Cool-ology® STEAM Camp was an incredible adventure at the Country School this past week. The campers were a joy- inquisitive problem solvers, polite, hard-working, and fun! Here’s how our week went.
Day 1 Water Wonders After investigating buoyancy, adhesion, cohesion, water tension, hydrophilic and hydrophobic tendencies, Cool-ology®️ kids engineered and tested boats made from (mostly) natural materials! Campers worked really hard on their designs- testing and improving for a long time. Aren’t they wonderful?! 😀🐥
Day 2: Water Park Engineering
Cool-ology® campers continued to impress with their engineering skills today! We finished up our Water Wonders study by creating these awesome water park slides for babies (little plastic figures). Friction, momentum, speed, angles, energy, forces, and motion all came into play as campers attempted to safely send their “babies” down some pretty cool water park rides that they devised!
Campers were given an additional challenge to design and engineer a personal floatation device for a baby using foam pieces and rubber bands. The goal was to ensure the baby remained safely supported face-up in the water. It wasn’t as easy as it looks (finding center of both gravity and buoyancy) but the kids had great fun with this challenge!
After snack, campers spent some time playing in the gaga pit and cooled down in the sprinkler. We then took a short walk in the woods to investigate the nature surrounding The Country School!
Day 3 Fractal STEAM/Pollinators/Roller Coaster Physics
Day 3 was very busy for Cool-ology® campers! We began by discussing fractals- what they are, how they relate to math and science, and where fractals can be found in nature. Campers made these gorgeous fractal art patterns with paint, cd jewel cases, and paper!
FRACTAL ART
HAND POLLINATORS
Campers then learned about pollination and hunted for examples of pollinators around TSC. We observed lots of bees with “pollen baskets”! We created our own hand pollinators and flowers from craft materials. Campers were then asked to “pollinate” their flowers using flour and their pollinator!
Finally, campers learned about the physics of roller coasters and began work on their own roller coaster engineering designs.
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Day 4: Chemistry STEAM
Cool-ology® campers had a ball making Oobleck to kick off our Chemistry STEAM day! We discussed the chemical properties of this non-newtonian fluid and used it to experiment with art. Campers made beautiful works of art on their Oobleck. This technique is similar to that used on frescos painted by some of the world’s most talented artists. Campers compared the results of their “fresco” paintings to similar artwork they created on wet paper with watercolors. Check out their amazing results!
Watercolor on wet paper- notice the differences? We discussed hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties and how our paintings were affected by both!
After our snack and movement break, campers continued to engineer both wild roller coasters and equipment for the perfect playground!
We ended the day with an ultra-cool rocket launch powered by carbon dioxide which was created by an acid/base chemical reaction! We discussed Newton’s laws, chemical reactions, and the importance of being safe during this type of experimentation.
Day 5 Nature Survival Walk and Makerspace Lab
Cool-ology campers had a great time exploring the hiking trails around TCS! Some of our discoveries included a wood frog, red humus, deer tracks, new life growing on seemingly dead trees, and lots of different varieties of fungi. We took soil and water samples from the Neck River. We discussed how we would obtain food, shelter, warmth, and protection along the way. What fun!!
We ended the day with a mini MakerSpace Lab which included Snap Circuits, Zoobs, Strawbees, Brainflakes, Zomes, Cool Circuits, and yes, MORE mini-roller coaster engineering!
What a week! Many thanks to the wonderful campers, parents, and TCS staff for making Cool-ology® Camp possible.
Until Next Time,
Claudia
