Read our Robotics Camp Survival Guide (Flip Book)
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Robotics Camp Survival Guide

Summer Robotic Camps Open for Enrollment

The Summer Robotic Camps project captures the interest of middle school students by following the current trend of robotic applications used throughout the entertainment media.

The curriculum is a mixture of Lego educational materials, STEM subjects and modern manufacturing information conducted in an environment of competitive problem solving. View Informational flyer for ALL camps. (View in Spanish)

For more information about the camps and
registration questions, contact:

Desh Bagley at (813) 444-CAMP (2267)
Email: camps@fl-ate.org

Dates:

High School Engineering Camp for Boys & Girls- 8:00 am to 4:00 pm daily

• July 9-13 View Informational Flyer
• July 9-13 View Informational Flyer (Spanish)
• July 9-13 View Registration Form

Middle School Introduction To Robotics: Boys and Girls - 8:00 am to 4:00 pm daily June 25-29 This camp is FULL

Middle School Introduction To Robotics: Boys and Girls - 8:00 am to 4:00 pm daily NEW CAMP!

• July 23-27 View Registration Form

Middle School Introduction To Robotics: Girls Only - 8:00 am to 4:00 pm daily

• June 18-22 View Informational Flyer
• June 18-22 View Informational Flyer (Spanish)
• June 18-22 View Registration Form

Middle School Advanced Robotics-Boys and Girls - 8:00 am to 4:00 pm daily

• July 16-20 View Informational Flyer
• July 16-20 View Informational Flyer (Spanish)
• July 16-20 Registration Form

Registration Fee $150.00

Other FLATE Robotics Camps:

The 2012 Robotics Summer Camp at IHMC in Ocala, FL

Each session costs $75.00 and youth must select one camp session based on grade level. Space is limited to 20 participants each session. A few scholarships are available based on need. Please mark the application below to receive scholarship information. Completed applications and scholarship requests MUST be received by June 1st. Notification of camp acceptance will completed by June 8th and final registration for forms and fees is June 15th.

Sessions:

• Rising 6th and 7th Graders June 25 - 29, 8:00am - 4:00pm
• Rising 7th and 8th Graders July 9 - 13, 8:00am - 4:00pm
• Rising 8th and 9th Graders July 16 - 20, 8:00am - 4:00pm

Read Flyer

Robotics, STEM AND Girl Power

“Girl power” reigns supreme this summer as STEM education takes center-stage at FLATE’s robotics camps. The picture gets clearer as Elizabeth Heli, one of the lead instructors for the 2010 robotics camps talks about teaching STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) concepts using a robotics platform to middle school students throughout Hillsborough County.

Heli is the lead teacher for the engineering STEM academy at Greco Middle school where she teaches technology education—a pre-engineering course—for the past six years. But there is a more “fun” side to Heli than meets the eye! She brings an exciting dimension into the classroom by incorporating her interest in electronics, technology, and video gaming which “helps strike a connection with the kids.”

Given Heli’s affinity for technical stuff, she is involved in a number of STEM-related projects at Greco that deals with civil engineering, aerospace engineering, and transportation technology. For aerospace engineering projects, she helps build rockets, parachutes, hot-air balloons, and egg-drop vehicles that simulate launching capsules to the space/moon. Under transportation technology, she teaches how to build carbon dioxide-powered race car models using Newton’s laws of motion. Another fun and interesting project she is involved in at Greco is designing and building mazes using technical drawing software.

In terms of the FLATE robotics camps, Heli will be the lead instructor for the “Girls Only” robotics camp at Hillsborough Community College (HCC) in Brandon, and the robotics camps at HCC’s SouthShore campus in July. She loves the way the challenges are designed. In that she applauds FLATE for integrating current/relevant robotics engineering technologies into the curriculum, and designing age-appropriate materials that showcase real-world applications. “Where the STEM concepts are really getting ingrained is when students have background knowledge acquisition, and then they get to apply what they have learned through hands-on exercises that require problem-solving” Heli said.

The possibilities are endless. Heli hopes the lessons learned during the camp will motivate kids to encourage teachers at their respective schools to start a robotics program, or encourage them to join FIRST Lego League clubs/competitions. “If they can have more hands-on time with robotics and/or STEM-related activities it will enhance their learning, as well as build on problem-solving skills they gained during the camp.”

Indeed, Heli is a big proponent in securing students’ interest in STEM/robotics, as well as high-tech manufacturing. She says attractive flyers are an effective way to spark students’ interest, particularly for girls. Capturing students’ interest while they’re young, using curriculum that portrays a fun or the real-world side of what they are learning, and finding innovative ways to showcase careers and educational pathways in high-tech fields is yet another way to garner interest.

Heli points to FLATE’s camps as a great platform to expose students to the world of STEM and robotics. To that effect, she is interested in using some of the resources she is learning at the camp to improve curriculum for future camps, and/or implement some of the concepts into her daily teaching experience. “It’s all about STEM and fun. This is how learning takes place, and is what matters at the end of the day” Heli said.

See the 2012 Camp Schedule