Rock Springs Elementary School is set to launch Apopka’s first elementary-level STEAM Scholastic Academy next academic year. 

“I just want to bring fun back to the classroom, where kids are learning and engaging in activities that really pique their interest and make them excited about learning and coming to school every day,” said Rock Springs principal Robin King. 

To prepare for the program launch, King said teachers will train at the Orlando Science Center, revise existing curriculum and develop new lesson plans for those accepted into the program’s first year. All students outside of the STEAM program will also have the opportunity to join STEAM students for an activity once a month. 

“We will have one day of the month on a Friday where we’ll run a Wednesday bell schedule, and at the end of the day, we’ll use the extra time where every student on campus is going to participate in some kind of an engineering/science hands-on task,” King said. 

King plans to hire a full-time STEAM teacher and open an on-campus STEAM lab for the program’s second year. 

“Kids would go there maybe one day a week, and they would just learn about different components of science, technology, engineering and math in that class,” King said. “We did buy some supplies for this, where we have little robots that they can code to make the robots move and have students build structures to understand how gravity impacts us as humans, but also other objects.” 

Those identified as advanced students will have the opportunity to participate in the STEAM academy’s gifted program, which will provide an “accelerated curriculum” and “independent exploration,” according to an OCPS flyer. 

“As an individual who grew up in classrooms where there was problem-based learning, I really enjoyed it, and it really sparked imagination and had me think creatively about the world around me,” King said. “I just think that it’s important that we make learning fun again.” 

Applications opened on April 1. Interested families may contact the school at rocksprings_es@ocps.net for more information.