Patriots STEM Elementary

Encouraging long-term participation in STEM is a major focus of our STEM program plan. We have developed several interventions for students at our school to encourage retention for all students in the STEM pipeline. One way we do this is through our club days. Each grade level hosts club day every month. On club day, all students participate in a club for an hour during the school day. This ensures the opportunity to participate. Some of our clubs are focused specifically on underrepresented groups. Each grade level has a SciGirls club to encourage girls to pursue and gain interest in science.

As a summer opportunity, we have developed a two week long NASA Camp for students. We have grant funding for NASA camp so we can provide transportation and lunch for students at no cost to families. Students who sign up for NASA Camp are chosen by a weighted lottery that encourages participation by as many low socio-economic status, minorities, and girls as possible.  

Another action step our STEM Coaches have taken on a county level is to provide STEM shadowing days for fifth grade students. Our 5th grade students took a field trip to JN Fries Magnet Middle in order to experience a day in the life of a STEM middle school student. During this trip, students completed a robotics lesson led by eighth grade students. They also participated in a science lesson with seventh grade and had lunch with the 6th grade students. This trip gave all of our students an opportunity to see themselves as a STEM student in middle school and has helped us improve retention in our pipeline. 

Our district has put a great emphasis on the issue of pipeline retention in STEM and has acquired grant funds to provide transportation for students who would like to participate in STEM but need transportation. By providing transportation options, more students are able to stay in our pipeline and pursue a STEM education.