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Highlights from Girlstart’s Ready, Set, Rescue Summer Camp

Girlstart to the rescue! During our Ready, Set, Rescue camp, campers learned how to safely engineer buildings and designed new products for rescuing people out of dangerous situations.

First, the girls learned about natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, and wildfires. With that knowledge, they were able to engineer buildings able to withstand strong winds, rain, and shaking, as well as create their own fire-resistant soil blend.

Rescuers need special equipment to keep both themselves and the people they are saving safe. The girls tested various materials and then used those to build insulated gloves for people that work in ice and snow and durable shoes for rescue dogs. They tested the buoyancy of various materials and built rescue boats for flood victims out of those materials.

Campers also explored ways technology can be used to keep people safe. Using green screen technology, the girls filmed their own weather forecast segments to warn people about how to prepare for their day. They also programmed rescue robots and drones for saving people out of places too dangerous for human rescuers to go.

On Friday, the campers displayed all of their hard work and projects for friends and family to see. Thank you to everyone that visited to support girls in STEM!

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Highlights from Girlstart’s Get a Clue Summer Camp

Someone has stolen the popsicles from Girlstart! Campers spent their week learning about how to analyze clues from the crime scene to eliminate suspects and reveal the identity of the Popsicle Thief.

Campers took a  very close look at fingerprints, hair, and blood under microscopes. By examining each piece of evidence, the campers were able to eliminate some of their suspects. They narrowed down their suspects even further by analyzing footprints, DNA left behind at the crime scene, and used other clues to solve the case!

The Popsicle Thief also left behind a coded note at the crime scene that helped guide the campers to the thief! Using their cryptography skills, the girls were able to decode the message. They also used chemistry to analyze the ink used to write the note, getting them closer to solving this mystery.

Having identified the Popsicle Thief, all that was left was to find the stolen popsicles! The girls used all of the skills they had learned during the week to follow a series of clues that led them straight to the hidden popsicles. The next day, all the campers celebrated their hard work with a popsicle party!

On Friday, the girls showcased all of the projects they had made during the week to their friends and family. Thank you to everyone who visited to support girls in STEM!

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Highlights from Girlstart’s Pfluger Summer Camp

Take it to the Streets! We had the special opportunity of being hosted by Hays CISD at Pfluger Elementary for Girlstart Summer Camp June 17-20. It was so cool to empower girls interested in STEM for a whole week!

This past week, the campers became city planners and learned all about the ins and outs of what goes into a city – from engineering roads to designing greenspaces to learning about different energy solutions.

Starting with a small city, the campers first learned about the components of a city and what to consider when deciding where those go. Then, they expanded their cities with roadways and skyscrapers, exploring the engineering side of city planning.

Campers also explored how nature interacts with big cities. Making their own compost, building filtration systems, and designing greenspaces showed the campers how important it is to remember the environment!

Cities are always using new technology! The campers used their coding skills to program their own autonomous cars. Each camper personalized their own vehicle and then programmed it to navigate the city and even parallel park!

On Thursday, the campers presented all of their hard work to friends and families at the Showcase. We are so thankful for everyone who visited for supporting girls in STEM!

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Highlights from Girlstart’s Where the Wild Things Live Summer Camp

This summer our Girlstart campers traveled out into the wild to learn about all things animal! Campers experienced what it is like to study different kinds of animals and how those animals adapt to their environments. With that knowledge, they created ways to rehabilitate injured animals and conserve the habitats they live in.

The girls discovered adaptations of several kinds of animals, all the way from the ocean to the air. They explored how whales echolocate and how to identify land animals based on their footprints and scat. They also investigated how bird wings are specially shaped to help them fly and built their own paper airplanes with wings modeled after different birds.

Campers designed bridges to help replenish the environment for endangered orangutans as they explored the effects of deforestation and the ways humans interact with animals and their environments. The girls engineered prosthetic limbs for injured animals, learning about the different kinds of joints animals have.

New technologies are being used everyday for studying and helping animals. Campers programmed a drone to rescue animals and designed their own apps to match different animal species to their respective habitats. Girls also explored circuitry to create their own unique circuit animal that lights up!

Our end of camp showcase gave the girls a chance to show off all of their hard work to friends and family, as well as share all of the fun they had during the week. Thank you to everyone who came to support our girls in STEM!

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