09/19/2026
STEAM Friday is here at DEN!
Today, our Panthers participated in our first STEAM Friday of the year! Students who join STEAM Friday commit to 10 extra Fridays throughout the school year filled with joyful, hands-on, and rigorous learning designed to spark curiosity, creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving.
As a Nevada Governor’s Designated STEAM School, STEAM isn’t something we save just for Fridays, it is part of the learning happening throughout the week in classrooms across DEN. STEAM Friday gives students an additional opportunity to dive deeper, explore their interests, and challenge themselves in new ways.
We still have openings at select grade levels! If you are interested in having your child participate, please contact Mr. Brandis, DEN STEAM Coordinator, for more information.
What were our Panthers learning during STEAM Friday?
Each grade level took on a different challenge today, combining academic learning with creativity, problem-solving, collaboration, and hands-on exploration!
Kindergarten | Forces in Motion
Our youngest Panthers explored forces through pushes and pulls, discovering how objects move and how the amount and direction of force can change their motion.
1st Grade | Ni Hao! Exploring China
First graders immersed themselves in Chinese culture! They created Chinese dragon art, designed panda habitats, practiced eating with chopsticks, constructed the Great Wall of China, and even practiced writing their names using Chinese characters.
2nd Grade | Building & Coding Communities
Second graders explored different types of communities and used LEGO bricks to design an urban community complete with important community buildings. Then came the coding! Students programmed robots to travel from place to place, debugging when needed and thinking about safe pathways, obstacles, and efficient routes.
3rd Grade | Life Cycles & Engineering Solutions
Third graders combined LEGO builds and robotics to explore life cycles. They also became environmental engineers, designing devices to help clean up an oil spill!
4th Grade | Think Like a Scientist & Engineer
Who knew Mr. Potato Head could be a STEAM challenge? Fourth graders practiced essential science and engineering skills, including observation, measurement, analysis, and revision as they tested their thinking and improved their designs.
5th Grade | Exploring the Maya
Fifth graders connected STEAM with history as they explored Maya culture and the Maya calendar, discovering how mathematics, astronomy, engineering, and observation helped shape an incredible civilization.
This is what STEAM looks like at DEN: students asking questions, creating, testing, revising, collaborating, and learning through doing.
Our Panthers weren't just learning about the world today, they were learning how to think, create, and solve problems within it.
Belong. Lead. Grow. Take Pride.
