How STEM Camps and Classes Can Help Your Child Get Ahead

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. These aren’t just school subjects; they are the keys to innovation and advancement in today’s as well as tomorrow’s worlds. And there has never been a better time for your child to be a part of it all and to enjoy the many advantages of STEM classes.

In this article, we break down some of the main science camp benefits, showing not only how STEM education positions children to play an important role in the future, but how it gives them the skills and competencies to achieve their near-term educational ambitions.

STEM makes problem-solving and resilience intuitive

Having deep-set problem-solving skills is critical in a child’s development. Problem-solving engages the mind while nurturing the ability to discern, which enables a child to make reliable decisions about whether to invest their time, money and other resources into the problems they face in the world (personal or professional). 

Discernment fosters another important skill: resilience. There comes a point in all our lives where we realize we cannot solve every problem we wish to, and the benefits of setting children up early to manage the emotions that come along with this realization are self-evident. Failure is an inevitable yet essential part of every person’s success. 

In STEM classes, we give children the space to problem-solve by taking risks and conducting experiments in a safe environment. By learning how to understand the world around them and make assessments about what is happening and why, children learn that failure is to be expected and even welcomed when big dreams are being pursued.

Children learn to collaborate effectively through STEM

If you look a little deeper into the lives of the greatest inventors and scientists in human history, you will notice one thing they all have in common: none of them ever really achieved anything alone. 

Albert Einstein may not have achieved half of what he did were it not for his partner, Mileva Marić - a renowned mathematician and physicist in her own right - who was the organizational force and sounding board behind some of Einstein’s most influential work. And before that, even the revered Sir Isaac Newton was in close communication with Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, who was also working on the advancement of calculus. Rarely do great minds think alone.

For children, collaboration is just as important. This is, in fact, one reason leading educators describe STEM education as transformative. In learning to work closely with adults and other children, students learn how to understand their roles in a project and how to scope their contributions. They also learn how to play to their strengths. If, for example, a student is hesitant to perform the experiments at first, perhaps being afraid of the materials or equipment, they can instead take another important role in note-taking, project management, and data-recording. Whatever a child’s strengths and weaknesses, there is a place for them to grow in STEM. 

STEM encourages limit-pushing in technology

No technology at any point in time has advanced because humans stayed within its limits. The identification and testing of boundaries are essential for technological innovation. There was a time when a biplane would have seemed as alien as E.T., when reconstructive surgeries were thought to be witchcraft, and when a camera in a cell phone would have seemed like utter nonsense. Yet times move on, and they move primarily because of innovations in technology.

Because STEM classes rely so heavily on various types of equipment and technologies, students can become comfortable with what is and what is not possible and can ideate and contribute their own solutions to technological limits. This positioning is immensely powerful: children who are confident with technology are much more likely to advance it in the future.

How and where to start with STEM education

If your child has not yet taken part in STEM education, now is the time to get them enrolled. With patient instruction and accessible materials, the classes and camps at Professor Egghead Science Academy could just be the perfect start to your child's STEM journey. We introduce all students to STEM in a careful and controlled way that not only sets them up for success in the class or camp they are enrolled in, but in the STEM education, they will take into middle school, high school, and perhaps even college. STEM camp benefits are many and various, and the great news is that the Summer 2021 Camp is enrolling now! And if the summer isn’t possible this time around, we have several other enrichment programs at school, after school, at home, or online available! What will your child discover?