Scientists and lab coats: A new approach for a Montgomery elementary school "Awesome," said Nathaniel Belete, 8, tugging at his collar. "I'm looking like I'm so smart," said Lettyar Aung, also 8, showing off his crisp, white jacket. It was the sign of a new era at Glenallan, which reopened this year in a new school building with a new mission: It is now "an academy" for STEM - science, technology, engineering and math. The school of 600 students is infusing STEM studies and approaches into its teaching and culture at a time when STEM is on the rise locally and nationally. It might be a perfect fit for the Washington area, with its many science and technology workers. Two scientists have visited Glenallan, giving talks and demonstrations. Others are expected to follow. The idea is to get kids jazzed about science- and math-related fields and the way of thinking that they require. There are lots of hands-on experiences: creating bridges, making parachutes, cracking open rocks. Students have goggles. They have tools. They record data. And now there are lab coats. "A lot of times when you dress the part, you feel it," said principal Peter Moran, pointing out that one guiding idea at Glenallan is that STEM learning should be student-led, a process of investigation and discovery. There is also another message, Moran said: "If they want to pursue a career in science or engineering, that is well within their grasp." Schools around the region have taken on STEM education in a variety of ways. But Glenallan is unusual in Montgomery as an elementary school so centered on it. Moran steered the federal funding that Glenallan gets as a high-poverty school toward materials and a staff position. "I would like to think that many times when you are exposed to things at a young age, you set goals for yourself, and the earlier you set goals for yourself, the more they are attainable," Moran said. I would love to see our students find careers in a STEM field. Even if they don't, he said, "it's a great problem-solving style of learning where you are collaborating with your peers in learning. Regardless of whether they choose STEM or not, those skills are invaluable. PTA President Jennifer DePasquale said parents have already asked about setting up ­after-school activities that tie in. A STEM club starts Tuesday for upper grades. A STEM festival, like a science fair, will take place in April. The school plans to enter competitions, too. "Everybody is very excited," DePasquale said. Schools with a focus on STEM have multiplied nationally during the past five years, largely because of a sense that "that's where all the jobs are," said James Brown, executive director of the STEM Education Coalition, a national group. Most of the focus has been at the high school level, Brown said, but "it's definitely trickling down." And the young are well-suited, especially those ages 8 to 12, he said. The data show you that the biggest opportunities to hook kids on science is in that age bracket.