It's full STEAM ahead at Velocity Jr. camp

Creative learning in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM) is center stage for the third straight summer at Utica Community Schools’ Velocity Jr. Center.

Between now and late August, more than 400 students in kindergarten through eighth grade will engage in weeklong STEAM–themed camps. Twenty-four different offerings, half of which are new this year, are designed to keep young minds focused on fun ways to learn.

For example, the week of July 7-11 was one of “lights, camera, action” for students enrolled in the Game Masters and Movie Madness camp. The students spent half the week exploring the world of moviemaking and the other half learning how to program, design and produce their own video games. 

Teacher Ashley Evard said the students’ imaginations drive the direction and content of the movies and games they envision. Dress-up clothes and props set the tone for creativity.

Dressed as a ninja warrior, Graebner Elementary School fifth grader Maximus McCulloch demonstrated “Minerun,” a game he created using Microsoft Kodu software. “I like learning programming,” he said.

Messmore Elementary School sixth grader Reagan Kremhelmer added that the best part is being able to take home her own unique game and movie content on a flash drive to share with other people.

Writing and thinking skills were practiced as students planned their creations on storyboards with logical beginning, middle and ending sequences. Movie scripts were written and the jobs of actor, director and camera crew were assigned and rotated. Elements such as sound and music were added.

In an adjoining classroom, another group of students was busy creating their own comic book–style “heroes and villains” in the Velocity Jr. Comic Creator workshop. They delved into character development and design, plot writing, story mapping, professional drawing techniques and the nuances of puns and satire.

Using software such as Toondoo and Pixton as well as paper and colored pencils, the students learned to give their characters emotion and action and prepare files for print and digital media.

Students found the difficulty in drawing a character multiple times while keeping it recognizable. “It always turns out different,” said Shelby Junior High seventh grader Evelyn Hemple, although she was able to portray her character “T-Jimmy the Vampire Pig” in a gamut of expressions such as surprise, anger, laughter and even asleep.

Evelyn’s sister, Shelby eighth grader Alaina Hemple, created a stable of characters including Xinder, a kind of dog/kangaroo creature; Xylie, a fox; Zaradee, a large bird and Zaunalyn, a short-legged unicorn.

Velocity Jr. is made possible by a partnership between Utica Community Schools and the City of Sterling Heights. Assistance is being provided this summer by organizations such as Great Lakes Hobby and Toy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), 4-H, Microsoft, Mad Science, Baker College, Game Crazy and others.

Upcoming age-appropriate camp opportunities include LEGO Stop Motion Animation, Minecraft Sustainable Village and Historical Quest, Underwater Robotics, King of Your Castle (chess), Video Game Design, LEGO Robocamp, Fun with Photoshop, Solar Car, Sport Science, Circuit Circus, Science Extravaganza and To Infinity and Beyond.  

Visit http://www.ucscommunityeducation.com/ce_home0.htm for descriptions of all the STEAM learning camps offered this summer at the district’s Rose Kidd Velocity Jr. Center in Sterling Heights. Registration remains open through August. Call 586.797.6900.