Lookout Mountain Elementary’s VW eLab transformed in 2024 from a Science Lab to an eLab. Our school saw the need to help students learn to build critical thinking skills as they learn to use digital technologies for more than just play or entertainment, but to create. Students from kindergarten through fifth come weekly to the eLab.  They are greeted at the door “Hello _____ grade engineers!” This greeting reinforces the idea that they are doing the work. In the lab, they are exposed to 3D printers, laser cutters, vinyl cutters, robots and microcontrollers, unlocking opportunities to experiment, think critically and create. Students often apply or enhance their general education curriculum through designing and building. Projects often take several class periods to work through the Engineer Process and produce a product. Along the way they discover that failure is not a negative, but an opportunity to revise and improve their ideas like a real engineer. 
Often the specialist, looks for designs that can challenge students to solve a problem to improve their community. .
Our eLab prepares students to move to middle and high school with skills they will build for jobs in the future. By making learning relevant, purposeful and connected to real life, the VW eLab inspires curiosity and confidence in every child and helps them see themselves as designers, makers, and empathetic problem solvers.