Groton — A murmur of voices filled a lab at Catherine Kolnaski STEAM Magnet School on Tuesday as third graders were about to start an experiment.

The students worked in teams to send a toy car down a ramp to see how far it would push a block at the bottom of the ramp, as part of a "crash lab" challenge to teach students about force and motion.

They collected data on which zone the block ended up each of the five times they sent the car down the ramp. They then added 50, 100 and 150 grams to the car and sent it down five times for each weight.

When Andrew Fotta, STEM educator with the Connecticut Science Center, asked questions, students said they discovered that the more weight was in the car, the farther it pushed the block.

"More weight equals more force," Fotta said. "Does everyone see that?"

Catherine Kolnaski STEAM — science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics — Magnet School, a Groton elementary school, has partnered with the Connecticut Science Center, a Hartford-based museum. It's part of the museum's efforts to bring programs outside of its walls and into the community, said Megan Ramer, director of programs for the museum, which has a range of STEM program packages for schools, costing from $5,000 to $25,000.

With many STEM jobs in Groton and Connecticut, the Connecticut Science Center is working to help ignite students' passions in the field and prepare students for the workforce, while also helping them learn by exploring and asking questions on topics, from force and motion to sound, Ramer said.

"We want to make sure all students realize the potential they have in STEM fields," she said.

Catherine Kolnaski Principal Christine Dauphinais said the school always is looking for partnerships and reached out to the Connecticut Science Center. "It's been wonderful this year," she said. "Not only are we getting professional development for our teachers in teaching science and how to best engage our students in inquiry in science, but our students get these labs that connect back to our science units."

She said it is not only good modeling and practice for teachers, but a great experience for kids, and it also helps the school think about science in a different way. The cost of the program was absorbed into the school's budget, she said.

Dauphinais said science and math education is about more than just learning facts. She said the students are learning about forces and motion, experimenting and keeping data that they then analyze to come to their own understanding. She said the school hopes to continue the partnership, which started this year, into the future.

The lessons are designed according to grade level and to "complement and enrich the science units" the children have been working on in their classrooms, according to a news release on the program.

Ben Moon, STEAM specialist and coordinator at Catherine Kolnaski, also remarked on how students were taking turns and collaborating with one another and learning and practicing skills, such as collecting and organizing data, problem-solving and communicating. "It encompasses a lot of things that kids need to be successful," he said.

Ava Grundy, 8, said she learned that the more weight added to a car, the more it can push, and she said the experiments are fun.

"It was pretty great," Jorge Estrella, 9, said. "We learned a lot about weight and force, like pulling and pushing."

Sage Coburn, 8, said she likes science and STEAM education: "I love how we get to do fun experiments, and it's really fun to learn it."

Moon said the STEAM magnet school tries to provide a wide range of opportunities for students. He said the partnership with the Connecticut Science Center is part of the bigger picture of how the school helps kids find their passions and talents.

"We do things with engineering," he said. "We do things with computer science. We do things with robotics and 3D printing, so it's really about providing kids with an abundance of opportunities and hope they develop into lifelong learners."

k.drelich@theday.com