Highlights from Girlstart’s Scrub In Summer Camp

Is anyone here a doctor?! After this theme our campers have definitely been inspired to become one! This week, campers explored several different areas of the medical field, from bacteria and dissections to suturing and prosthetics.

Campers learned about the brain and the heart this week – but not just on paper! Girls got hands-on as they dissected these organs themselves. (Just to clarify, these were brains and hearts from sheep, not humans!) Curiosity overpowered any weak stomachs as girls discovered what was inside.

After taking things apart, the campers switched gears and put things together. Our doctors-in-training learned different types of sutures and practiced stitching up toy stuffed animals before suturing a real piece of meat. They also channeled their inner biomedical engineer to design their own prototypes for prosthetic limbs.

Many fields of medicine today use technology to their advantage. Campers made 3D models of ball and socket hinges and then printed them on our MakerBot Replicator 3D printer! They used high powered microscopes to examine different types of blood and then put on VR headsets to explore the human circulatory system. Girls even explored circuitry to create their own version of the popular Operation board game.

On Friday, friends and family visited to see all of the hard work their campers did during the week. Thanks so much to everyone who encouraged these young women in STEM!

Highlights from Girlstart’s Fuentes Summer Camp

Take it to the Streets! Thank you to Fuentes Elementary in Hays CISD for hosting so many campers for our Girlstart Summer Camp June 10-14. It was an experience they will never forget!

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 Friday, 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!

Meet the Summer Camp STEM CREW

It’s time for Summer Camp! The past two weeks our Summer Camp STEM CREW in Central Texas has been working hard to prepare all of the lessons and materials for the summer, as well as learning all about teamwork and leadership. Don’t worry, plenty of fun and silliness was had as well! At the end of the week, the STEM CREW did a mini-showcase to demonstrate all of their cool lessons and projects to the rest of the staff – it looks like this summer is going to be so amazing!

Watch this video to meet our Summer STEM CREW!