An Overview of What We Do
The Panther Science Camp has been running for twelve years. Each week runs from Monday through Thursday. Our hours are 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and we run most activities right out of room 214, at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School. At the beginning of each week, teams are formed and campers create team names and posters. Each day starts off with lots of interesting science-related demonstrations to get them fired up. It then takes off in many directions. Sometimes we will do team challenges like building the tallest tower out of spaghetti, cups or cards to building the fastest solar powered car. We sometimes undertake individual contests, like a favorite last year, which was to see who could build the quickest homemade paddle boat. Many times we will do laboratory excercises, craft-like projects as well as take nature walks, blast off rockets or solve puzzles. The number of activities is virtually unlimited. The key each day is to keep the projects varied and to keep the pace moving. The word bored is never heard at the Panther Science Camp. Please take a look below at some of the fun things that we have done over the years.
Tower of Power
Building the strongest, tallest and most stable tower from a LIMITED supply of spaghetti (1 box) and glue sticks (only 2 allowed). Here we talk about shapes, materials, and design features that are common in modern day construction. Students are given time to draw up their own original designs and share them with the other groups. Towers are then created under supply and time constraints. Once towers are completed they are tested by our camp counselors for height, strength (can they hold up a minimum mass), and stability (can they stand against our master blaster fan).
Ultimate Evolution Animals
In this activities groups of campers think about the vast variety of animals that exist all around the world. They consider how animals in certain climates and environments have evolved with special adaptive features. Students then collaborate on the best of the best traits that some of the wildest animals on Earth have. Finally, they create their ultimate animal from clay, that can survive just about anything nature can throw at them. They finish with a verbal presentation to the rest of the camp.
Making Motors that REALLY work!
In this excercise campers learned how electric motors work. Once the basic principles are mastered they are able to create their very own working motors from scratch with supplies from around the house. How cool is that! This is a challenging excercise, but they all walk away with a sense of accomplishment and new knowledge about how the world works around them.
Dome Building
If the right shapes are utilized and combined in the right ratio, extremely strong dome-like structurs can be made. This lab exercise takes patience, skill, and perseverance to get the dome to come out just right. A big smile wrapped in a feeling of success awaits those who are willing to see it through.
Kitchen Chemistry
We do lots of experiments with simple and safe household products. This includes making things like light-up lava lamps, violent volcanoes, slippery slime, sensational superballs, etc. In this particular experiment shown here milk, food coloring and liquid soap, with the help form an ordinary coffe stirrir, interact to make a rainbow of turbulant colors that swirl around the bowl. Campers just love chemistry and exploring the interaction of materials.
Bridge Buster
Campers just love a challenge and it is always nice when we can come up with measurable ways to judge their success. In this contest, teams of kids build bridges out of toothpicks that must span a predetermined distance. Once the bridges are built, they are tested for strength. Bags are hooked on the bridges and loaded up with pennies. Some of our bridges have held hundreds and hundreds of them. It is amazing to see how talented these young minds really are.
Ice Cream Originals
Always a camp favorite. Here we start from scratch and use a little chemistry to make our very own homemade ice cream. It takes a lot of shakin' and moving, but the delicious reward at the end is well worth it.
Paddle Power
In the hot days of summer we go outside and explore. This challenge is a great way to cool off ,while also learning to plan, design, and adapt homemade paddle boats. Kids learn to make boats that "cut" through water easily and that spin elastic driven paddles more efficiently. As we pass through several trial and error phases of this timed competition, the boats keep getting faster and faster.
Tie-dye shirts
We used to order boring old summer science camp shirts, but that was no fun. Now, each week we create our very own tie-dye styles, giving the campers a neat little momento of the week and something to remember their new found friends by. A tradition of signing each camper's name on these shirts started years ago and continues on to this very day.
LAVA LAMPS
Using some common ingredients from around the house and some recyclables, we have learned to make our very own glowing lava lamps. Colors can be mixed and matched, and lamps can be big or small. This is always a very popular experiment. It is also an easy one to take home to show the rest of the family.