March is Women's History Month and during the month schools across Texas celebrate Texas Girls in STEM Day.

It's a day to encourage girls to get involved in fields related to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. 

The La Joya Independent School District hosted a Girls in STEM Day on Wednesday. Hundreds of La Joya ISD 5th grade girls spent the day exploring math, science, engineering and technology.

About 30 tables were set up with different activities related to STEM they could participate in.

Girls were able to learn how to make a tornado in a bottle, create a 3D image and learn how to move a robotic hand.

"I like it. Why? Because I get to learn new things in science and engineering, learn new stuff and all that," 5th grader Isabella Torres said

The district wants to encourage young girls to go into the STEM field, where teachers say there is a gender gap.

According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, there are typically more men working in STEM. A 2023 report by MIT found that women make up only about 28 percent of the STEM workforce.

"We do have currently a female science coordinator in our district, a female math coordinator, and a female technology director. So, we have all these role models right here in our district, and it's good that our girls see that, that these are possibilities for them," principal Stephanie Garcia said. "Maybe one day I will get to do this stuff with more technology."

This is the second time the district held the event.

This year, they brought in high school students from their CTE programs to show girls about the possibilities out in the workforce.

At the end of the day, each girl was given a book about Women In Science to inspire the next generation of professionals.