Final Celebrations for the AfterZone Summer STEM Camp
Final celebrations for our full-day, four week summer STEM camp, partially funded by the Providence Public Schools, were held on Thursday, July 28th at Nathan Bishop Middle School, Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex, and Governor Christopher Del Sesto Middle School. The celebrations showcased the youth’s learning of STEM concepts, such as a regatta in which youth paddled in boats that they made using knowledge of water displacement and buoyancy and launching rockets, demonstrating youth understanding of the four elements of flight: thrust, lift, drag, and mass.
Five hundred youth participated in this year’s summer session involving morning immersions in hands-on STEM activities and afternoon camp-like fun. Providence Public School District teachers, community-based STEM educators from more than twenty local organizations, and frontline staff trained in positive youth development came together to lead and instruct the camp in a fun, enriching, youth-centric environment.
As part of PASA’s STEM Badge Initiative, which recognizes and supports young people’s development of important life skills outside of the classroom, PASA awarded Badges to 184 youth in camp. Youth earned Badges in one or more of the following skills: teamwork, engagement in learning, problem solving, perseverance, and communication.