Going after the Future

~ Photos can be accessed for viewing here ~ 

Three, Two, One…Lift Off!! The day started early in the morning before breakfast with hot air balloons lifting off over the library. The launch of the four balloons was very successful and witnessed by many campers, ooh-ing and awing.

After breakfast, the rocket project continued as teams finalized the details and built their rocket.

By lunch time, thirty-three bottle rockets had successfully launched into orbit. Our talented engineers, CFOs, and COOs of the rocket companies also enjoyed a tasty treat (Otter Pops!) while watching the launch. Naturally, we also launched a dance party to celebrate our last day together before heading to lunch.

After lunch, campers went to their core classes for capstone projects. They put their knowledge to the test as they solved a robbery, soared through the clouds with hot air balloons, built skyscrapers, and coded the next greatest apps.

The App Inventor students finalized their personal projects. Many installed their apps onto devices for further testing and inspiration!

The Art in Math students completed their origami dodecahedrons! It was an all-day challenge, but they persevered. They also built the Sierpinski pyramid out of straws and studied the art of two-point perspective buildings.

The Hot Air Ballooners celebrated their morning of successful launches with traditional “bubbly” and treats. Then, they finished the slide presentation and a lab on calculating density. They ended the course with a parachute engineering competition, roller coaster physics, and other physics toys like “house of cards.”

The Circuits students used a solder sucker and braided copper to fix mistakes and make the final touches. The girls also learned about light sensors and how they might be used to steer the car.

The CSI girls put their skills to the test by investigating and solving a crime that took place in the classroom. They analyzed forensic evidence, presented their findings, and determined the criminals from a list of suspects.

The girls in Structures built skyscrapers out of spaghetti and gumdrops (aiming to be as light and tall as possible). They also learned about how to become a structural engineer, took a jeopardy quiz on all they have learned, and learned about the challenges in designing the world’s tallest building.

After our final meal together, girls broke down the final pieces of their shells and performed in our annual talent show. Campers prepared skits, shared their talents, and enjoyed the showcase of individual and group abilities. Performances included opera in Spanish, rappers, reciting 100 digits of Pi, dancing, and unforgettably goofy group skits.

After the talent show, camper wrote thank you letters to their branches for the opportunity to come to camp. Campers also completed surveys to rate their camp experience and wrote in their journals about what they enjoyed in this past week. The journals also provide a recap of the week when the campers return home and speak to family, friends, and AAUW branches about their time at camp.

The night ended with a laughter-filled viewing of the rough draft of the video each camper will take home. The girls were in high-spirits as they saw their experiences recapped with all the smiles, laughs, and shared experiences.

Including the times they laughed…

The times they danced…

The times they were brave…

They saw how they grew as individuals and learned to work and live with others as a team.

Our goal was to equip the girls with confidence so they will embrace the math and science coursework (and other challenges that come their way) they will experience in eighth grade and beyond. We cannot wait to see them go into the world and “be brave, not perfect!”

Dreaming Big

~ Photos can be accessed for viewing here ~ 

It’s nearly the end of the week, but our energy never dies! The girls began completing the red tape for their rocket project.

They were charged with developing a business plan, applying for articles of incorporation, and deciding on officers of the group. The girls also came up with designs and balance sheets, carefully considering how they will use their $1 million budget.

AAUW members visited the girls in their core classes to find out what they have been working on over the course of the week. Here are some updates on the penultimate classes of today:

App Inventor implemented their design to create their own apps! Apps created include but are not limited to trivia apps, a Star Wars space invader game, and Boggle apps. Some worked to improve functionality for past ideas.

The CSI girls learned how to chemically test powders and used their skills to determine the identity of 10 different mystery chemicals.

The student of the Hot Air Balloon class finished their hot air balloons. They tested them indoors and made minor repairs. They also learned more about air pressure, density, and buoyancy, then they studied the periodic table of elements to discover the atomic difference between hydrogen and helium. The students ended the day with a buoyancy and density challenge called, “Boats that Float.”

Structures learned about how building materials are produced. They also built, tested, and destroyed bridges made from popsicle sticks and hot glue.

The Circuits class finished their first project and started on project two, which is a motor-driven car.

Art in Math students learned about the 5 Platonic Solids.  They counted faces, edges, and vertices for each and discovered Euler’s Formula. The students also built one of the solids (a cube) using origami and have begun progress on another of the solids (the dodecahedron) using origami.

After lot of hard work, one deserves a little fun–so we beat the heat with a pool party! The girls had the opportunity to make tasty ice cream. The counselors assorted the ingredients while the campers provided the arm power as they churned the ice cream.

The girls also had the opportunity to play beach volleyball, dance with ribbons, mingle, and participate in other outdoor activities.

After the pool gates closed, we bonded by tossing water balloons and drenching each other with water toys.

Then, we ended with a fun trivia night using Kahoot! We asked each other questions about the staff, Mickey Mouse’s original name, chemistry, and so forth.

The staff is prepared for the tears to flow as the girls will soon be separated from their new best friends and home-away-from-home. How do we prepare? Make sure everyone has the MOST fun possible before we part ways in a few days!

Fearlessly Exploring

~ Photos can be accessed for viewing here ~ 

What a day to escape to the mountains! Our crew ventured to the Calvin Crest outdoors center to learn more about ecology, challenge themselves through team initiatives, and enjoy the outdoors.

STEM requires creative problem-solving, team work, and bravery. Once we made it to the mountains, the girls participated in team initiatives involving some imagination like organizing each other by birthday on a single log without stepping off…

Escaping between planets using six carpets on a basketball court…

Navigating an ‘electric’ (again, using imagination) spider web…

Crossing an entire group across three platforms without touching the ground…

Creating a pathway for a marble using small PVC pipes…

And moving everyone to the ‘sugar cookie’ (a wooden platform) across the ‘radioactive peanut butter / jello’ (the ground) via the ‘black licorice’ (a rope swing).

After burning lots of energy, we enjoyed lunch outside on the foundation.

Surrounded by beautiful, 1000-foot-tall sequoias, we set off on a quick hike through the forest. The weather was warm, so the fresh, cold water from the waterfalls and creeks felt so good on our skin!

The camp staff taught our girls many things on the hike today. Some staff members shared advice for college applications, IB/AP classes, and fee waivers. The girls also received a hands-on ecology lesson as they learned about the difference between white firs, ponderosas, cedar trees, and sequoias. Some girls even got some vitamin C as they tasted the tips of white fir. Others braved a climb up a tall stump of a giant sequoia tree.

We also gave students free time to be adventurous! They did everything from rock climbing to zip lining, and from paddle boating to archery.

The girls loved the trip to the woods–even if there were a few bug bites.

After we finished a delicious dinner, we squeezed in time for our action-packed dice relay and capture the flag games!

Daring to be Brave

~ Photos can be accessed for viewing here ~ 

By today, the girls were in the swing of things!

They rotated lab groups to make sure everyone got to experience the joy of our labs. The other half of our group rode like Marty McFly on our homemade hover board!

The girls are loving their core classes—here is an update on all the cool things they are doing in them:

The students in App Inventor are continuing to use Doodle and started the Boggle project. They explored example apps made by their teacher (who is also the director of our camp) and learned how to make apps look professional by changing its icon.

The girls in CSI learned how footprints can be used as evidence at a crime scene. They practiced making a footprint impression and a plaster mold of a footprint. They also looked at how dental records and/or bite marks can be used to identify victims and suspects. They ended the day defining an alibi and what makes an alibi credible.

The Art in Math students used puff paint on CDs, used famous sequences for fractal art (drawing), and studied the Sierpinski triangle.

The Circuits students learned how to solder devices to a printed circuit board and started their first project: a board with blinking lights that make a siren sound.

The Hot Air Balloon girls completed most of their 9’ balloons. They also watched a demo on particle speed in hot vs. cold water and did a quick experiment on compressing air vs water in a syringe. They finished the class learning about the history of ballooning and listened to a podcast about the world’s first female pilot, Aeronaut Sophie Blanchard.

The students in Structures went on a tour of the campus’ Lyles College of Engineering and its engineering labs. They learned about bridges and designed computer models. They also started their physical models for a competition tomorrow.

After core classes, we conducted “Impromptu Hydrophobic Synchronized Swimming!” The dorm halls came up with a dance to their assigned song within ten minutes. Songs included “Dancing Queen,” “Shake it Off,” and “Stayin’ Alive.”

For many girls, it was their first time dancing in front of a crowd. For all of the girls, it was an incredible time of bravery and laughter.

Afterwards, we hosted free time for the girls to rest and relax as well as engage with each other. They got to try lots of new things and with new friends: Giant Jenga, cornhole, Giant Tic-Tac-Toe, Giant Connect Four, giant playing cards, Ladder Toss, Spike Ball, Ribbons, and Spheros! The evening was complete with sunshine and popsicles.

The active environment even inspired a dance party as girls learned to square dance from two of our counselors, taught each other their favorite dances, and ignited dance battles.

As the girls learned today, sometimes we can dare to be brave — by ourselves and with others. The result is empowerment and joy.

Practicing Bravery

~ Photos can be accessed for viewing here ~ 

One of the exciting things about Tech Trek is the opportunity to walk, live, and breath on a college campus. This environment may be new for our girls, but they do not have to brave through it alone. Many of our girls have already made close friends and are accustomed to the cafeteria food. Today, they experienced their college-styled courses.

First, we started the day with our labs, which consists of semantics, geopanes, string art, the scavenger hunt, mentos and soda, and driving Spheros (think BB-8 from Star Wars!).

Then, we jumped into one of the best parts of camp: core classes. As mentioned, the classes allow the girls to explore awesome subjects while getting a feel for sitting in college classes with likeminded people. They also get to be incredibly creative as well as bond with their teachers.

The Art in Math students learned how to look for concave mirrors and how to create and transfer them onto graphs.

The CSI students learned how to read and dust for fingerprints.

The students of the Hot Air Balloons class grasped the basics and started the design process for their own balloons.

The Circuits students learned about voltage, currents and resistors, how to measure them using a multimeter, and about Ohm’s Law.

The App Inventor class put into practice basic coding and built an InspireMe app.

Structures built newspaper towers and used a shake table to test the resistance of structures to seismic shaking.

What better way to spend time after classes and dinner than to play “duck, duck, goose” or “rock, paper, scissors”? Actually, there is a better way–playing “ULTIMATE duck, duck, goose” and “Tarzan, Jane, Ape”!

But the girls learned so much from their classes. Naturally, they started to ask themselves the age old question: “What do I want to be when I grow up?” They thought through this question more as they listened to speakers from our Professional Women’s Night.

We invited a nurse practitioner, a civil engineer, an economist, a professional photographer, a bioprocessing expert, a structural engineer (who is one of our dorm moms!), a mechanical engineer, and even some of our current counselors to talk about their professional life leading up to where they are today– including all those times they had to be brave.

Most importantly, they learned about all the amazing opportunities out in the world. Even if they do not know what they want to be, they know they have a future to strive towards.

A strong start to camp

~ Photos can be accessed for viewing here ~ 

Happy Sunday! While it was 100 degrees, we did not stand outside for long. Check-in went really smoothly, and the students met their roommates soon after.

After checking-in, our director gave an overview of camp to the parents and students before families parted ways for the week.

We kicked off the week by calibrating the girls’ perspective to focusing on growth by watching the TED talk “Teach girls bravery, not perfection.” You see, our entire week is all about bravery. We want to empower the girls to try new things, to embrace imperfection, to be silly and have fun, to be a risk taker, to be okay with trial-and-error, and to go after big dreams.

We create plenty of opportunities for the girls to be brave in their new home away from home, especially through our tremendously fun group-bonding activities.

Speaking of which, we held relay races with jumbo tic-tac-toe, giant Connect 4, group beach ball hustle, and the shoebox shake.

Even though it was hot, we quickly cooled down with the classic Dixie cup challenge!

Afterwards, we challenged the dorms to brainstorm group names and craft boards showcasing their new hall names. Before hitting the hay, they started their journals, which they will get to take home and show families after camp.

Tonight, we also updated the students on their Core teachers — stay tuned for their first class tomorrow!

Going after the Future

Three, Two, One…Lift Off!! The day started early in the morning before breakfast with hot air balloons lifting off over the library. The launch of the four balloons was very successful and witnessed by many campers, ooh-ing and awing.

After breakfast, the rocket project continued as teams finalized the details and built their rocket.

By lunch time, thirty-three bottle rockets had successfully launched into orbit.

Our talented engineers, CFOs, and COOs of the rocket companies also enjoyed a tasty treat while watching the launch.

After lunch, campers went to their core classes for capstone projects. Campers have learned to empower each other and themselves to fearlessly ask questions, and discuss as well as explore ideas.

The App Inventor students finalized their personal projects. Many installed their apps onto devices for further testing and inspiration!

The Roller Coaster Physics students explored centripetal force by placing a cup of water (without anything to make the cup stick) on a wooden board and swinging it around in the air. The class ended with roller coaster madness by creating specially designed coasters with loops and spirals.

The Art in Math students completed their origami dodecahedrons! It was an all-day challenge, but they persevered.

The Hot Air Ballooners celebrated their morning of successful launches with traditional “bubbly” and treats. Then, they finished the slide presentation and a lab on calculating density. They ended the course with a parachute engineering competition and other physics toys like “house of cards.”

The Circuits students were able to download instructions in English for the little “smart” cars. They found that most had put the Clear LEDs in the wrong side of the board, so they started with fixing the problem. The girls have become proficient at using a solder sucker and braided copper to fix mistakes. The girls also learned about light sensors and how they might be used to steer the car.

The CSI girls put their skills to the test by investigating and solving a crime that took place in the classroom. They analyzed forensic evidence, presented their findings, and determined the criminals from a list of suspects.

The girls in Structures built skyscrapers out of spaghetti and gumdrops (aiming to be as light and tall as possible). They also learned about how to become a structural engineer, took a jeopardy quiz on all they have learned, and learned about the challenges in designing the world’s tallest building.

After our final meal together, girls broke down the final pieces of their shells and performed in our annual talent show. Campers prepared skits, shared their talents, and enjoyed the showcase of individual and group abilities. Performances included a piano player playing “Light and Blue,” singing, ribbon dancing, and unforgettably goofy group skits.

After the talent show, camper wrote thank you letters to their branches for the opportunity to come to camp. Campers also completed surveys to rate their camp experience and wrote in their journals about what they enjoyed in this past week. The journals also provide a recap of the week when the campers return home and speak to family, friends, and AAUW branches about their time at camp.

The night ended with a laughter-filled viewing of the rough draft of the video each camper will take home. The girls were in high-spirits as they saw their experiences recapped with all the smiles, laughs, and shared experiences.

Including the times they laughed…

The times they danced…

The times they were brave…

They saw how they grew as individuals and learned to work and live with others as a team.

Our goal was to equip the girls with confidence so they will embrace the math and science coursework (and other challenges that come their way) they will experience in eighth grade and beyond.

From our Inspiration Board: “What was your favorite part of camp this week?”

“My favorite parts of camp were my core class and the field trip.”

“I liked meeting new people who are my age & smart :)”

“I really liked everything very much, but I especially liked the food.”

“My favorite part was EVERYTHING. Especially, the talent show because it was funny.” 

“My favorite was making new friends and all the ridiculous activities.”

“My favorite part of Tech Trek was… being with awesome, new people and learning with them.”

“My favorite part of camp was the talent show because we did really bad but we laughed it out.”

“I realized there are so many girls who have the same goals as I do . . . and I am so inspired.”

Check out the rest of the day six photos from our 2018 Photo Album!

     

Dreaming Big

It’s nearly the end of the week, but our energy never dies! The girls began completing the red tape for their rocket project.

They were charged with developing a business plan, applying for articles of incorporation, and deciding on officers of the group. The girls also came up with designs and balance sheets, carefully considering how they will use their $1 million budget.

Before lunch, we reviewed the scientific method and explored the wonders of the interaction between Mentos and carbonated beverages, such as Diet Coke. Counselors gathered the girls’ predictions of the reaction with the variety of Colas. Volunteer campers found the foaming reaction a bit sticky, but it was great fun!

AAUW members visited the girls in their core classes to find out what they have been working on over the course of the week. Here are some updates on the penultimate classes of today:

App Inventor implemented their design to create their own apps! Apps created include but are not limited to trivia apps, a Star Wars space invader game, and Boggle apps. Some worked to improve functionality for past ideas.

The CSI girls learned how to chemically test powders and used their skills to determine the identity of 10 different mystery chemicals.

The student of the Hot Air Balloon class finished their hot air balloons. They tested them indoors and made minor repairs. They also learned more about air pressure, density, and buoyancy, then they studied the periodic table of elements to discover the atomic difference between hydrogen and helium. The students ended the day with a buoyancy and density challenge called, “Boats that Float.”

Structures learned about how building materials are produced. They also built, tested, and destroyed bridges made from popsicle sticks and hot glue.

The Circuits class finished their first project and started on project two, which is a motor driven car. For an extra challenge, they discovered that the directions were in Chinese characters.

Art in Math students learned about the 5 Platonic Solids.  They counted faces, edges, and vertices for each and discovered Euler’s Formula. The students  also built one of the solids (a cube) using origami and have begun progress of another of the solids (the dodecahedron) using origami.

Roller Coaster Physics created balloon rocket race cars. They explored equal and opposite forces in real-world contexts, such as rockets and jet propulsion in squid. Students applied their understanding of Newton’s 3rd law to undertake a design challenge to create a balloon-powered race car. They ended with an introduction to centripetal and centrifugal forces as a bridge to begin the roller coaster design challenge Friday!

After lot of hard work, one deserves a little fun–so we beat the heat with a pool party! The girls had the opportunity to make tasty ice cream. The counselors assorted the ingredients while the campers provided the arm power as they churned the ice cream.

The girls also had the opportunity to play volleyball, dance with ribbons, mingle, and participate in other outdoor activities.

After the pool gates closed, we bonded by tossing water balloons and drenching each other with water toys.

The staff is prepared for the tears to flow as the girls will soon be separated from their new best friends and home-away-from-home. How do we prepare? Make sure everyone has the MOST fun possible before we part ways in a few days!

From our Inspiration Board: “What did you learn today? Or how were you brave today?”

Check out more photos from day five in our 2018 Photo Album!