If information on space is what your child craves, enroll her in NASA's Astro Camp at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. A day space camp for children ages 7 through 15, Astro Camp features presentations by NASA scientists and engineers and hands-on learning opportunities, like rocket launching, and computer-based activities involving space and aerodynamics. Each session is two weeks long, and the camp is divided into two groups: 7- through 12-year-olds and 13- to 15-year-olds.
If your child loves science but your budget is tight, check out the Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp. A physician and former NASA astronaut, Bernard Harris started the camp soon after founding the Harris Foundation in 1998. Every year, the Foundation sponsors summer science camps for middle-school-aged children at colleges and universities across the country. In 2009, approximately 1,200 boys and girls in 23 cities across the United States participated in the camps. Dedicated to keeping children interested in math, science, engineering and technology, the Bernard Harris Summer Science Camps typically begin their application processes in February each year. The camps are provided free of charge to all participants.
If your son seems to be ages ahead of his classmates when it comes to science, think about having him apply to the Summer Science Program. Held at both Wesmont College in Santa Barbara, California, and New Mexico Tech in Socorro, New Mexico, this program was first established in 1959. Offering a challenging six-week course of study for academically gifted high school students, the Summer Science Program focuses on central projects in mathematics, physics, astronomy and programming. The fee for the Summer Science Program varies, based on the ability of each accepted student's family to pay. Financial aid packages to the program even include airfare in some cases. Admission to each campus is limited to only 36 students.