We have 4 incredible weeks and 5 different sessions available each week to choose from. There are no prerequisites for any of the sessions. Students are encouraged to sign up for multiple sessions to get the FULL FIRSTEP experience.
Week 1: June 4th to 8th - Entry Level
Week 2: June 18th to 22nd
Week 3: July 9th to 13th - Entry Level
Week 4: July 23rd to 27th
Weeks 2 and 4 are the next step after our entry level sessions however students will face only a small learning curve if they do not first attend weeks 1 or 3.
Camp Counter
Updated every 24 hours with the number of students currently signed up.
Activity
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Lego Builder
20/50
18/50
13/50
10/50
Lego Robotics Challenge
25/50
27/50
16/50
19/50
Junk Yard Wars
18/50
19/50
14/50
11/50
Engineering 101
13/50
16/50
14/50
18/50
Vex Robotics Challenge
6/50
15/50
7/50
11/50
Lego Builder
8:00am to 9:15am
Do you like playing with Legos? Have you ever tried to build the tallest tower, longest bridge, or even a city? In Lego Builder we will teach you how to build anything your imagination can come up with and show you how to make it bigger, stronger and withstand simulated natural disasters.
Recommended for 1st through 8th graders
Weeks 1 & 2 Students will be given various fun puzzle and problem-solving activities dealing with Legos. One of the larger activites will be working on the "Lego Best Bridge Building Competition." Students will learn how to build the strongest and longest bridge out of Legos. With a limited supply of Legos students will be given contraints such as the number of Legos allowed to use, and overal bridge must have a minimum width and length. Then we will put it to the test to see how much weight it can hold while still allowing a Lego car to drive across it. We will use slow motion video to capture the results and review with the students to point out weak points in the design for improvements.
Weeks 3 & 4 Students will be challenged with problem-solving activities dealing with Legos. The major project students will build is the "Tower of Doom". Students will learn how to build the strongest and tallest tower. Given building contraintst, students will be challenged to build the tallest yet sturdiest tower. Put it to the test, by seeing if it can withstand natural disasters such as hurricanes and earthquakes. We will simulate these disasters by placing the towers on a "Earthquake Simulator", and use slow motion video to capture the results and review with the students to point out weak points in the design for improvements.
Each Week will have many other various activities dealing with Lego creations.
Cost: $65
Lego Robotics Challenge
9:30am to 11:30am
Take the next step forward by building your very own Lego Robot that will complete specially designed tasks. This challenge develops skills through teamwork and one-on-one mentor guidance. It also teaches basic programming skills using an intuitive drag-and-drop interface via the Lego Mindstorms 2.0. Students will work in groups with a mentor to assist them in competing in a series of tasks with a Lego Robot.
Recommended for 1st through 8th graders
During Lego Robotic Challenge, students will be exposed to the mechanical, electrical, and programming side of engineering. Students will have goal oriented tasks that explore the different capabilities of the Lego RCX robot. Students will learn how to build a robot out of Legos and connect motors to enable driving. Students will also learn the software side to robotics; with careful instruction, students will learn how to program their own robot with simple drag and drop software. Various sensors will be used in order to teach how to accurately control their Lego Robot through exciting obstacle courses. The skills learned during this session are simple enough that everyone can be successful, yet challenging enough that students will be eager to troubleshoot for a solution. Skills learned during Lego Robotic Challenge are so invaluable that it will create the building blocks, or “FIRSTEP”, towards engineering at a very young age.
Weeks 1 & 3, students will be given a new challenge each day that will help teach the different capabilities of robotics. Mentors will help guide students along the ways as they become familiar with building, wiring, and programing their robot.
Weeks 2 & 4, have fun, competitive challenges provided to students in the beginning of the week. Students will use the RCX Lego Mindstorm Robotics kit to engineer a robot to complete the given challenge. On Friday, we will put the robots to the test during a friendly competition to see how many challenges the robots can compete. At the end of each week, students will have built, wired, programmed, tested, and competed in the Lego Robotic Challenge.
We are using the RCX Lego Mindstorm Robotics kit for group projects each week. This video gives an idea of how we combine LEGOS, the RCX and engineering to complete our Lego Challenge!
Cost: $85
Junk Yard Wars
12:15pm to 1:45pm
Have you ever built something out of simple household items? Have you ever tested those creations to see how much weight they can hold or how much impact that can take? In Junk Yard Wars you will be given various items that you can find around the house to do just that.
Recommended for 1st through 8th graders
Week 1: Boats, Bridges, Egg Drop
Week 2: Car Crashes and Ping Pong Balls
Week 3: Boats, Towers and Egg Drop
Week 4: Car Crashes and Ping Pong Balls
These are the themes of each week, where students will be given constraints in order to solve various problems just like a professional engineer would. Do you think you could create a case for an egg that will protect it from a 20 foot fall? How about an airbag device that could protect a passenger from a car crash? You will learn how to solve problems through math, science and careful troubleshooting.
Cost: $65
Engineering 101
2:00pm to 3:30pm
Have you ever wanted to build your own rocket to fly 200 feet in the air? In Engineering 101 students will be given a task, taught the engineering behind it, and will discover how to complete their task.
Recommended for 1st through 8th graders
Week 1: Slime,(Balsa Wood) Airplanes and model ROCKETS Level 1!!!
Week 2: Home Made Water Powered Rocket, Rockets Levels 2!!!
Week 3: Slime,(Balsa Wood) Airplanes and model ROCKETS Level 1!!!
Week 4: Home Made Water Powered Rocket, Rockets Level 2!!!
Cost: $75
VEX Robotics Challenge
3:45pm to 5:30pm
In one week students will create a remote-control robot that will play in a specifically designed game. They will experience the same prototyping, manufacturing and competition as real engineers do. Students will work together in groups with a mentor to build their VEX robot.
Recommended for 1st through 8th graders
Students in each week will be given a differnt task that they must design a VEX Robot to complete. Like engineers, students will have to problem solve in order to discover a solution. Vex Robotics is the 21st century Erector Set, that allows students to build, wire, test and drive their very own robot. Here is a video showing what VEX is used for in the middle school and high school levels.
