Unique learning opportunity for young innovators to explore the process of invention and prototyping in a summer camp environment

Oshawa, ON – Durham College (DC) is pleased to announce it has been chosen to host the first-ever Canadian offering of Camp Invention™. A program of the non-profit National Inventors Hall of Fame™ (NIHF), in partnership with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Camp Invention provides a unique experience for children to learn about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), and the importance of intellectual property, while exploring, creating and designing.

To bring Camp Invention to Canada, DC is working with non-profit organization the National Inventors Hall of Fame (Canada). Both parties are excited to introduce children to world-changing inventors in a relatable and enjoyable way by engaging them with a superhero storyline.

Running from Monday, July 8 to Friday, July 12, the college will welcome up to 60 young innovators, ages nine to 11, to learn about STEM disciplines while building resourcefulness and problem-solving skills, and encouraging entrepreneurship as they learn in an engaging, hands-on summer camp environment.

“We are absolutely thrilled to host the first Canadian offering of this dynamic program, thanks to the vision of our School of Continuing Education and its dean, Debbie Johnston,” said Don Lovisa, president, Durham College. “As a leader in experiential learning, we have seen firsthand the impact of exploration, investigation and physically working with materials and concepts. We also know it is important to expose learners to these ideas at an early age. When you can do so in a way that is more like play than work, it has a tremendous impact.”

Overseen by four teachers from both the Durham District School Board and Durham District Catholic School Board, and eight counsellors, the newly announced 2019 Supercharged™ program will have campers learning about ocean navigation and survival skills on a remote island, conducting mock DNA tests on farm animals, and learning to protect their own ideas. As an added bonus, at the end of the program, each camper will bring home a robot.

Each year the new curriculum is inspired the NIHF Inductees. For Supercharged, the hands-on modules include:

• Innovation Force™: Campers team up with the Innovation Force™ (NIHF Inductees who have been transformed into superheroes) to battle the evil Plagiarizer, a supervillain who is out to steal the world’s greatest ideas. As children create a device to retrieve the stolen ideas, they learn about the importance of intellectual property and the patent system.
• Deep Sea Mystery™: The children embark on a research adventure at sea to dig up fossils, but they soon find themselves stranded on an island. Using lessons and advice from NIHF Inductees, they invent island-survival tools and underwater equipment.
• Farm Tech™: Campers are put in charge of managing their own farm as they learn the basics of running a business. With the assistance of the Bot-ANN-E robot, they learn fundamental coding techniques to maximize their time and profits. Children also are introduced to DNA syntheses, where they perform their own mock experiment to check the health of their newly purchased livestock.
• DIY Orbot™: The children will explore frequency, circuit boards, motors and gears as they use real tools to reverse engineer a remote-control robot. Throughout the week, campers will adapt their DIY Orbot to perform increasingly challenging tasks.

“We are delighted that DC is hosting our first-ever Camp Invention program in Canada. Under the leadership of President Don Lovisa, the college is recognized as a leader in innovation and emerging technologies. Participants will have the unique opportunity to experience Camp Invention in DC’s state-of-the-art Centre for Collaborative Education,” said Shelley Jones, vice-president of NIHF Canada.

For more information about Camp Invention and to register for the Supercharged program at DC, please visit www.durhamcollege.ca/summercamps.

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About Durham College

At Durham College (DC), the student experience comes first. With campuses in Oshawa and Whitby and a learning site in Pickering, the college offers more than 13,600 full-time post-secondary and apprenticeship students access to more than 140 full-time and eight apprenticeship programs in a number of different disciplines, enabling them to develop the skills required to meet the demands of today’s job market. The college has also launched its first four-year degree program, the Honours Bachelor of Health Care Technology Management, in September 2018.

The Oshawa campus features the state-of-the art Student Services building and the Centre for Collaborative Education, a legacy project tied to DC’s 50th anniversary in 2017. The newly-opened facility brings together local, Indigenous and global communities, providing a new home for several of the college’s most innovative and ground-breaking programs.

The Whitby campus features the award-winning W. Galen Weston Centre for Food, which includes Bistro ’67, a full-service, teaching-inspired restaurant, and Pantry, a retail store featuring food prepared by students in the college’s culinary programs.

For more information, visit www.durhamcollege.ca or call 905.721.2000.

About Camp Invention

Camp Invention is the only nationally recognized summer program in the United States focused on creativity, innovation, real-world problem solving and the spirit of invention. Camp Invention is a program of the National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF) and is being introduced to Canada by National Inventors Hall of Fame (Canada). Both the U.S. and Canadian non-profit organizations are committed to the curious minds and innovative spirits of the past, present and future. Since 1990, our education programs in the United States have served more than 1.5 million children, and 170,000 teachers and Leadership Interns. For more information, visit invent.org/camp. Through hands-on programming, Camp Invention encourages children to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics curriculum inspired by some of the world’s greatest inventors. NIHF Canada is planning to formally launch Camp Invention across Ontario in 2020.
 

Media contacts:
Meghan Ney
Communications and Marketing
905.721.2000 ext. 2197
meghan.ney@durhamcollege.ca