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Summer Camps Keep Kids Active, Thinking This Summer
June 1, 2009
Sure, you can buy Guitar Hero for your kids but they'll have a lot more fun playing the one they build at camp this summer. They'll be showing it off to their friends and you'll be happy knowing that they've learned some new skills while having fun.
Building a video guitar is just one of several activities available to kids through the popular Venture and LEAP engineering and science camps offered at McMaster University. Other choices for elementary school kids include building an electronic piano, MP3 player, pinball machine, or security alarm. They can design a go-cart, make a video, create a website, dissect a frog, or learn how the eye works.
High-school students can learn how to program a robot that manually solves Rubik's Cube, grow cells, experience a motion simulator, or build a miniature solar car. Some can even earn summer credits towards their first-year engineering program at McMaster.
Venture and LEAP are run by university students and professors starting in June and running through early August. Campers get to work in real research labs and find out what engineering and science are all about. It is personal learning in a fun atmosphere. Last year about 1,000 students enrolled in Venture and more than 70 in LEAP. So there is a chance to make lots of friends.
Venture is a summer day camp for students in grades three to
nine. Activities are designed to blend engineering, science, computers
and technology with hands-on experience and creative opportunities. Venture
consists of two streams: Engineering and Science (for students entering
grades three to eight) and Computers and Technology (for students entering
grades four to nine). Camps are offered starting in July through August.
Visit: http://venture.mcmaster.ca
LEAP (Learning Enrichment Advancement Program) is for students in grades nine through 12. The program introduces students to the fundamentals of engineering through lectures, hands-on activities, labs, industry tours and projects. Students can choose from four course options: Robotics and Mechatronics, Biomedical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering Design, and Software Engineering & Introduction to Game Design. The HEADSTART option allows grade 12 graduates to earn advanced course standing by successfully completing ENG 1P03 and/or ENG 1C03. They can also get a taste of university life by staying at a residence on campus. Visit: leap.mcmaster.ca
