Providence Elementary School’s STEM Lab. Photo contributed
Providence Elementary School’s STEM Lab was recognized as one of 24 programs worldwide as a program of excellence from the International Technology and Engineering Educator Association (ITEEA).
Sponsored by the ITEEA and Paxton/Patterson, the Program Excellence Award is one of the highest honors given to Technology and Engineering classroom programs on the elementary, middle or high school levels. It is presented in recognition of outstanding contributions to the profession and students. The award was presented at the ITEEA annual conference earlier this month.
The Providence Elementary STEM Lab began in 2012. With two teachers dedicated to the lab, it welcomes all students in over 40 classrooms from grades K-6 throughout the year to solve challenging projects using the engineering design process. Each class rotates throughout the lab and spends five continuous days with each rotation solving a different challenge. The students work in teams and collaborate to find the best possible solution to their problem. Failure is encouraged to teach resilience, creativity and determination.