A global energy company exploring oil, gas and energy is giving back to all North Dakota Schools by teaching Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.

“The kids were so excited to find out that they were the first in the nation to get to see these,” Wilton Elementary School Principal Macy Wood said.

Fifth graders across North Dakota will get their hands on a total of 6,270 toy airplanes donated by the Hess Corporation.

The Wilton Public School District is the first.

Wilton Superintendent Andrew Jordan said the STEM curriculum is actively taught across the school district helping students with skill sets.

“Whether it be great communicators collaborating, critical thinkers, problem solvers; those are all things that we want our students to graduate from,” Jordan said.

Representatives from Hess instructed students about the different components of an aircraft, even having students create their own out of paper.

“They learned about lift, they learned about thrust,” Hess Corporation General Manager Brent Lohnes said.

Noah Greff is one of the student pilots whose paper plane flew the furthest.

“I like throwing them, I like making them,” Greff said.

Not only are schools receiving toy plane models but also a curriculum that comes with lessons about aviation.

“Our hope is that we can spark the interest of these young students to get interested in science and technology because it is what makes the world go around,” Lohnes said.

Over the past few years, Hess has been donating toy models to school districts.