Camp Invention melds science with creativity at Lincoln Elementary School

Little inventors learned the some of the science behind creating new innovations June 24-28 at Lincoln Elementary School.

Some, including Liliana Santiago, William Sumpter, and Oliver Prepster, learned about prototyping at Camp Invention. In the "Prototyping Studio," the three children worked together to cut wood for a kitchen tool.

A handout from Camp Invention explains, "Camp Invention is a safe, fun, and creative space designed for curious kids to discover and explore the incredible world of invention."

In the prototype studio, campers learned how their ideas and sketches can become working prototypes using everyday items.

In another section, Rhett Atchison created a "animal rescue flat" as part of "Operation Hydro-drop." The goal of this section of Camp Invention was to make participants more aware of real-world water challenges by engineering a tiny house with crops to explore water-based technology and sustainable design thinking.

Camp Director Jamie Hooten stated that a lot of help was received from community sponsors to pay for some of the kids to attend whose families couldn't afford it.

"Without the generosity of sponsors such as Duke Energy, Bedford Federal, and others in the community, we wouldn't have the attendance that we do have." Hooten said. "The last seven years or so, we have had 80-90 campers."

Campers also created Glow Boxes to look at objects under UV and white lights, then create slides to view under the two types of lights. Leo Begle was one of the campers who learned about electrical wire and mounting lights as he created his Glow Box.

Other campers learned the science of sports ball design and personalized a light-up game board with a unique logo and name.