Light-up baseball hats, homemade guitars, marshmallow launchers—no wonder the DesignCamp logo is, “We build cool stuff.”
Now in its eighth year, DesignCamp offers 15 different hands-on workshops for students in grades 5-11. New offerings and more all-girls sections ensure that there is something for all students.
Sleuthing students can join the Crime Science class and identify bone samples, do DNA fingerprinting and create computer sketches of “suspects.” Fans of computer games choose Game Makers and invent a game of their own, complete with graphics. Going beyond the air guitar, students in Electronics and Music build a working piano, guitar, or speakers. New this year are Carnival Contraptions and Electronic Bling, two workshops that have been hugely successful.
“When you start a new workshop, you aren’t really sure how it’s going to go. But we are really pleased with the outcome,” says Deborah Finch, assistant director of the Future Engineers Center, headquarters of DesignCamp.
In Carnival Contraptions, students experiment with motors, gears, circuits and air pressure to make their own carnival games. These include a spin art machine, balloon dunk tank and marshmallow launcher.
“We give them materials and examples, and then they brainstorm ideas of their own. They don’t just learn about the theories, they learn how they function,” says Gene Verschoor, now in his fourth year of teaching at DesignCamp.
Chancellor Marty Meehan got in on the fun, touring the classes with DesignCamp Executive Director Doug Prime. They started with Electronic Bling – a workshop to incorporate electronics into clothing, which Prime thinks may be the only one of its kind in the country. Students showed off their creations, ranging from flashing hats to blinking shirts.
Meehan also stopped by Carnival Contraptions, where students showed off their spin-art creations. The 5th and 6th grade students were working intently to get their designs just right.
“These are our youngest kids,” explains Prime. “They learn the basics of electronics and circuits, and then they build their own machines.”
At the other end of the spectrum are the DC High Tech students, who have all finished grade 10 or 11. They work on advanced electronics projects and two of the students demonstrated an electronic robotic that will be used by severely disabled youngsters, using a special control switch also designed and manufactured by the campers.
Down the hall, students in the Electronics and Music session were busy constructing working speakers and instruments. Student Josh Firicano gave a demonstration of the wooden electric guitar he built from scratch.
“This is not build-a-kit camp, this is DesignCamp,” explains instructor Al Fordiani.
With help from sponsors, DesignCamp is able to give each student the supplies needed for an unforgettable experience at camp, and a toolkit to take home. This year, DesignCamp received $90,000 in private contributions and donations from Raytheon, Tyco Electronics, Cabot Corporation, the Noyce Foundation and 3M Touch Systems. Because of these donations, the camp was also able to award $48,000 in scholarships. Without any formal advertising, DesignCamp has flourished by word of mouth.
“Some things are just so good, you don’t need any advertising,” says Chancellor Meehan.
“It’s all about the kids,” says Prime. “DesignCamp is for any student that has an interest in innovation and creativity.”
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