturally waterproof. If you want to float your longship, cover the outside of the hull thoroughly with waterproof tape once you have completed decorating it and before placing it in water. Test your boat in a shallow container first and remove it from the water once the challenge is complete.

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Step 3: Add Your Mast

Use a:

• Lolly stick
• Wooden skewer (adult supervision required)
• Drinking straw

Attach it securely to the centre of your boat.

You can use a small ball of modelling clay or folded cardboard to help hold the mast upright. We added small benches into our boat made from cardboard and then stuck the mast through the middle of the bench.

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Step 4: Make a Sail

Cut a sail from paper or thin card.

Decorate it with:

• Stripes
• Spirals
• Runes
• A family symbol
• A dragon
• A raven
• A wolf

Attach the sail to the mast using tape or glue.

For a fun challenge, try creating a sail that catches as much wind as possible.

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Step 5: Add Oars

Cut small strips of cardboard for oars or try using wooden toothpicks.

Attach them to the sides of the boat.

You could even make a row of oars on each side of your ship.

For younger children, simply draw the oars onto the side of the boat.

Step 6: Name your ship

Now your Viking ship needs a name!

Some ideas include:

• The Sea Wolf
• The Dragon’s Wake
• The Raven’s Wing
• Storm Chaser
• The Northern Star

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The Viking Longship Challenge

Now it’s time to test your ship!

Find somewhere suitable for your boat race.

You could use:

• A bath
• A washing-up bowl
• A paddling pool
• A large storage box filled with water

Always supervise children around water.

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Challenge One: The Wind Race

Place your boats at one end of the water.

Use:

• Your breath
• A drinking straw
• A piece of card

to create wind.

Who can get their ship to the other side first?

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Challenge Two: The Cargo Challenge

Viking ships carried people and goods.

Add small pieces of “cargo” to your boats.

You could use:

• Coins
• Pebbles
• Building blocks
• Small toys

Which boat can carry the most cargo without sinking?

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Challenge Three: The Storm Test

Can your ship survive a Viking storm?

Create gentle waves by moving the water.

Start gently and gradually make the waves bigger.

Which ship stays afloat the longest?

Remember: Keep the waves gentle and only use boats made from safe waterproof materials.

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Challenge Four: The Longship Design Challenge

Try changing one part of your boat.

Could you make it:

• Wider?
• Longer?
• Taller?
• More streamlined?

Test your new design.

Did it travel faster?

Could it carry more cargo?

This is a great opportunity to talk about fair testing. If you’re comparing boats, try to change only one thing at a time so you can see what difference it makes.

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Viking Longship STEM Questions

Ask your young Viking explorers:

• Why do some materials float while others sink?
• What happens when you add more cargo?
• Does the shape of the boat affect how it moves?
• Does a larger sail always make a boat faster?
• What happens if the boat is too narrow?
• How could you improve your design?

You could even keep a simple record of the results:

Boat	Cargo Carried	Race Result	Did It Sink?
Ship 1	5 coins	1st	No
Ship 2	8 coins	2nd	No

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Make It Part of the Viking Trials

This craft makes a perfect addition to the Trial of Exploration.

Can your longship:

Add your results to your Viking Trial Passport and continue your journey towards becoming an Official Viking Explorer!

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Keep Your Viking Adventure Going

Once you’ve built your longship, why not continue exploring?

🛡️ Continue the Adventure

Loved learning about the Vikings?

Take your child’s learning even further with the Viking Unit Study from Calm Household Studio.

Perfect for ages 7–11

👉 Explore the Viking Unit Study

For more hands on history learning…

If you enjoy exploring history hands-on, you may also enjoy these ideas:

• Compete in the Olympics and explore Ancient Greece.
• Become a Pharaoh and build pyramids as part of an Ancient Egypt Day.
• Make Ancient Egypt inspired Jewellery with this craft activty.