By Sara Thompson
Image credit Anna Fantasia, Explorit employee.
Special to the Enterprise
Spaces still available for several of our Summer Science Camps! Camps run from 9am-12pm Monday-Friday throughout the summer and cover many topics within science. Camps available for those entering grades K-2 and for those entering grades 3rd-5th.
Starting us off is “Contraptions, Concoctions, and Circuits” the week of June 17-21 for grades K-2. Discover how many simple machines are used in everyday life. Participate in chemistry labs and observe chemical reactions taking place before your eyes. Learn about electricity while solving circuit building challenges. A week of investigating the physical sciences will excite curious campers.
June 24-28 is our first offering for grades 3rd-5th. “Engineering for Disasters” has campers tackling a series of nerve-racking challenges to create inventive solutions in team-based activities. Using the Design Engineering Process, campers build plans to survive natural disasters. They may even be faced with engineering a way to avoid a floor of lava or a disaster only found in a science fiction story.
After a short break for Independence Day, camper's grades K-2 can experience “Remarkable Dinosaurs, Fossil Finds, and Prehistoric Life” the week of July 8-19. Dinosaurs come in all sizes big and small, and they lived alongside lots of other prehistoric life. How big were they? Kids see how many campers can fit inside a dinosaur footprint. Campers discover how fossils form and learn what layers of the earth have fossils inside. Test some of the tools and techniques paleontologists use to get fossils out of the rock and maybe discover something to take home.
From the depths of the Earth to outer space, our next camp for grades K-2 is “Cosmic Neighborhoods” the week of July 15-19. From the Sun to the outer edge of the Solar System, we will explore the planets, moons, and other objects in our part of the galaxy. How do we know what we know about them? How is Earth different from the other worlds, and how is it the same? Astronomy, geology, chemistry…learn about space using real equipment in our science lab.
Our final offering for grades 3rd-5th is the week of July 22-26 for a “Galactic Adventure”. Discover a universe of galaxies and stars. What are they made of and how do they form? We will use chemistry to examine the building blocks of the cosmos, then find out how physics shapes planets and moons.
July 29-August 2 campers entering grades K-2 will experience “Our Wild World”. A week full of worldwide nature experiences while learning about plants, animals, geology and life zones on our planet. Using wall maps as a daily focus and crafting large-scale craft environments in the camp classroom, campers discover what makes Deserts, Grasslands, Oceans, Arctic and Antarctic biomes unique life zones.
Our final camp for the summer is for grades K-2 and is offered August 5-9. The “Best of Explorit” celebrates the end of summer with a mash up of the best camp activities Explorit offered this season. Learn about physics and chemistry, discover prehistoric life beneath our feet and the natural world around us, explore the universe and engineer creative designs for potential disaster. Please note: Camp activities will draw from all the previous weeks of summer.
Registration for these camps is now open and spaces are going quickly. Register now at https://www.explorit.org/camps. The registration fee is $185 for Members and $210 for Non-Members. If a camp fills up, feel free to add your camper to a waitlist at https://www.explorit.org/campwaitinglist. A waitlist does not guarantee a spot, but we will contact you if a space becomes available.
Explorit's coming events:
POSTPONED- Science EXPO at Explorit Science Center. Saturday, May 4th from 10am-2pm. Celebrate science and science education with hands-on activity booths, interactive demos, and more! Event is free to attend!
May 18-19, African Adventure Safari. Celebrating Endangered Species Day! Courtesy of Kaotic Mythicals, explore specimens representing over 30 species of predator and prey that call Africa home. Included with general $5 Admission to Explorit, 10am-2pm each day.