Children “reassemble” their crashed spacecraft from a variety of common objects. Then, children interpret relevant weather data to design adequate shelter and clothing to protect themselves against the planet’s harsh conditions and acid rain during their stay. Finding and retrieving food are additional challenges, as children use problem solving to obtain an unusual, hard-to-reach food source. Given limited time, children design ways to launch their spacecrafts for the blast-off countdown. They add to the fun by writing scripts, designing a science fiction movie, and then evaluating each day’s work. Scripts, construction items, and solutions are presented at the Inventors’ Showcase program at the end of the week.

Saving Sludge City™

In the Saving Sludge City™ module, children are introduced to ecology and the concept of conservation when they are challenged to rebuild a cleaner, more eco-friendly city that has been polluted to the point of ruin. Before construction begins, children investigate and demonstrate the actions that polluted the city, and determine effective methods to clean it up. Participants explore “green” city design, water filtration systems, safe waste disposal, conservation techniques, and renewable energy as they reconstruct the town.

Children clean up a simulated landfill that is leaking toxic chemicals into groundwater. They discover that the city’s beautiful, sparkling swimming area has become a contaminated wasteland, and assemble a water filtration device to restore it to its original beauty. Children are introduced to ekistics, as they plan Sludge City’s future dwelling design. Participants apply their findings by building a model of the new city using recyclable materials. They address the city’s serious air pollution problem caused by its transportation system by inventing new methods of transportation that operate solely on renewable, pollution-free power sources.

I Can Invent: Balloon Burst™

Children will enter the workshop, receive their challenge, and begin taking apart broken machines while learning about machines and tool safety as they work. The older children learn about Rube Goldberg and complicated ways to solve simple problems! The excitement builds when children continue to dismantle broken machines and investigate how the gears, motors, magnets, and springs inside the machines work. Using this knowledge, children begin planning their balloon bursting inventions and Rube Goldberg-type machines.

Children investigate intellectual property tools, including the patent system, and put their invention plans into action as they immerse themselves in full-on construction of their machines. The younger children complete their balloon-bursting inventions and design a marketing campaign. The week ends with the older children enhancing their Rube Goldberg machines using the engineering design process by testing, retesting, and making any necessary adjustments, preparing to set them into motion and documenting the work with a drawing and description of the final machine.

Action and Adventure Games™

The Action and Adventure Games module scores a home run by combining physical activity and creativity. Children practice teamwork, cooperation, coordination, and creative problem solving processes during fun, energetic games. Action and Adventure Games activities are based on the premise that traditional games can be modified using nontraditional approaches. Employing the concept of upcycling, children use available materials to create completely new games. Unlike competitive games or sports, this module stresses creative problem solving, rather than winning or losing, and encourages active physical participation while boosting self-confidence.

In this module, each day features new and exciting challenges that vary based on children's ages and abilities. All activities are designed to converge the functions of mind and body while children work collaboratively in diverse teams. These games facilitate inventive and inquisitive-thinking skills while incorporating 21st century learning skills such as collaboration, communication, and whole-systems thinking. Children play approximately four games per day that sometimes feature nontraditional sporting equipment such as recyclable items, water balloons, and other unconventional materials. Children's curiosity is sparked with a new line-up of wild and wet games that are sure to enrich and energize!