GreenApple Campus Camp-- Cool Contraptions

I thought we were all set for camp this summer, but then I heard from a friend of ours about a camp (GreenApple® Campus) that seemed too good to not try. When I read the descriptions of the classes to my son, he just about cried with joy.

As devoted readers will remember, my son is very excited by the Maker Movement.  We've been to a number of Maker Faires, and a couple of years ago, he was all about building mousetraps and Rube Goldberg machines after we saw the Life Sized Mousetrap  at Maker Faire NY.

VIDEO OF THE LIFESIZE MOUSETRAP:

THE FIRST INTERATION OF AA'S MEDIUM SIZED MOUSETRAP.

These machines continue to fascinate.  So it's no surprise that my  son will be attending the GreenApple® Campus class COOL CONTRAPTIONS.  This invention based program is all about building contraptions, vehicles and machines that move. Gears, beams, pulleys, wheels, axles, pieces that snap and flex.  All of the kind of gizmos that will inspire the aspiring Rube Goldberg. (And will hopefully inspire him to use up the buckets and boxes of springs, cardboard tubes, rubber bands, and various detritus that he refuses to throw out!)

GreenApple® Campus is an educational not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization. Their mission is to inspire the innovators of the future through creative, challenging STEM or STEAM programs for kids. All of the classes, programs, and workshops feature some combination of science, technology, engineering, math, architecture, design, and invention.  Classes are offered in robotics, programming and app development, tinkering and making.  (And there are also some Lego robotics and Minecraft modeling classes!)

They also have an entrepreneurship startup program called Startup to Achieve for kids grades 6-9 that brings you the basics of being an entrepreneur (and very cool, one of those sessions is Just For Girls, so that gender stereotypes about girls and science won't be fulfilled.)

In the Chicagoland area, GreenApple® Campus has 4 locations, plus the StartUp to Achieve program is in a couple of different places.  Go to their schedule page to find out where their classes are offered and which classes are offered when.  They've got a lot of classes available, and I'm sure one of them will be right for your tech-hungry child.

DISCLOSURE:  We are being provided free tuition at GreenApple® Campus in order to try the camp out.  As always my opinions and my son's unfettered desire to build cool contraptions are our own.  I take my critical reputation seriously, and so should you.

Camp Options: Too Many Interests, Not Enough Time.

Summer is fast approaching.  Even the snow is starting to melt.  And that means that camp season is in full swing.  Just about every organization on the face of the planet is trying to entice you and your child into their camp.  There are so many to choose from!  And some are already sold out!  What are we going to do? How are we going to decide?  And how are we going to afford it?

WHAT WE'VE DONE BEFORE

Some artwork and gears from the camp
Robot City Workshop, where kids build robots.

In the past we've done a variety of things. Here's a run-down.

The first year he could, he went to camp at the same place he went to pre-K.  He had a good time, he knew most of the kids, they played sports, and he swam every day.

Then the next year he went to camp dad.  (It was a lot of fun, and we did fun stuff, and swam nearly everyday, but 14 hours a day of the bear is tough for an old guy like me!  And I'm probably much stricter than his camp councilors, because I'm paying close attention to my one charge, and I really care.)

The next year, he attended this pretty pricey Jewish camp in Rockland county.  He loved it (swam twice a day, adored his councilors, got to ride on a bus there and back and sing songs)-- in fact for a year afterwards he'd sing the Tap Tap Tappanzee song whenever we crossed a bridge, even if it wasn't the Tappanzee!  I loved that he loved it, but our bank account, less so.

Last year (the summer that we moved to Chicago) we did a city of Yonkers run day camp.  It had almost all the same activities as the shmancy Jewish camp, except it wasn't Jewish and you swam once a day.  Oh, and he only rode a bus once a week, when they went on a field trip.   He enjoyed that a fair amount.


WHAT WE ARE DOING THIS YEAR

This year we are doing D) All of the Above.  

We'll be travelling a little.  We'll have some dad camp time.  He'll spend a week going to a local robotics camp.  He'll spend a week going to his pick- a Scratch programming camp (Yes, his parents are geeks, and so is he!  "Say it Aloud- We're Smart and Proud!" )  He's eschewed the Mandarin camp, and (at least this year) we are going along with that.

But most importantly, we've found a "Backstop camp"  Steve and Kate's, a camp that started in the San Francisco bay area and has slowly picked up steam on a national level.  They've got them in Boston, New York, NJ, Chicago, Portland, Seattle, LA, and all over the Bay area..

 Unlike most camps, it's got a ticketing/voucher system. You buy a number of days, and then use them as you see fit.  Kind of like a yoga punch card, but for camp.  Yes, Drop in camp!

Steve & Kate's Music Studio
(photo courtesy of the camp)

The camp itself is student led-- meaning they have a lot of options/stations, and your kid gets to do what he is passionate about. It's not that there is no structure.  They have staffed studios where kids can make music videos, practice coding, bake bread, style jeans, or just hang out.  There's sports, games, reading, shows, and lots more. (They don't have swimming, but they do have a plastic water slide at each location!)  Three times a day, the kids huddle with their peers/counselor, and there are camp wide shows and specials, including a game show.  They advertise that for every block the campers can choose from at least 12 activities.

 I'm not sure how they manage the staffing and lunch issues, considering the drop in nature.  But they apparently have  got it figured out.  AA has a couple of friends who were at the camp last year and they LOVED it!

The great thing is that they are refundable/upgradable. Camp is $89 a day. If you buy 5 or more it's $79, If you buy 20 or more, it's $69. If I upgrade later, they retroactively make the whole package less, and I pay the difference. And if I don't use them all up, we get refunded at the end of the season. And they have camps all over the country, and your voucher is good AT ANY CAMP! We could travel to San Francisco, and he can go to the camp there!

What I love is their transparency and their business model. It's giving flexibility when I need it. If Camp Dad gets too tough, or I need a breather (or he needs a breather) we have it.  And as mentioned above he'll have a couple of good pals that are already there, and he'll make new pals as well I am sure.

Find out more about Steve & Kate's

So, I think we are mostly covered for the summer.  How about you?  What are your plans for your kids' summer?