Here at Walnut Elementary, we're more than just a school; we're a community committed to STEM excellence. Every student gets hands-on experience solving real-world problems, and no one is left out during our dedicated STEM time. Our teachers are always learning, whether it's during our weekly planning sessions or through targeted feedback from specially trained evaluators. But we're not doing it alone. We're in constant conversation with our parents, educational leaders, and community partners to make sure our STEM program is the best it can be. We've even got a five-year sustainability plan to keep us on track, complete with funding sources for tech, curriculum, and new staff training. All in all, we're building something special here—a culture of STEM education that's as inclusive as it is innovative.

At Walnut Elementary, our STEM leadership team makes sure to get input from every single staff member in the building—and we've hit a 100% feedback rate because of it. We want to hear from everyone so we can make our STEM programs as awesome and effective as possible for our students. 

Every week at Walnut Elementary, teachers in the STEM program come together during designated work time to brainstorm and plan. They use this special time to sync up as an interdisciplinary team, figuring out how to weave STEM into lessons across different subjects. This way, they're making sure that STEM isn't just a one-off topic, but something that's integrated into the whole learning experience for their students.

Walnut Elementary along with the other schools in the  Southmont Community School District is thinking ahead with a solid five-year plan to keep our STEM program strong and sustainable. We've nailed down various funding sources to make sure we've got the latest tech and updated curriculum, not just for today but for years to come. Plus, we've set aside resources for training new staff, so we're prepared to keep the STEM magic alive even when we have staff changes.

At Walnut Elementary, we're committed to tuning into how our students feel about STEM. We survey our students and then we take a step back to gauge their attitudes and interest in STEM subjects and possible career paths. Based on what we find, we tweak our STEM program as needed to keep things engaging and effective for everyone.

Walnut Elementary knows that it takes a village to make a great STEM program, so we actively engage with parents, education leaders, and folks from the community. Through regular meetings, events, and collaborations, we all put our heads together to keep refining and promoting what we're doing in STEM.

At Walnut Elementary, we've put a custom evaluation tool in place to give our teachers clear, helpful feedback on their STEM teaching. Before anyone steps into the classroom for observations, our evaluators are trained to know exactly what targeted STEM practices to look for, using our tailored assessment guide. This way, when teachers get their evaluations, whether it's a quick check-in or an end-of-year review, they're getting specific, actionable feedback to up their STEM game. In addition to this, our staff participates in a variety of ongoing support options to continue growing their practice. 

At Walnut Elementary, every single student gets to dive into integrated STEM instruction, and we're not just talking about special classes or one-off projects. When it's STEM time, it's all hands on deck—no remediation or pull-outs—because we believe every kid deserves the chance to explore and grow in this exciting field.