Kid Stuff

Plug Into UW-Stout Camps

summer STEM, design programs offered for kids

Tom Giffey |

LAUGHING AND LEARNING. UW-Stout offers summer camps for teens exploring design, science, and technology.
LAUGHING AND LEARNING. UW-Stout offers summer camps for teens exploring design, science, and technology.

Are your kids interested in a camp that includes science, technology, and design as well as traditional summer fun like swimming and sleepovers? If so, UW-Stout has some new options that you (and your teens) should check out. Both of the camps debuting this summer are aimed at students entering the eighth through 10th grades, and both will allow curious students a chance to explore some of the Menomonie-based polytechnic university’s most-recognized areas of expertise. Campers will get a taste of college life by staying overnight in dorms and eating in campus dining halls, and on top of the learning they’ll have fun with field trips, movie nights, and more.

DESIGN CAMP

The Design Camp, hosted by UW-Stout’s School of Art & Design, has the theme “creating virtual words using game art and design software.” The camp – which runs Sunday, June 12, through Friday, June 17 – will give students an opportunity to choose between two tracks: 2D (pixel art) or 3D (interactive environments). According to organizers, “Working in School of Art & Design computer labs, campers will create their own virtual realities with instruction by UW-Stout faculty and students, including the chance to showcase their work with family celebration on the last day of camp.”

The registration fee is $325. However, the Eau Claire Area School District will cover that cost for campers who reside in the district. (Yes, that means Design Camp is free for Eau Claire teens. What a deal!) To qualify, you only have to enter the promo code ECASD16 on the registration form. Learn more about the camp at www.uwstout.edu/profed/design-camp.cfm.

STEM CAMP

The STEM Camp – if you’re not hip to the educational jive, that stands for “science, technology, engineering, and math” – will be the following week, Sunday, June 19, to Friday, June 24. This camp will be explosive – literally: The focus of the camp is rocketry. UW-Stout instructors will provide campers with the knowledge they need, and by the end of the week the teens will have a functioning rocket to take home. Along the way, they’ll be using UW-Stout facilities, including the Fab Lab, which is full of technology to design, prototype, and build new things.

The registration fee for STEM Camp is $375. Learn more at www.uwstout.edu/profed/stem-camp/index.cfm.

STEPS FOR GIRLS

Meanwhile, another UW-Stout summer camp is entering its 20th year this summer. STEPS for Girls, which is designed for girls who will be entering seventh grade, features four weeklong programs (July 10-14, July 17-21, July 24-28, and July 31-Aug. 4), each for 40 girls. STEPS (which stands for “Science, Technology, and Engineering Preview Summer”) was created to encourage young women to enter traditionally male-dominated fields. This year, the goal will be creating a obstacle-avoiding robot. Find out more at www.uwstout.edu/steps.