Gifted Atlanta

Just about everything I post on GiftedAtlanta.com is local to the Atlanta area.

The one exception I make is the Appalachian Institute for Creative Learning, held for two weeks each summer on the campus of Warren Wilson College, just outside Asheville, North Carolina.

For years, I had been intrigued by AICL with its wide range of courses. Where many programs billing themselves as gifted camps are science and technology heavy, AICL offers classes in music, magic, philosophy, and Dungeons & Dragons, just to name a few of the dozens of courses for 2015.

Last summer, my kids went to AICL and loved it. And I loved it, too, because I’ve never been anywhere where children’s creativity and individuality were so honored.

Let’s face it: Gifted kids can be unusual and quirky. Too often in life, they are embarrassed by their differences. At AICL, their quirks aren’t ridiculed. They’re celebrated. AICL is a safe place where exceptional children can meet other kids like them — kids who think it’s cool to learn about medieval warfare, form a marching band, create a documentary, or build a house out of cardboard.

AICL is open to children ages 8 to 17, with day camp or residential options. Children need not be gifted identified by their school to attend. As the camp’s web site puts it, “[W]e call our campers motivated learners, figuring anyone who shows up to take biology, math, or art in July is motivated.”

The Morehouse School of Medicine is now accepting applications for its Vivien Thomas Summer Program, a biomedical science research apprenticeship for high-school students.

The eight-week program pairs students with faculty mentors from the school and allows the students to work in biomedical research labs.

The program’s overarching mission is to increase the number of minority students interested in biomedical science.

The application period will close April 18, 2015.

Registration is now open for UGA’s Summer Academy, day and residential camps for kids ages 11 to 17.

Camp topics this year include digital film school, comic books, aviation, mock trial, photography, fashion design, robotics, and the ever-popular mini medical school. (That one’s filling up fast.)

Early bird discount applies if you register before March 22, 2015.

Ivy Bridge Academy is offering week-long debate camps from June to early August for rising 4th through 12th graders.

The camps will be offered at the school’s Johns Creek and Cumming campuses, and will be taught by decorated debaters and debate coaches.

For elementary-age students, the camps focus on the basics of public speaking and research. The middle-school camp delves into the foundations of formal debate, with campers addressing a different topic each week. High-schoolers work on advanced skills in competitive debate.

Georgia Tech has opened registration for the 2015 Summer PEAKS program, with camps for kids in rising 4th to 12th grades.

These week-long camps cover topics in computing and engineering, including LEGO robotics, mobile app design, architecture, and physics.

All camps are held on the Georgia Tech campus.

It’s always nice to find a camp that serves younger children.

Midtown International School’s summer camp, which began in 2014, is for rising kindergarteners through fifth graders. Each week of camp has a unique topic of study. This summer, camp sessions will cover rocketry, horticulture, volcanoes, Egyptology, to name just a few.

Campers are grouped by age so that the weekly topic can be presented at different levels. The camp is staffed by teachers from the school.

The camp will be held at the school’s new campus on Sheridan Road in northeast Atlanta.

Registration is open now.

If you’re an early planner for summer, you can save $100 on technology camps at Emory presented by iD Tech.

The Emory iD Tech camps are open to kids ages 7 to 17. Topics include coding, game design, app development, robotics, photography, web design and more.

iD Tech also will offer Alexa Café, a STEM camp for girls ages 10 to 15, to be held at Georgia Tech.

The camps offer a low student-to-instructor ratio and lots of hands-on learning. Some programs — including the two-week teen academies at Emory — allow students to live on the college campus; others are day camps only.

The $100 discount is valid if you register and pay for a summer program by Monday, Dec. 15, 2015.