LEESBURG — Kindergartners at Leesburg Elementary School are taking social and emotional learning and STEM to the next level in the traditional classroom.

Recently students engaged in Kid Spark Education with digital learning specialist Connie Watters, they have built cameras, semi-trucks, telephones and have engineered many of their own designs.

The traditional kindergarten classrooms are also growing a variety of lettuce in their class tower garden.

A tower garden is a vertical structure that uses hydroponics to allow students to grow several types of vegetables and plants. Students will observe and measure plant growth throughout a 10-week cycle and will celebrate their findings with a salad party.

Another STEM activity students enjoyed was learning coding skills through the use of Beebots. Beebots are robots that students can program to go in multiple directions towards a designated destination. Students had the opportunity to utilize their programming skills while also engaging in technology during this activity.

In addition to STEM activities, traditional kindergartners have been working with WCS Social Emotional Coordinator Gina Courtois to gain a better understanding of their social and emotional brain functions. Students are currently learning about their hippocampus, frontal cortex, and brain stem. They have learned how to regulate their emotions by using coping strategies to get them back to a “learning ready green zone.”