WEST MILFORD — Apshawa Elementary School's STEM club, consisting of 4th and 5th grade students, recently completed "The Great Desert Island STEM Challenge."
STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and math.
Students worked in teams to complete six different challenges over six weeks of meetings: construct a hut, build a bridge, make a waterproof container, design a coconut catapult, design a raft, and build a tower.
Teams were given points based on design sketch, planning, finished projects, and test results.
Students were also given the ability to try out the different jobs - project manager, materials manager, testing coordinator, chief architect, master builder, and official reporter.
The activities addressed components of the Next Generation Science Standards.