This years summer camp will feature biweekly themes exploring our children’s Creative Genius. S.T.E.A.M. principles are integrated into our curriculum through Math and Literacy programming. The children will participate in activities, experiments and investigations of these principles each week. They will develop problem-solving skills through critical-thinking projects specific to each featured subject, playing chess and much more!
From making instruments and painting self portraits, to creating sound and visual effects, the children will be hands-on participants in their learning. Children will also experience art as a gateway to learning in each bi-weekly subject and S.T.E.A.M. concepts as a whole.
Our program will excite and energize children about these subjects by showing them that discovery can not only be fun, but can shape the world for years to come.
This will be accomplished through classroom activities, experiments, and our exclusive Professional Speaker Series™. Experts will deliver insightful presentations to the students regarding the bi-weekly themes and put the concepts into real world context, demonstrating the importance of understanding their world and opening the doors to future professions.
We invite your school age children to enroll in the Stepping Stone School Future Leaders and Innovators™ Summer Program at The Brainery™ where they will explore their Creative Genius!
Visual Arts • Stage • Music • Film • Literature • Mixed Media
The Brainery™
Lastly, The Brainery™ summer camp offers a series of compassion and character-building activities to accompany weekly lesson plans. Research demonstrates that helping others is key to happiness and there will be trips to assisted living facilities to sing for and converse with the residents. Your children will also have an opportunity to participate in guided reflective thinking time each day.
Every activity your child participates in at The Brainery™ will further their knowledge, increase their curiosity, peak their imagination and move them forward in their development.
The Atelier™
The Atelier™ is a unique and innovative concept designed specifically by Stepping Stone School to expand the artistic and design opportunities and education of our children. Created for ages three and up, The Atelier™ is raising the bar of Early Care and Education experiences beyond anything offered elsewhere.
The experience goes beyond the mere provision of materials. It focuses on the inner creative genius inherent in all children and provides them with character and creative role models allowing them to set goals and ascend to the highest levels of their creative potential. By pairing information with imagination, our children will be offered a priceless opportunity to exponentially expand their creativity, problem solving capabilities and the harmonizing of their ideas with others.
Calendar
Visual Arts
June 4 – 15
Leader of the Week:
Michelangelo.
Students will study the various mediums of visual arts including: painting, drawing, sculpture and photography. The children will gain a deep understanding of these art forms which permeate our world from the masters of old to the celebrated modern artists.
The Stage
June 18 – 29
Leader of the Week:
William Shakespeare.
Theater and dance are two of the oldest art forms and this unit looks at their varied styles and histories to take an in-depth look at what makes them so unique. The children will discover and participate in acting, dance, opera and other types of stage performances.
Literature
July 2 – 13
Leader of the Week:
Maya Angelou.
The pen has often been said to be mightier than the sword. In this session, the children will explore all of the ways to use the written word to create something beautiful. Students will investigate books, poems, illustration and even comics.
Music
July 16 – 27
People of Interest:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Music as an art form has undergone many changes over time. In this unit, the children will discover the history of music and the many instruments that make it able to soothe the soul and bring out the best in humankind.
Film
July 30 – Aug 10
Person of Interest:
Meryl Streep.
Film is a relatively new art form when compared with the others. However, there are many new and interesting techniques and ideas encompassed in its creation. The children will participate in screen writing, special effects, directing, and even writing reviews.
Mixed and Multi Media Art
August 13 – 17
Person of Interest:
Pablo Picasso.
This theme focuses on more recent art forms and introduces the children to the concept of joining the ideas they have learned throughout the summer. They will explore the critical thinking side of art to discover new types of expression by combining various art forms to create a new medium.
Field Journeys
Below are just a few of the educational and exciting field journeys that your child will experience this summer at Stepping Stone School. Come join us for the adventure of a lifetime!
- Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum
- Zach Scott Theater
- Austin Aquarium
- The Thinkery
- LBJ Library
- IMAX Theater
- Texas State Capitol
- Texas Museum of Science and Technology
- Lego Robotics
- Innerspace Caverns
- Austin Zoo
Fit For Life™
In addition to strengthening their minds, the children will be learning how to maintain a healthy body. Through our Fit for LifeTM program, they will learn the importance of exercise and a healthy diet.
The children will also participate in a week-long Sports Camp during which they will learn a variety of athletic skills and practice good sportsmanship.
Young Entrepreneurs & Philanthropists
Stepping Stone School is proud to incorporate entrepreneurship and philanthropy into our summer camp program. Over the course of the summer, the children will create and run a series of four businesses from the ground up.
From the purchasing of supplies to the division of duties and pricing the products, the students will control all aspects of their enterprises. They will decide what types of items to sell and how much to sell them for, as well as creating advertising for their products. Finally, they will sell their products at the front of the school every few weeks.
All of the proceeds from our businesses go to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Austin. To date, our young philanthropists have donated over $41,000 to this worthwhile cause.
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June 19 – 23
Lemonade Stand -
July 10 – 14
Craft & Jewelry Sale -
July 24 – 28
Bake Sale -
August 7 – 11
2nd Lemonade Stand
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Science
Documenting and predicting; observing the environment and phenomena; building a water filter; charting magnet races; exploring the solar system. -
Technology
Multimedia projects/filming interviews; using the HATCH interactive SMART board; recording a story on a computer; building solar ovens, turbines and anemometers. -
Engineering
Planning and building a tower; designing a picture using precut shapes; building paper boats and planes, creating a marble maze. -
Arts
Designing with mixed media; drawing blueprints for a castle; painting modern art with shapes and textures; creating a new alphabet. -
Math
Creating origami; measuring long jumps; cooking; counting money; graphing science experiments; predicting patterns; making tallies to count blueberries.