By Holly Desrosier
Registration is now open for Craven Community College (Craven CC) summer camps. The college is offering five camps on the New Bern Campus with a variety of activities for different age groups.
A favorite camp in recent years is Mad Scientist, which will be offered for two age groups. Mad Scientist I is for rising 6th to 9th graders and will have campers experimenting as scientists. They will operate rubber band cannons and discover how the distance and path of a projectile varies with potential energy, projectile weight and angle of launch. Other activities include physics of music, slime and polymers, gross-ology, magnets, crystal formation, engines, gravity, paper airplanes, obstacle courses, egg drop and more. This camp will be June 17-21 with a registration deadline of May 24.
Mad Scientist II, for rising 3rd to 5th graders, will allow younger campers to have fun becoming scientists while making slime, putty and bouncy balls. They will also learn about polymers and exploring molecular action. Other activities include rubber band cannons, paper airplanes, physics of music, gross-ology, crystal formation, egg drop and more. This camp will run June 24-28 with registration due by May 24.
Rising 4th to 6th graders will enjoy science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEAM) during Summer STEAM Fun I. Campers will explore components of STEAM, which will guide them to ask thoughtful questions, answer questions, apply what they learn and problem solve creatively. They will also launch Alka-Seltzer rockets, tie-dye T-shirts, and make ice cream, nature prints, bubbles, mobiles and juice noodles. The camp dates are July 8-12 with registration due June 14.
Summer STEAM Fun II will engage rising 7th & 8th graders through fun activities that utilize the components of STEAM. Campers will also be guided to ask thoughtful questions, answer questions, apply what they learn and problem solve creatively. They will enjoy activities such as DNA extraction, tie-dyeing T-shirts, launching Alka-Seltzer rockets, and making geometric spheres, modular origami, ice cream, algae balls and kites. This camp will take place July 22-26 with a registration deadline of June 14.
Another camp favorite is 3-D Printing and Electronics: Drone Design I & II for rising sixth to ninth graders. In the first week of this hands-on, two-week session, campers will learn how to design and print a mini-drone utilizing 3-D design software and a variety of 3-D printers. They will also learn basic 3-D design and printing principles.
“The main goal for the students is to have fun,” said Jeff Brown, Craven CC manufacturing technology/composites instructor and drone camp leader. “If they are learning, they will be having fun. The students will be using CAD software—the same software that is used in industry—to build, or draw, each part of a drone. Once their drone is drawn up, they will 3-D print and assemble each component.”
In week two, campers will be introduced to basic electronic fundamentals and principles. They will then advance their 3-D printed mini-drones by adding electric motors to their designs, making the drones capable of flight. The drone assembly will include the motors, rotors, circuit boards, batteries and receiver, and the students will learn about each of these major components. If the drone doesn’t fly, students will troubleshoot and make the needed adjustments. Once the first drone is complete, they will make another one.
At the end of the second week, campers will be allowed to fly their drones on the campus grounds under the supervision of the instructors. Please note that all drone materials are purchased by the college and will remain the property of the college after construction. The camp will take place June 17-28 with registration due by May 13.
“In the past, students coming into camp are very hesitant to work with the new technology and equipment,” added Brown. “By the end of camp, the students are going to town drawing and printing their own knickknacks without any assistance from the instructors. Their fear of technology and doing things for themselves is gone. And hopefully they realize that there is a whole world of new things to be learned, and maybe they’ll have the confidence to go out and learn it.”
For additional camp information and registration forms, visit CravenCC.edu/SummerCamps. For questions, contact Patricia Toon at 252-638-0141 or toonp@cravencc.edu.
This article also appeared in the Sun Journal.