Summer learning opportunities for children 

  Sunday, May 20, 2018 2:00 PM
  News

Pittsburg, KS

From music to robotics, Pittsburg State is once again offering a variety of summer fun and learning opportunities for youth.  

Nature Reach 

Nature Reach has been part of PSU's Biology Department since 1985, providing natural history and environmental education outreach programming to school and community group with the assistance of a collection of live animals. 

From June 25-29, children who have completed first, second, and third grades may experience the great outdoors in Nature Reach Summer Day Camp from 9 a.m. to noon each day at the PSU Natural History Reserve a few miles southwest of Pittsburg. It will be taught by Nature Reach Director Delia Lister.  

Hands-on learning activities will include insect collecting, a birding walk using binoculars, and digging in the garden, as well as outdoor play and interaction with live animals. Snacks are included. A parent open house will be held at 11:30 a.m. on June 29. 

Cost: $70. Register online at www.pittstate.edu/department/naturereach 

Reading program 

Nature Reach also will visit area libraries this summer to present programming to young patrons. Presentations will include: Chanute Library, 10 a.m. on July 10; McCune Library at 10:30 a.m. on July 26; Pleasanton Library at 10:30 a.m. on July 30; and Parsons Library on July 31 (time to be announced later). Those programs will be free of charge. 

Sketchbook Academy 

The PSU Art Department is partnering with Greenbush Summer Camps to offer Sketchbook Academy at Greenbush from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on July 2-3. Whether creating a marketing design, a blueprint for a skyscraper, or just capturing a moment of beauty, sketching is a skill necessary for many careers. Students will explore how to create space and texture on a 2-D plane. They will be so engaged, they won’t realize the geometry, triangulation and science that turns graphite etches into lifelike sketches. Cost: $40. Register online at https://www.greenbush.org/ or call Emily Roth at 620-724-6281. 

Theatre  

The PSU Theatre program is partnering with Greenbush Summer Camps to offer Theatre Academy at Greenbush from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on July 16-17. Campers will explore both the performance and technical skills that bring a story from page to stage. From improv and acting to costume and make-up design, children will leave ready to "break a leg!" Cost: $40. Register online at https://www.greenbush.org/ or call Emily Roth at 620-724-6281. 

PSU Plastics Academy 

The PSU Plastics program is partnering with Greenbush Summer Camps to offer PSU Plastics Academy from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on July 23-24. In this camp, students will be able to turn their wildest creations into reality at the PSU Plastics Lab. Cost: $40. Register online at https://www.greenbush.org/ or call Emily Roth at 620-724-6281. 

Robotics/Construction 

In mid-July, the Kansas Technology Center will host the annual Adventures in Robotics and Construct Your Future workshops for children ages 9 to 13. They are taught by faculty in the College of Technology.  

Level I of Robotics camp will be held from 9 a.m. to noon July 9-13; Level II will be held 9 a.m. to noon July 16-20. Topics to be covered include teamwork, programming, brainstorming, construction techniques, robotic basics and electro-mechanics. Campers will build robots using LEGO Mindstorm and camp will culminate in a competition. 

Level 1 of Construction camp will be I to 4 p.m. July 9-13; Level II will be 1 to 4 p.m. July 16-20. Topics to be covered include the materials, processes, and design methods involved in construction. Campers will learn to use basic tools and build birdhouses and doghouses. 

Cost: $100 per session. Details: http://www.pittstate.edu/college/technology/tech-camps or call 620-235-4345. 

Youth Wind Ensemble 

Middle school and high school musicians proficient at their instruments may enroll in the PSU Summer Youth Wind Ensemble under the direction of the PSU Music Department on June 19. From noon to 6:30 p.m., there will be rehearsals and fun activities sponsored by PSU service organizations and a picnic dinner at the University Lake. At 8:15 p.m., the group will perform at outdoor concert on the front lawn of the Bicknell Family Center for the Arts, then will listen to the performance by the PSU Summer Band. Cost: $15 includes t-shirt, instruction, and dinner. Registration information is on Facebook at PSU Summer Youth Wind Ensemble. For more information call 620-235-4466. 

Athletic Camps 

PSU Athletics offers a range of camps for student athletes in several sports, directed by PSU coaching staff. For details and contact information, visit http://bit.ly/2kdWgvy or call 620-235-4147.