Two virtual STEM camps just for girls
Girls’ under-representation in STEM careers has led to the formation of numerous programs and organizations to encourage girls’ interest in STEM.
Two such groups are offering online camps:
- PROJECT SCIENTIST. This California-based organization ordinarily holds camps for girls on university campuses. This summer, they’re providing week-long camps online, starting at the end of June. Topics include robotics, DNA, energy, and more. Open to ages 4-12. Each weekly session costs $325, which includes 3 hours of programming each day and a virtual lab kit for conducting hands-on experiments. (Use discount code PS2020-20OFF to get $20 off.) Financial aid is available. Scholarship applications must be submitted by June 7.
- STEM GEMS. This Atlanta-based group is focused on giving girls female role models who work in STEM careers, so that girls can envision and plan for their futures as STEM professionals. This four-day online camp is open to girls who are entering 6th through 9th grades. Cost is $250, which includes a copy of founder Stephanie Espy’s book, STEM Gems.
DeKalb County moves summer gifted program online
The DeKalb County School District has long provided a week-long enrichment program called Serendipity to its gifted elementary-age students. This year, Serendipity will be a live, virtual program, June 15-19, 2020.
Enrichment activities will include art, Spanish language, drama, and physical education.
Serendipity is open to rising 1st through 6th graders who are enrolled in a DeKalb County public school.
Harvard offers online courses, lots of them free
Harvard University has nearly 200 online courses in the humanities, social sciences, computer science, mathematics and more, with many offered at no charge.
Among the class topics are classical music, Shakespeare, religion, the science of cooking, game development, ancient Egypt, probability, Japanese scroll art, architecture, rhetoric, neuroscience, and bioethics . . . plus a lot more.
AJC calls kid artists to create Art from the Heart
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution invites kids 13 and under to submit hand-drawn artwork that shows appreciation for those working tirelessly during these times, from healthcare workers and delivery drivers to employees in grocery stores and restaurants.
The Art from the Heart project will accept submissions until June 1, 2020. Selected drawings will be published on AJC.com and in a special section of the newspaper to be printed this summer.
Georgia Tech takes its summer programs online
Georgia Tech will deliver a series of STEAM-oriented online workshops for middle- and high-school students during the summer of 2020.
Topics for the week-long STEAM Whistle Workshops include creating mobile apps, music production, art with an engineering twist, meteorology, and more.
The summer workshops are being offered through the university’s CEISMC office, which manages outreach to the pre-K-12 community, and is the group that operates K.I.D.S. Club and Summer PEAKS.
Registration for June sessions is open now. Registration for July sessions is coming soon. Cost is $100 to $150 per workshop.
Free, online coding classes for children of healthcare workers
STREM HQ is offering one month of free coding classes to children of healthcare workers.
The classes are designed for kids ages 8 to 12. Sessions will begin April 13, 2020.
Kids’ science author offers free online events
There’s something special about learning science from someone who’s passionate about it. And Heather L. Montgomery is about as passionate as they come.
When Heather talks about bugs or snakes or other unusual animals, she absolutely lights up, and her enthusiasm is contagious. I know this because I know Heather personally. She and I are both authors of children’s books, and we’ve talked about our writing lots of times. When Heather tells a bug story, it’s riveting.
Ordinarily, Heather travels around visiting schools, sharing her passion for living things, and teaching students about science and writing. With schools closed, she’s offering three free virtual events.
- Author reading. Heather reads from her book, Something Rotten: A Fresh Look at Roadkill in a series of YouTube videos. Recommended for 3rd grade and up. (Videos available through the end of June.)
- Write Like a Scientist. Heather teaches the similarities between the scientific process and the writing process. Offered via Zoom on April 17, 2020, at 2 p.m. Eastern. Recommended for grades 2 through 6. Registration required.
- Bug Hunt. Heather will dive into some curious aspects of insect moms and dads, from her book Bugs Don’t Hug. June 9 at 2 p.m. Eastern on Instagram’s “True Stuff Tuesdays.” Recommended for grades pre-K through 2.
Virtual field trips to Atlanta venues, starting tomorrow morning
This has been added to the Enrichment from home page on the GiftedAtlanta.com site, but I wanted to give it an extra boost here as well.
Tomorrow, Friday, April 3, the newly created ATL Museums at Home will host its first digital field trip. The site says the field trip will include interactive activities. Partners for the first field trip are:
- Fernbank Museum
- Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Georgia Aquarium
- Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame
- Children’s Museum of Atlanta
- Breman Museum
- Zoo Atlanta
- High Museum of Art
Just added: Enrichment from home
I’ve just added a new page to GiftedAtlanta.com: Enrichment from home
It’s a list of free, online resources, from museum tours and symphony concerts to zoo webcams and jigsaw puzzles.
Use the list. Share the list. And please help me grow the list. If you know of a good online resource for gifted kids, please go to my Contact page and send me the link so I can add it to the page.
Let’s get through this together.
Atlanta Science Festival starts this weekend
The annual Atlanta Science Festival starts this Friday, March 6, and continues through March 21 with a wide variety of events for kids, teens and adults, including many hands-on activities.
Whether your child is into trees or bees, astronomy or arithmetic, there’s probably something they’d enjoy.
Most activities will be held in the city of Atlanta, but a few are scattered in other locations. The festival web site’s events page allows you to search for events by geographic area, so you can find something close to you if that’s a priority.
Many events have limited space and require you to register ahead, so don’t wait until the last minute to take a look and sign up.
As it does each year, the festival culminates in the Exploration Expo, a free event with more than 100 informative and interactive booths, Saturday, March 21 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Piedmont Park.
Gifted Atlanta 