AM Camps
3D Modeling with SketchUp (7th-8th)
| Week 4 | July 11 to July 15 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session If you can imagine it, you can build it in SketchUp! Learn to create models of objects and buildings with this easy to use 3D computer modeling program used by architects and designers. You’ll focus on creating a retail space or product of your own imagination. Start by drawing lines and shapes, then push and pull surfaces to turn them into 3D forms. Consider all the elements that make a building or object functional and distinctive, then bring it to life in three dimensions. Instructor: Ryan VenHorst.
3D Modeling: City Planner with SketchUp (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 5 | July 18 to July 22 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Create a mini town with your classmates, and team up to become SketchUp urban planners. Start by drawing lines and shapes, then push and pull surfaces to turn them into 3D forms. Design and build a 3D city with homes, businesses and other needed buildings. Decide how your parks and streets work together to form a unified community…but here is the twist: Is your city on Earth, another planet, underwater, inside a volcano? You’re the city planner, you decide! Instructor: Ryan VenHorst.
Biking Adventures (7th-8th) ($210 per session)
| Week 1 | June 20 to June 24 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
| Week 3 | July 5 to July 8 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM (4-day week) | at D97 middle school |
| Week 4 | July 11 to July 15 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
| Week 5 | July 18 to July 22 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
1 week session Ready for a daily biking adventure? In this camp each day features a new theme, route and unique stops around the Oak Park area. We’ll learn and practice bike maintenance and biking safety as we hit destinations such as Thatcher Woods, local cafes and recreation areas. Sign up with a friend and get ready to make new friends – it’s time for a summer riding adventure! Instructors: Varies based on week. Required daily items include a road-ready bike with gears (no dirt bikes), spare inner tube, bike lock, helmet, snacks, water bottle and closed-toe shoes. Prompt arrival is a must, and bikers ride rain or shine (although not during thunderstorms). Bicycles should be inspected and tuned up at a local shop before the start of camp. Limited loaner bikes are available; please contact the camp director for details.
Chicago Through Adventures (CTA!) (7th-8th) ($225 per session) NEW CAMP!
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
| Week 4 | July 11 to July 15 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
| Week 5 | July 18 to July 22 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
1-week session Discover little-known sights and new neighborhoods as you learn to navigate the city through public transit. Together with other campers, you will help design a weeklong itinerary that will help you build confidence while learning how to safely ride CTA’s trains and buses. Map and plan routes, complete group scavenger hunts, and show off your mad skills during a culminating journey with invited family. Instructors: John Colucci and Miss Mo Santiago. All campers will be provided with a Ventra card to use during camp. Most of this camp will be spent outdoors and walking, so please dress accordingly.
Frisbee Physics (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 1 | June 20 to June 24 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school |
| Week 5 | July 18 to July 22 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM (Girl Power Only) | at D97 middle school |
1-week session Learn STEAM concepts such as force, velocity, pitch, angle, gravitational pull, lift, drag, angle and buoyancy. Students will predict the flight path of a frisbee and test their predictions. We will take our physics lesson to the field and work on playing Can Jam, Frisbee Golf and Ultimate Frisbee. Instructor: Antonia Van Twisk. Dress in comfortable clothes, with closed-toe shoes.
Note: There is Girl Power Week Frisbee Physics listed on the schedule for 5th-6th graders. Our goal is to encourage girls to feel more confident in the world of Ultimate Frisbee by providing an environment that focuses on their active participation. The camp is open to all, but would be especially welcoming to campers identifying as female or non-binary. Any 7th and 8th grader who is interested in the Girl Power camp can register for the Week 5 camp, but please note the location and time is different than other 7th and 8th grade camps.
Graffiti Art (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 3 | July 5 to July 8 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM (4-day week) | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 4 | July 11 to July 15 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Explore hip-hop culture through visual and poetic art. Learn about your relationship with the natural environment through indigenous folktales, then merge your wisdom with fine art and graffiti art skills. Practice calligraphy, discover the tenets of graffiti writing, and create a unique lettering style of your own. End the week creating a mini-mural with acrylic and non-toxic spray paint which incorporates poetry and collaged images into a narrative promoting environmental stewardship and cultural appreciation. This camp presents hip-hop arts as a vehicle for self-empowerment and community beautification. Instructor: Lavie Raven. Content will be the same each session. In partnership with the University of Hip-Hop. Please dress for a mess.
Magic of DJ Engineering (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 5 | July 18 to July 22 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 middle school TBD |
1-week session Unleash your inner music producer! This camp combines your love of music with your desire to mix, scratch and more! Create your own music and learn about tempo, pitch control, beats matching, and how to design sounds with special effects. This camp will allow you to explore the art, technology, and engineering of layering beats, music and sound effects to create your own custom tracks.
Mosaic Mural Project (6th-8th)
| Weeks 4 and 5 | July 11 to July 22 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 school TBD |
2-week session Help create colorful community mosaic murals to be installed at four Oak Park elementary schools. Combine ceramic pieces made at each school during the school year with traditional mosaic techniques learned in camp. Created around a central theme of unity, each small-scale mosaic will incorporate both handmade and prefab pieces. Get your hands dirty as you complete a personal piece to take home, then stunning exterior works of art designed specifically for each school. Instructors: Tracy Van Duinen and Phil Swistowicz. In partnership with District 97. Please dress for a mess.
Shoe Drip – Apparel Art (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 1 | June 20 to June 24 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 8:45 – 11:45 AM | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Let your creativity up your wardrobe game. Have you ever looked at a pair of sneakers or other duds and wished you could add that one thing to make it your own design? Embellish and customize your own gear. Start with a bandana or canvas bag, then bring your shoe art to life with paints, bling, or other materials. Walk out with your own unique pair of footwear. Content will be the same each session. Please dress for a mess.
PM Camps
Anime Quest (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 1 | June 20 to June 24 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 3 | July 5 to July 8 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM (4-day week) | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Boost your passion for Anime! Embark on a quest to imagine and learn how to design your very own anime characters and stories. You will participate in fun and interactive artistry that will help you create characters, landscapes and storylines from illustration to animation to cosplay. Develop your artistic style by exploring Manga illustration techniques to bring your anime project to life.
Creative Chef Workshop (7th-8th)
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 3 | July 5 to July 8 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM (4-day week) | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session This camp calls on the creative cook inside each of us. Sure, recipes are helpful but we really learn how to cook when we get creative and use our senses and observations. Inspired by the NYTimes Best-selling cookbook and Netflix series, “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat” by Samin Nosrat, we’ll learn to explore food from all angles as we create delicious dishes together. Instructor: Cheryl Munoz. In partnership with Sugar Beet Schoolhouse. Note:This class is vegetarian and can accommodate food sensitivities and allergies.
Earth Ambassadors(Intro and Advanced) (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 1 | June 20 to June 24 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM (INTRO) | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM (ADVANCED) | at D97 school TBD |
1-week or 2-week session. You care about making the world a more sustainable place, but you don’t know where to start? Then this is the camp for you. Understanding the science of sustainability–from climate change to biodiversity to alternative energy–will help make you a more informed citizen and effective activist. Build a model of a food system. Watch what happens under the surface of a worm composting bin. Create your own solar-powered machine. Visit a resale shop to recycle “fast fashion.” Through hands-on projects, guided discussion and immersive field trips, discover where your true environmental passion lies. NOTE: This camp was designed as a two-week experience, with different activities planned for each week and a culminating experience in Week 2. However, you can register for a single week, with the understanding that not all activities and field trips will be covered in a single week. Instructors: Stephanie Walquist and Laura Stamp.
Level-Up Video Game Design (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 4 | July 11 to July 15 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 5 | July 18 to July 22 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Climb into the captain’s chair and design your own video game! Develop original characters, tell compelling stories, create intriguing graphics, and more. Learn basic video game coding concepts by making a variety of different types of games, including racing, platform, launching, and quest games. This camp uses gaming-making software that caters to everyone, from entry-level novices to experienced game developers. Instructor: Jim Hayward.
MINDSTORMS Masters (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 3 | July 5 to July 8 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM (4-day week) | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Throw out the instruction book and push yourself to the next level of mastering LEGO Mindstorms EV3 robots. Tackle a new set of programming tasks to grow your knowledge and experience with engineering and programming. You will design, assemble, and program custom creations to achieve your personal robotics goals while completing carefully mapped challenges that educate and entertain at the same time! Instructor: Jim Hayward Previous experience with LEGO Mindstorms is helpful, but not required.
Mobile Street Photography (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 1 | June 20 to June 24 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Don’t miss taking that awesome snap during the perfect moment. Learn to take photos from your most accessible device – your cell phone. Experiment with what makes better selfies; and improve your photos with better lighting, composition, and focus. Explore the basics of photography from working with a smartphone camera to using creative apps to develop and enhance your images. Finish the week with a digital slideshow of your work and showcase your new skills gained as a visual storyteller!
Mosaic Mural Project (6th-8th)
| Weeks 4 and 5 | July 11 to July 22 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
2-week session Help create colorful community mosaic murals to be installed at four Oak Park elementary schools. Combine ceramic pieces made at each school during the school year with traditional mosaic techniques learned in camp. Created around a central theme of unity, each small-scale mosaic will incorporate both handmade and prefab pieces. Get your hands dirty as you complete a personal piece to take home, then stunning exterior works of art designed specifically for each school. Instructors: Tracy Van Duinen and Phil Swistowicz. In partnership with District 97. Please dress for a mess.
Start-Up Entrepreneur (7th-8th) NEW CAMP!
| Week 1 | June 20 to June 24 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
| Week 2 | June 27 to July 1 | 12:30 – 3:30 PM | at D97 school TBD |
1-week session Build your creativity and leadership skills in a team-based environment by tackling fun and interactive exercises that help you explore your business ideas. Develop a product or service that responds to a community need – brainstorm with your team to create an elevator pitch, consider the financials, along with a marketing and branding strategy. Then construct a prototype of your idea for your investors with recycled materials, culminating with a final showcase at the end of the week. Content will be the same each session.
Full Day Camp
Cost is $600. Includes lunch and transportation to and from Columbia Yacht Club.
REACH Sailing (5th-8th)
| PREWEEK | June 13 to June 17 | 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM | departing from D97 elementary school TBD |
1-week, full-day session Learn to sail on Lake Michigan and explore the science, technology, engineering and math that sailors use every day. We’ll take a bus each morning to the Columbia Yacht Club. Using REACH, US Sailing’s STEM education curriculum, answer questions like: How does this boat float? What does geometry have to do with sailing? Does the wind pull or push a sailboat? Half your day will be spent inside the yacht club doing hands-on, sailing-related STEM activities, and the other half out on the lake on a J/22 sailboat with a US Sailing-certified instructor and five campers per boat. Campers will be grouped by grade, 5th/6th and 7th/8th. Instructor: Miranda Tucker. Price includes lunch at the yacht club plus daily bus transportation to and from a D97 elementary school. In partnership with the Columbia Yacht Club.