Erskine Elementary School is part of Anderson Community School Corporation, located in Anderson, Indiana. The school serves around 474 students in Kindergarten through 5th grade, fostering a welcoming and supportive learning environment. Erskine Elementary is committed to cultivating academic excellence, positive character development, and a strong sense of community among all students.
Erskine Elementary School
What STEM means at Erskine Elementary School
At Erskine Elementary, we envision a future where every child discovers the joy of learning through curiosity, creativity, and collaboration. Our classrooms are places where students build, design, and explore — connecting imagination with innovation through hands-on STEM experiences that bring learning to life.
Through engaging opportunities like LEGO Essentials engineering challenges, Purdue Extension partnerships, and Family STEM Nights, students learn to think critically, work as a team, and apply knowledge to real-world problems. From building moving models to testing water quality and exploring sustainable systems, Erskine students see that science, technology, engineering, and math are not just subjects — they are tools for shaping their world.
We are committed to developing durable skills in communication, problem solving, and perseverance, ensuring that every learner leaves Erskine with the confidence to tackle new challenges and the curiosity to keep asking questions. Our teachers cultivate a culture of inquiry that celebrates discovery, service, and community — values that reflect the heart of the Erskine All-Stars.
As part of Anderson Community Schools, Erskine Elementary will continue to strengthen partnerships with families, local organizations, and higher education to expand STEM access and opportunity for all. Together, we are preparing a new generation of thinkers, creators, and leaders who will thrive in an ever-changing world — grounded in curiosity, guided by compassion, and driven to make a difference.
What makes our STEM program stand out
STEM Implementation K-12-to-Career
STEM is a pillar to the WD approach to education and preparing students as functioning members of the community by being exposed to the increasingly technology driven world. Between the three STEM labs, every student is exposed to the career opportunities available with STEM.
STEM Promotion
STEM Day and other events throughout the year expose students on what is to come as
their educational journey in the building continues. Elementary students are exposed to
opportunities at the high school, and high school students are exposed to industry
employers looking for talent or mentorship opportunities.
Diversified Options for all Secondary Ed Students, College and Workforce Bound
WD hosts several different NLPS pathways that allow students to explore their interests in
engineering, digital media, cybersecurity, information technology, business operations, and more. There is not another school of this size offering such a vast array of career exploration
opportunities.
Building, Designing, and Coding with LEGO Essentials
At Erskine Elementary, students are learning to think like engineers through hands-on creation with LEGO Essentials kits. Thanks to support from the Anderson Education Foundation, students work in collaborative teams to build, design, and code functioning models — such as submarines and other moving systems.
These experiences go beyond building. Students apply art and design, connect concepts across science and technology, and practice communication and teamwork as they plan, test, and improve their designs. By integrating LEGO Essentials into instruction, Erskine is helping students understand how creativity and STEM work together — empowering young learners to solve problems, explore possibilities, and bring their ideas to life.
Real-World STEM Learning Through Purdue Extension Partnership
Erskine Elementary strengthens classroom STEM learning through a meaningful partnership with Purdue Extension–Madison County. Each grade level engages in hands-on STEM units that are directly connected to real-world agricultural, environmental, and engineering applications. With support from a STEM education specialist, students explore topics such as weather tools, wind patterns, plant growth in different soils, water quality testing, electric circuits, erosion control, and hydraulics—all through inquiry-based lessons aligned to their grade-level standards.
This partnership allows students to think like scientists and engineers, using authentic tools and problem-solving strategies as they build, test, and improve their designs. Each unit connects STEM to life outside the classroom—helping students see how what they learn impacts their community, environment, and the world.
Through this collaboration, Erskine students gain experiences that build curiosity, confidence, and the mindset that STEM is relevant, meaningful, and something they can do.
Family STEM Nights – Learning Together Through Exploration
Erskine Elementary strengthens the home–school connection through STEM Family Nights, where students and their families experience hands-on learning together. These events are designed to bring the Engineering Design Process to life in fun, interactive, and meaningful ways. Families problem-solve, create, test, and explore just like students do in the classroom — building shared excitement around learning.
One featured event invited families to become archaeologists during a National Geographic-themed experience. Participants assembled terra cotta warriors, examined mystery artifacts, translated hieroglyphics, and uncovered clues to solve ancient puzzles. Through activities like these, families experience the same inquiry-based, real-world learning happening in students’ daily STEM instruction.
STEM Family Nights provide opportunities for families to engage, collaborate, and celebrate learning — helping students see that curiosity, creativity, and problem-solving extend beyond the classroom and into everyday life.
