2025 STEAM Summer Week 4

Week 4’s theme was Extraordinary Engineering!

Our fourth week’s theme was “Extraordinary Engineering”! We spent the whole week with createMPLS, who taught us how to code with tablets using the Scratch program. Students learned basic coding language and structure to create their own scenes, games, and stories. They were able to draw their own characters or use Scratch sprites, make voice recordings and sound effects, and animate. They even got to test out games created by other Scratch users. createMPLS was able to adapt the curriculum for our 1st graders all the way up to our 8th graders – thank you for partnering with us for another year!

Explorers and Investigators learning coding with createMPLS

Explorers put their chemical engineer hats on to make their own slime! They experimented with different colors, textures, and consistencies. Mr. Rashad also mixed up our usual lunch-time trivia with “What would you do?” scenarios for the kids, such as asking what they would do if someone was being bullied or saying inappropriate words.

Explorers making slime

“Making slime is my favorite activity so far!” – Explorer

Investigators started their egg drop project, where they had to create designs intended to protect an egg from cracking when dropped. They drafted blueprints and gathered different materials like balloons, cotton balls, and cardboard to start building. Both groups also constructed towers out of marshmallows and dry spaghetti.

Investigators working on the egg drop project

Schematics for egg drop contraptions

Explorers building marshmallow & spaghetti structures

Investigators got to browse their photography from Week 2 and learn photo editing using Pixlr Express with Teacher Len.

Photo edits made using Pixlr Express

On Thursday, Investigators got to finally see their egg drop contraptions in action. Explorers watched the egg drop and were so inspired they had to do their own projects. About half of the eggs broke, unfortunately, but a lot of them survived! It was super exciting to test out our inventions and see which ones worked! We made sure to cheer everyone on, regardless of the result.

Investigators doing the egg drop test

“YES!!! Ours survived!!!” – Investigators after the egg drop

Explorers doing the egg drop project

On a bittersweet note, campers had to say goodbye to Youth Program Manager Deeq Abdi on his last day of work. They made him thank you cards, letters, & drawings and gave him lots of goodbye hugs (with some tears shed). GMCC staff and students will definitely miss him and all the hard work he put into youth programming! Best of luck to Deeq in his future endeavors.

Thank you cards for Deeq made by campers

“Don’t leave!” – Explorer, crying and hugging Deeq

Campers saying goodbye to Deeq

On Friday, we spent some time at the Gene Kelly Playfield to play soccer and enjoy the playground. After lunch, we took a field trip to the Works Museum. The museum led a workshop for both groups on circuits, where they got to build their own light-up creatures. They enjoyed all the different interactive stations, especially the racing track, where they built their own vehicles; the paper airplane launcher, where they tried to shoot planes through a hoop; and the building blocks & Lego art stations where they got to be creative.