By Nick Gurol, Volunteer Camp Coordinator joining St. James School for the summer from partner school Saint James School in Hagerstown, MD
Question: What do a pool noodle, an electric toothbrush, and markers have in common?
Answer: They can be combined to create an automated robot that draws its own designs! We created these “doodle bots” during one of our STEAM camp activities.
We had an absolute blast during our time at camp this summer. Camp director Ms. Parker set the tone every morning with a lively dance-off to the tune of “Every Move I Make” by the Hillsong Kids. We would then move into our STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts Mathematics) camp which involved channeling our inner engineer by creating boats, marble slides, armor, egg protectors, and many more. Our materials consisted of paper towel rolls, popsicle sticks and duct tape (lots and lots of duct tape).
From there we would dive into our technology centers, where we created a Lego® replica of the city of Philadelphia, SCRATCH computer animations, and soda can solar powered cars. The kids loved working with iPads and computers to research and carry out their projects.
The afternoons at camp can be described as “free-for-all-fun” where the kids had the freedom to ride bikes, play GaGa ball, and participate in water games. There was also an Amazing Race scavenger hunt activity that challenged the students to race around campus completing challenges while learning about different cultures. The week culminated in a talent show where the campers were able to express their talents in dance, freestyle rapping, basketball trickshotting, and singing.
Overall, the camp was a huge success and both the City Camp and St. James School staff can’t wait to do it again!
