Bright Minds Gather at Camp Invention

Light bulbs turned on, figuratively and literally, for more than 200 students who took part in Camp Invention from Aug. 5-9 at Unqua Elementary School. The program, which combines science, technology, engineering and mathematics, is an annual summer tradition in the Massapequa School District and throughout the country.

This year’s theme was “Illuminate.” Children had about six hours per day to explore and create, as they rotated through five different stations. Each classroom was led by a certified teacher, who were supported by middle school-age leaders-in-training.

In Let It Glow, students created their own glow boxes that allowed them to illuminate a self-created scene. They explored concepts such as fiber optics and reflection. Students built circuits to power white and ultraviolet lights.

The Prototype Studio was a place for students to create their own inventions. They learned about several inventors, such as Rory Cooper, Beulah Louise Henry and Steve Sasson, and then did projects to simulate their creations. Operation Hydrodrop featured water challenges that focused on ecosystems and water conservation.

Students created their own game boards, similar to a Skeeball machine, at the In The Game center. They explored kinetic and potential energy while using their creativity to customize their boards and come up with rules for their games. Camp Invention Games featured collaborative challenges, such as building the tallest free-standing tower out of balloons.

Camp Invention, sponsored by the National Inventors Hall of Fame, aims to turn curious children into innovative thinkers. High school science teacher Nancy Porcellini served as coordinator for Massapequa’s five-day program.

“The whole idea is to promote STEM in a fun manner,” she said. “Students don’t recognize that they’re learning so much. They think they’re just having fun. The content is so rich. They’re applying complicated concepts and learning very technical terms.”

This year’s camp had 235 participants, which included campers entering grades K-6 as well as seventh and eighth grade leaders-in-training. There were also nearly 20 high school-age leader interns. The volunteers were each assigned to a group, tasked with bringing their students to the different stations and helping out with the activities.

“Everyone is so nice and it’s a lot of fun,” rising senior Jules E. said of Camp Invention. “It’s something different that introduces science at a young age.”

Jules, who has been a leader intern for several years, worked with students entering first grade this year. Her favorite part of the camp was watching them explore and discover as they completed different activities.