On April 17th, the Maui Highways team headed to Ho‘okele Elementary School to take part in this year’s Engineering Night—and we brought along one of our favorite hands-on activities! Using our AASHTO STEM Kits, we invited students to explore the difference between permeable and impermeable surfaces by building and testing mini models.

After observing how water moves through each type of surface, students were challenged to think like engineers and come up with ways to improve water flow on hard surfaces.

Using materials like rocks, sponges, and pipe cleaners, they got to work designing and building their own stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs) to help mimic natural drainage and reduce runoff. From mini bioswales to sponge-filter hybrids, their creativity was on full display!

It was a fun and meaningful way to introduce real-world engineering concepts and spark conversations about how stormwater is managed in our communities. Big mahalo to Ho‘okele Elementary School for welcoming us again—we always enjoy spending time with these future engineers!