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.

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 by 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.

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