Mad Science Presents ‘Out of this World’ Summer Camps

By Pamela A. Djelidi - ETC Contributor

Educational, entertaining, engaging, and exciting. Where can your child go to find all of these things this summer? Mad Science Summer Camp! This summer Mad Science will conduct seven different full- and half-day, weeklong summer camps at over 20 different locations through out the St. Louis Metro Area for children ages 5 thru 12.

Topics for Mad Science Summer Camps include everything from space exploration to forensics to robotics. Each camper gets a chance to not only learn about each topic, but to actually get their hands involved.

In the full-day camp, “3,2,1…Blast Off!”, campers discover the world of rockets including building their very own boggle rocket which they build from scratch. By the time they finish the camp, each camper will build five types of rockets and participated in launching six.

Mad Scientist JoAnn “Ocean Jo” Mitchell says that building the water bottle rocket was her favorite part of “3,2,1…Blast Off!”. She explains, “The kids get to design their own rockets and have a contest to see how well they performed.” She adds, “They even build altitude trackers to record how high they [go].”

In another full- and half-day camp, “Flight Academy”, campers are introduced to the world of flight. Why parachutes, kites, airplanes, and rockets fly is no mystery to kids in this camp. Campers get to put their knowledge to use as they build paper airplanes and rockets of their own.

In “Flight Academy”, one item kids take home is a boomerang. Mad Scientist “Discovery DeAnna” Jarrell explains that campers “learn how to throw a boomerang, and they get to decorate it.” This camp, she says, is great for “critical thinkers who like to know how things work and how to make things better.”

Ever wonder how robots work? Participants in the Mad Science “Red Hot Robots” full-day camp discover how they do. Campers get to build and take home their very own robot.

Kids enjoy a variety of experiments while investigating robots in “Red Hot Robots”. Ocean Jo said that kids enjoyed “being able to create their own things using snap circuits. They can make lights go on, alarms ring and music play. They can be free to create,” which she says makes this camp great for “kids who are interested in building, creating, and using their imagination.”

“Claws, Codes, and Constellations” full-day camp allows campers to discover a variety of disciplines in science including ecology, chemistry, biology and astronomy. Campers investigate hot and cold packs and discover planets using toilet paper. Mad Scientist Gavin “Mad Gav” Kark says that this camp appeals to “Boys and girls alike of any caliber.” In this camp, he adds, “Every day is something totally new.”

Kids get moving in the full-day camp “Science in Motion”. During this week, campers become engineers while they build bridges. Children also get a chance to make their very own sidewalk chalk to take home with them.

Amongst Mad Scientists the favorite experiment in this camp are the owl pellets. Ocean Jo describes, “The kids get to take a peak inside an owl pellet to discover what owls eat. They match the bones [they find in it] to a diagram to uncover what the owl has eaten.”

This summer Mad Science rolls out two new summer camps: “NASA: Journey into Outer Space” and the “All New Spy Academy” which will give kids a chance to investigate new scientific topics.

“NASA: Journey into Outer Space” has Mad Science teaming up with the NASA Langley Center for Distance Learning to offer students a camp that explores space from the earth’s atmosphere to galaxies far from our own. Campers in this half-day camp discover how laser beams can be used in space and work as a team to build a model space station.

Discovery DeAnna’s favorite part of this camp is making a comet in the classroom. During this experiment she “uses household items to show [campers] how a comet is created using dry ice.” Mad Scientist “Jamie Jacana” Talley says that this camp is great for “future astronomers, future astronauts, and star gazers.”

The “All New Spy Academy” full-day camp introduces children to the world of spying, forensics, and detection. Mad Scientist Alicia “Professor Ooze” Black explains that this camp is great for kids “interested in spy and detective work…It’s all about mysteries and solving crime.” Campers also get a chance to experiment with motion detectors. Children set up motion detectors to protect an object and challenge other campers to try to reach the object without setting off the sensors.

Mad Science Summer Camps are an opportunity for parents to give their children an experience that will not only be fun but will also be educational and engaging.

To find out more about Mad Science Summer Camps, visit www.madsciencestl.com or call 314-991-8000.
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