Holiday Camps are Gearing Up for Blast Off! The Challenger Space Center is again offering Holiday Camps designed to fit the needs of kids who enjoy fun and stimulating activities (don’t tell them we also said it’s educational!).

 

This camp is always chock-full of inquisitive, creative first and second graders! We’ll launch into our adventure with age appropriate hands-on activities about our Solar System. We’ll key in on some of the best and brightest stars including our home star, the Sun. We’ll learn all about comets and asteroids, and campers will learn how astronauts practice living and working in space, including eating and sleeping in very tight quarters.

We’ll also answer (in a nice way of course!) that question on the minds of little ones everywhere: so, just how DO astronauts go to the bathroom in space? The day will end on a “high note”, no pun intended, when we take a simulated launch and dock with the International Space Station in the Center’s Earth Space Transit Module.

During our Awesome Astro Adventure, campers will learn fun facts about comets and asteroids, and take a quick scientific peek into astronomy and geology. Included in the program will be an engaging video and a full hour session on teambuilding, just like the “real” astronauts do!

We’ll also shed some light on the properties of light and light years. Today’s lucky crew will take a simulated launch into space in the Center’s Earth Space Transit Module. Upon obtaining orbit, they will dock with the International Space Station. Finally, to wrap up the day, we’ll have a discussion about the mysteries and history of the mysterious Red Planet.

This full day program includes an in-depth study of Comets and other celestial bodies in our Solar System. The campers will be doing hands-on activities learning the importance of communication and problem solving, including a full hour session on teambuilding.

The “high”light of the day will be a Rendezvous with a Comet simulated space mission, where campers build and launch a probe, take part in a daring exploration to rendezvous with Comet Encke, and work with million-dollar technology as Mission Control staff and scientists on board the International Space Station.

The Mars Academy Adventure will include a study of the Red Planet and how it compares to our home planet of Earth. An out-of-this-world video on Mars will be shown and sessions on teambuilding, communication, problem solving and risk assessment will be included. To cap off the day’s events, the campers will participate in the Voyage to Mars simulated space mission.

During Mars, campers collect and analyze planetary data and become part of the first colony of humans living on a permanent base on Mars, as well as the relief crew en route to the hauntingly barren Red Planet.

Danger, Will Robinson! (Okay, only the parents will get that!) This all-day program combines the best of both hands-on robot construction and model rocket design and construction. Campers will learn about the use of robots in everyday life as well as in the space program, and will learn the basic science behind the design and operation of robots. They will also learn the history of rockets from “A” to “Z”, and get to build and launch different styles of rockets.

If the next Orville or Wilbur Wright is living at your house disguised as a mild-mannered middle-schooler, this one-day hands-on workshop is perfect for you. Participants will be introduced to the concepts of lift, thrust, propulsion, and gravity, along with learning all about flight from Da Vinci through the future of the space program. Hands-on activities include making hot-air balloons and gliders. An “uplifting” video is also included in the program!