Category Archives: STEM Camps

Makers By Design NSF Grant

3D printing in progress, a real hand is touching a 3D printed-hand

Supporting Instructors to Embed Design Thinking in Digital Fabrication Courses

Makers By Design (MBD) will strengthen the engineering technology pathways by providing professional learning for K-12 teachers, running digital fabrication summer camps, and hosting design challenges. The project is aligned with NSF and aims to broaden participation in STEM through community outreach and engagement. Makers By Design seeks to create a community of practice among engineering educators involved in community-based makerspaces at public libraries, private organizations, public school systems, colleges, and universities.

Outcomes:

Each Year, the MBD grant provides 5 days of professional learning focused on Design Thinking for 12 educators, digital fabrication summer camps for 96 middle and high school students, bi-annual design challenges for secondary and post-secondary students, and a digital lesson plan repository focused on design thinking and digital fabrication.

MBD Grant Flip Book


Design Thinking Fellowship:

NOVA will be recruiting for their second cohort of Design Thinking Fellows later this year. This NSF-sponsored program is open to college faculty, middle and high school teachers, and informal STEM learning professionals.

Complex problems require innovative and creative solutions. Design Thinking is the key to challenging assumptions and approaching problem solving in a collaborative, interdisciplinary, and non-linear way.

During this 9-month fellowship, participants will learn how to integrate design thinking into their pedagogy through a professional learning institute, teach during a 1-week summer camp, and lead their classes through a design challenge. Fellows will receive a stipend of $2,200 for participation.

Applications will be available in late Fall 2023. Contact systemic@nvcc.edu with any additional questions.

You can also sign up for our monthly newsletter, The IET Interface, at http://newsletter.novastem.us to keep up with application information and other fellowship opportunities at NOVA.


Makers By Design Grant Abstract:

Supporting Instructors to Embed Design Thinking in Digital Fabrication Courses Award Abstract #2055324

Manufacturing and engineering industries face a looming gap in skilled workers, with an estimated 2.4M positions projected to go unfilled by 2025. This project aims to help fill this gap by improving the preparation of the needed technical workforce. To do so, it will establish a Professional Learning program in design thinking pedagogy for secondary and postsecondary educators. The curriculum will focus on design thinking projects that involve digital fabrication techniques, including 3D printing, laser engraving, and Computer Numerical Control milling. The Professional Learning program is expected to improve the educator’ teaching practices and enable them to update existing curricula and lesson plans to better align with industry-relevant skills and techniques. The project also intends to create a community of practice around design thinking in digital fabrication that will build a beneficial network among secondary teachers, community college faculty, makerspace educators, and regional employers. It is expected that the project will support 36 secondary and post-secondary educators who will teach more than 3,000 K-12 and undergraduate students in the northern Virginia region. These students will have a greater interest in and be better prepared for technical careers in manufacturing and engineering.

The overarching goal of the project is to use Professional Learning to move digital fabrication instruction beyond the reproduction of simple objects. Instead, the project will train educators to use pedagogy and cognitive strategies to embed design thinking into their digital fabrication lessons and courses. As a result, students will learn to use design thinking to build complex, useful objects. The project’s specific aims include: (1) create a professional learning institute; (2) host digital fabrication summer camps at NOVA and the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington; (3) host a semiannual design and digital fabrication challenge; and (4) establish an online resource library of projects and lesson plans created and refined by educators in the community of practice. The project is expected to advance: understanding of the pedagogies that help to develop student interest in manufacturing and engineering; the capacity for Professional Learning to facilitate the integration of design thinking into classrooms and makerspaces; and the extent to which a capstone design challenge may foster sustainable change in instructional practices. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation’s economy.

 

Internships

Paid Summer Internships for STEM Camps

NOVA SySTEMic is recruits high school and college students interested in STEM education for PAID summer internships in support of our summer STEM Camps. During these two-week programs, interns will support camp instruction, contribute to curriculum development, and learn to teach technical skills in a low-stress, fun environment.

Summer Internship applications for 2022 are currently closed, but you will be able to apply for next summer’s internship slots in March, 2023.

Receive updates on STEM Internships as they become available by filling out this interest form.

For more info contact SySTEMic Program Manager Aleksander Marthinussen at amarthinussen@nvcc.edu

You can also sign up for our monthly newsletter, The IET Interface, at http://newsletter.novastem.us to keep up with application information and other frequent internship opportunities at NOVA.

STEM CAMP Schedule 2022

General schedule for 2022 STEM Camps.

Camps run 9am-4pm unless virtual, no camps week of July 4.

**IN-PERSON**


STEM Elementary School (4th to 5th grade):

June 27-July 1 at NOVA Manassas Trailside

July 11-15 at NOVA Annandale Campus

July 18-22 at NOVA Alexandria Campus

July 25-29 at Tuscarora High School


Coding With Robotics (4th to 7th grade):

June 27-July 1 at NOVA Annandale Campus

July 11-15 at NOVA Manassas Trailside

July 25-29 at NOVA Alexandria Campus

Aug 1-5 at NOVA Loudoun Campus


Fabrication (4th to 9th grade):

June 27-July 1 at NOVA Annandale Campus

July 25-29 at NOVA Alexandria Campus

Aug 1-5 at NOVA Loudoun Campus


STEM Middle School (6th to 8th grade):

June 27-July 1 at NOVA Manassas Trailside

July 11-15 at NOVA Annandale Campus

July 18-22 at NOVA Alexandria Campus

July 25-29 at Tuscarora High School


VEX Robotics (6th to 10th grade):

June 27-July 1 at NOVA Annandale Campus

July 11-15 at NOVA Manassas Trailside

July 25-29 at NOVA Alexandria Campus

Aug 1-5 at NOVA Loudoun Campus


Arduino (7th to 10th grade):

June 27-July 1 at NOVA Annandale Campus

July 11-15 at NOVA Manassas Trailside

July 25-29 at NOVA Alexandria Campus

Aug 1-5 at NOVA Loudoun Campus


Rocketry (7th to 12th grade):

July 11-15 at NOVA Manassas Trailside


Cybersecurity: Capture the Flag (7th to 12th grade):

Aug 8-12 at NOVA Manassas Trailside


VIRTUAL CAMPS (Cybersecurity only)

Cybersecurity: Intro (9th to 12th grade):

June 27-July 1 Virtual Morning Session 9:30-11am

June 27-July 1 Virtual Afternoon Session 1:30-3pm

July 18-22 Virtual Morning Session 9:30-11am

July 18-22 Virtual Afternoon Session 1:30-3pm

Cybersecurity: Encryption & Crypto (9th to 12th grade):

July 11-15 Virtual Afternoon Session 1:30-3pm

Cybersecurity: Hacking & Forensics (9th to 12th grade):

July 11-15 Virtual Morning Session 9:30-11am

Aug 1-5 Virtual Afternoon Session 1:30-3pm

Cybersecurity: Networking Security (9th to 12th grade):

Aug 1-5 Virtual Morning Session 9:30-11am


**Register for camps at www.nvcc.edu/systemic/camps.html

 

Design Thinking Fellowship at the Fab Lab

Saturday May 7th marked the last day of professional learning for the educators in the Design Thinking Fellowship! Teams had worked over the semester to design a LEGO storage solution for a user with specific needs, and this was their chance to prototype and test their ideas.

After all this preparation, educators built small scale “rough prototypes” of their designs using cardboard, hot glue, and common crafting materials. Fellows then gathered testing data from their prototypes before presenting their work and explaining their thinking to their peers.

Next, fellows will be practicing teaching what they learned during SySTEMic’s digital fabrication summer camps. Working in groups of three, educators will deliver modified version of the LEGO challenge they just completed to elementary and middle school students across the region.

Fellow Dahlia Henry-Tett, NOVA faculty, reflected on the experience:

“We have to be in the place of a student more frequently. We sometimes forget what it fills like to start, to try things in a different way. Being here as an instructor, as a teacher, allows me to feel like a student again, to see the struggles that they’re going through, trying to create things. It allows me to be better as a professional. Also the skills I’m learning for Design Thinking will carry into my classroom and allow me to use a different method that will help these students think differently about how to approach things.”

Surgical Robot Named by STEM Camp Student

Congratulations to Nathan Tang!

We partnered with with OrthoVirginia on a naming campaign for their new MAKO Robotic-Arm Assisted Surgical Robot (for the knee) at the Herndon Operatory, the first robot in the commonwealth to be used in an outpatient surgery setting! The surgical staff chose Nathan’s moniker (credit also to Nathan’s friend Micah for input) from a list of submissions from our Virtual Robotics STEM Camps. The winning name: R2-Knee2.

Nathan got to meet R2-Knee2 in real life and learn about using the robot in surgery from Dr. Kevin Sumida, Dr. Johnathan Bernard and the Herndon Operatory staff. Thank you to all NOVA Systemic participants who submitted a name!

Nathan wants to go into Biomedical Engineering in the future, so maybe he’ll design the next wave of surgical robots! For winning the naming comp he received a custom plaque, a NOVA robotics jacket, four tickets to a D.C. United Soccer game and free D.C. United gear! His friend Micah also received swag and prizes.

About OrthoVirginia

With 27 locations around the state that include on-site physical therapy, orthopedic urgent care, and out-patient surgery centers, OrthoVirginia makes it easy for orthopedic patients to excel on the path to recovery, powered by advanced technology and techniques.

“R2-Knee2” performs total and partial knee replacement surgery. Click here for a video that highlights the robot’s capabilities.

Virtual STEM Camp Review 2020

STEM Camp Review 2020

Our virtual summer STEM Camps recently concluded with a total of 552 participants in 19 topics over 60 different sessions.

micro:bit, Scratch, VEX Robotics, Fabrication and Cybersecurity camps (with varying topics) were offered from June until August. Participants included K-12 students who were taught by NOVA Faculty and staff, High School Instructors and College Interns, eager to pass along their love and knowledge of STEM in a challenging and fledgling remote format. The show must go on, and indeed it did effectively to keep students engaged in STEM from the safety of home.

One major positive development with this year’s virtual camps was their reach. In our own commonwealth, virtual camps extended beyond the NOVA service area down to Newport News (in partnership with Brooks Crossing Innovation and Opportunity Center, or BCIOC) and caught the attention of Dr. Mia D. Joe of Old Dominion University, who helped BCIOC make a transition to remote learning by adapting our camp modules.

Beyond that, we were able to instruct students from 12 states (VA, DC, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL, MD, NC, NY, PA, and SC)!

Camps were more affordable for many reasons, but mainly because they were offered per household instead of per student. We had 552 attendees with 297 unique registrations, 67% male and 33% female. When it came to earlier STEM engagement in Coding, the breakdown was 60% male and 40% female.

We even had a surgical-robot naming contest (in partnership with OrthoVirginia) for students in our robotics camps. The MAKO Robotic-Arm Assisted Robot assists on knee operations and after all submissions were in, the surgical staff at OrthoVirginia chose a name submitted by robotics camp student Nathan Tang (with assistance from his friend Micah): R2-Knee2 (read about that story here). Nathan, a future Biomedical Engineer, got to meet the robot and the surgical staff as well as winning prizes that included 4 tickets to a DC United game (when it’s safe, of course).

Parent Reviews:

At first, students and parents were a little concerned about how online learning would work out, but our staff worked hard to adjust the learning modules for an engaging remote format that proved effective. A few reviews from parents:

    • “Collette LOVED this camp and we will sign her up for one of the ones you list below, too. Thank you – I thought “virtual camp” would be a drag for her, but it was wonderful!” – Bridgette Farrell
    • “Thank you for the update and warning about managing my daughter Logan’s expectations.  She seems very interested and engaged in this class.  So much so that she has requested her own 3D printer 🙂  I am delighted that the class is going so well and that the program was able to pivot so effectively to virtual classes.” – Elizabeth Fry
    • “The boys have been enjoying camp this week! They were able to complete their cool emoji pins this afternoon and we have uploaded their files to Canvas. Thanks for having so much patience guiding the kids through unfamiliar software and tools. The boys have been playing around with the programs and hope to use it more!” – Laura G
    • “I don’t think we could have asked for a better teacher! The instructor was great and really attentive to her class. I was in the background listening to the lessons while I worked and most of the time everyone was following along with her. She explained things well and would stop periodically to make sure everyone understood/ everyone was on the same page. For my child this was a big deal and because she did this frequently he was able to catch up and eventually became more confident in asking questions or saying when he needed help. I think an individuals comfort with asking questions is huge predictor in whether or not virtual learning will be successful or not because it’s easy to get lost with coding and not always so easy for an instructor to help you. She (Ms. Lisbeth) did a great job.” – Parent of Virtual Coding Camp student (via SurveyMonkey)
    • “It was amazing. He was completely engaged every day for two straight weeks. And with two working parents – we did not have to supervise or run logistics for him. We were really lucky to have this!” – Parent of Virtual Camp student (via SurveyMonkey)

Student Reviews:

    • “Honestly it was really cool! I really enjoyed the brute force exercise. I know this is not the ideal way to teach but I’ve really been enjoying this week! Cryptography is definitely something I might consider looking into as a career!” – Valerie
    • “I learned how to use the John the Ripper program which i found very interesting. I also found the birthday paradox interesting and the fact that it could be used to find collisions. I enjoyed the lab and would like to do more.” – Kathleen
    • “I liked the lab it taught me a lot of information, I found how fast the john ripper attack was and how many different options it used before it got to the correct answer so quickly. I liked the lab and would like to do more.” – John
    • “I liked using EXIF data to find out where an image was posted, and learning how to do so. – Ethan W.
    • “Great lesson! I liked learning about exif data and learned that it can be used as factual evidence, if need be. Nothing to be improved, great experience.” – Kevin
    • “I liked the brute-force lab, I thought it was fun and interesting. I learned about the birthday paradox and thought it was very interesting that it was used when thinking about finding passwords and eventually resulted in security being improved. ” – Andrew
    • “My experience today was very nice! I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. (I mean no disrespect by that, by the way XD). I liked how concise the lecture was, not a lot of fluff * I learned what social engineering was” – Camp Student
    • “The teaching style was great, it included us all and helped me learn easier than just speeding through the information! I really liked this class, and i hope i encounter similar teachers in the future :). thank you for giving me something fun and interesting to do over this summer!” – Camp Student
    • “I really loved it and it helped me figure out a very possible career choice for me” – Camp Student

STEM Camp Students Will Name Surgical Robot!

NOVA SySTEMic is partnering with OrthoVirginia on a naming campaign for their new MAKO Robotic-Arm Assisted Surgical Robot.

With 27 locations around the state that include on-site physical therapy, orthopedic urgent care, and out-patient surgery centers, OrthoVirginia makes it easy for orthopedic patients to excel on the path to recovery, powered by advanced technology and techniques. The MAKO Robotic-Arm Assisted Surgical Robot is the first robot in VA to be used in an outpatient surgery setting!

STEM Camp students in our robotics camps will be given the opportunity to name the robot! This will be available to students in robotics camps that run from June 29 thru July 24.  Students can submit two options each. From the submissions a name will be chosen by our committee on July 27 and the robot will be officially named with the winning moniker in time for its first surgery on July 30! Proposed robot names are due to Camp Instructors by July 24.

The MAKO robot performs total and partial knee replacement surgery. Click here for a video that highlights the robot’s capabilities.

There are prizes for the student who’s robot name is picked: 4 tickets to a D.C. United Soccer game and free D.C. United gear!

If you would like to sign your child up for our Virtual Robotics camps go to https://www.nvcc.edu/systemic/camps.html. We also have many other Virtual STEM Camps available.

#WeDoSTEM

Virtual STEM Camps at-a-glance

Our Virtual STEM Camps are underway! Virtual STEM Camps are the perfect pivot from traditional in-person STEM activities to safe-at-home STEM engagement. Our curriculum includes hands-on projects with micro:bit, scratch, VEX robotics, fabrication and cybersecurity tools for elementary to high school ages students. We’re bringing STEM to you and making it affordable as a single sign-up is good for the whole family!

Virtual STEM Camp General Info:
– Camps run June 1 through August 21
– Offerings for rising 3rd through 12th Grade
– Zoom will be used as the video conferencing platform.
– Camps usually run for 5 days/90 minutes a day.
– One-week camps start at $98 plus the cost of materials.
– Instructional cost is per household, per camp. Only need to pay extra for cost of materials. You can engage with multiple laptops in the same household.
– Select camps will provide technical support prior to camp for software downloads.
– For all VEX Robotics camps and Scratch 1 & 3 (Coding) camps, sign-up closes the Sunday before the camp starts, so you can sign up one day ahead at the latest.
– For all other camps sign-up closes on Sunday the week prior to allow time for materials to be shipped, so please sign-up at least 8 days before camp starts.


Virtual STEM Camp Tracks (4): Coding, VEX Robotics, Cybersecurity, Fabrication
For detailed camp descriptions go to https://www.nvcc.edu/systemic/camps.html


CODING (Grades 3-8)

Micro:bit Level 1 $98 (additional micro:bit $30 each)
June 1-5 | 1:30pm – 3pm
June 8-12 | 9:30am – 11am
July 20-24 | 9:30am – 11am

Scratch Level 1 $98
June 1-5 | 9:30am – 11am
June 8-12 | 1:30pm – 3pm
July 27-31 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Combined Scratch/Micro:bit Level 1 $186 (additional micro:bit $30 each)
June 22-26 | 10:30am – 2:30pm

Combined Scratch/Micro:bit Level 2 $98 (additional micro:bit $30 each)
June 29-July 3 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1pm – 3pm
July 6-10 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1pm – 3pm
July 27-31 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am

Micro:Maqueen Level 3 $98 (additional micro:bit and micro:maqueen cost $30 each)
July 13-17 | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Aug 3-7 | 9:30am – 11:30am

Advanced Scratch Level 3 $98
July 20-24 | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Aug 3-7 | 1:30pm – 3:30pm


VEX ROBOTICS (Grades 4-10)

VEX IQ Challenge Camp $196 (Grades 4-8)
June 8-12 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
June 15-19 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
June 29-July 3 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
July 13-17 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
July 27-31 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
Aug 10-14 | 10:30am – 2:30pm

VEX Robotics Competition Camp $196 (Grades 6-10)
June 29-July 3 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
July 6-10 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
July 20-24 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
Aug 3-7 | 10:30am – 2:30pm


CYBERSECURITY (Grades 9-12)

Foundations of Cybersecurity $98
June 15-19 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
July 13-17 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm

Ethical Hacking & Digital Forensics $98
June 22-26 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
July 27-31 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm

Network Security & Encryption $98
July 6-10 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
Aug 3-7 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm


FABRICATION JUNIOR (Grades 4-7) – Materials and Shipping Included

Fab Junior Level 1 $148 (additional material packs $50)
June 22-26 | 9:30am – 11am
June 29-July 3 (4 days) | 1:30pm – 3:30pm
July 6-10 | 9:30am – 11am
July 13-17 | 1:30pm – 3pm
July 20-24 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Junior Level 2: 3D Printing $123 (additional material packs $25)
July 27-31 | 9:30pm – 11am

Fab Junior Level 2: Laser Cutting/Engraving $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 3-7 | 9:30am – 11am
Aug 10-14 | 1:30pm-3pm

Fab Junior Level 3: CNC Routing Made Easy $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 17-21 | 1:30pm – 3pm


FABRICATION SENIOR (Grades 8-12) – Materials and Shipping Included

Fab Senior Level 1 $163 (additional material packs $65)
June 22-26 | 1:30pm – 3pm
June 29-July 3 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am
July 6-10 | 1:30pm – 3pm
July 13-17 | 9:30am – 11am
July 20-24 | 9:30am – 11am

Fab Senior Level 2: 3D Printing $123 (additional material packs $25)
July 27-31 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Senior Level 2: Laser Cutting/Engraving $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 3-7 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Senior Level 2: E-Textiles $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 10-14 | 9:30pm – 11am
Aug 17-21 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Senior Level 3: Engineering Challenge $246 (additional material packs $50).
July 27-Aug 7 (10 days)  | 9:30am – 11am

STEM Camps Going Virtual!

STEM Camps are switching to Virtual STEM Camps this summer!

COVID-19 response restrictions, our commitment to safety, and guidance from local and state leadership has made it necessary to re-task our traditional in-person STEM camps, which are hosted at schools and NOVA campuses, to a virtual format this summer.

We are preparing a series of virtual STEM camps for students that will provide opportunities for them to explore STEM and the engineering design process from home. The curriculum includes some hands-on projects with micro:bit, scratch, VEX robotics, fabrication and cybersecurity tools for elementary to high school ages students in 1-2 hour online sessions throughout the summer. With fewer contact hours the cost to participants will be reduced and we will host camps per household instead of per student making them more affordable for the entire family.

Be on the lookout for our updated virtual camps information in the coming weeks. We will post on our website, Facebook and Twitter accounts, distribute in email, and in our newsletter as information becomes more solidified.

Looking forward to seeing you this summer online!

STEM Camp 2020 Registration

>> Register at camp.novastem.us/enroll (goes live Wednesday Jan 29 at 10am)

At NOVA SySTEMic, we have the most exciting and educational summer STEM camps in Northern Virginia! Led by STEM teachers and college students enrolled in STEM programs, our STEM Camp program introduces Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math to thousands of grade-school students.

This summer we offer the following camps:

  • Coding Elementary School (rising 3rdto 5thgrade)
  • STEM ES (rising 4thto 5thgrade)
  • STEM MS (rising 6thto 8thgrade)
  • STEM HS (rising 9thto 12thgrade)
  • VEX IQ Robotics (rising 4thto 8thgrade)
  • VEX 1 Robotics (rising 6thto 10thgrade)
  • VEX 2 Robotics (rising 7thto 10thgrade)
  • Arduino (rising 7thto 10thgrade)
  • Rocketry (rising 7thto 12thgrade)
  • Cybersecurity 1 (rising 9thto 12thgrade)
  • Cybersecurity Basic & Advanced (rising 9thto 12thgrade)

>> Full summer camp descriptions are on our website STEM Camp Page <<

Camps are focused on hands-on, project-based learning that provides students with excellent opportunities to begin exploring STEM fields and to chart a course for future STEM education and workforce opportunities.

Highlights

  • One-week camps are only $315.
  • Camps are offered at many of our NOVA Campuses, at schools in Alexandria and Falls Church City and the counties of Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William.
  • Camps run from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
  • Before and After Care available 7:45 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
  • $30 per week for Before Care, $40 per week for After Care, $70 per week for both.
  • Discounts: Multi-Child ($50), Multi-Camp (10%), NOVA/Micron/Verizon Employees ($25).

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