PROGRAM DETAILS
• Five-day, Monday to Friday program:
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. each day
• Optional extended care:
8:00 – 9:00 a.m. $50 per week and/or
4:00 – 6:00 p.m. $95 per week
•Bring your own lunch at Lasell University
• Apply for our Counselor in Training (CIT) program:
Rising 10th-12th grade students call (315) 773-5673
• Limited to 12 children, rising 5th – 9th grade
Grouped according to age!
• $25 sibling or multi-session discount applies
• Scholarships available, call (315) 773-5673
• Ask about our referral program
• Child to instructor & assistant ratio is 6:1 or less
• Your instructor: engineer, Greg Dancer
YOUR INSTRUCTOR (July 10-14, 17-21 & 24-28)
Greg Dancer
BS Civil Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
BS Literature, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MA Film Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Greg Dancer is known for his kindness and ability to connect with children. He will guide your child through the design, simulating, building, testing and flying of a take-home model rocket. Greg brings out the best in his students by being tuned into the skills and interests they bring to his classroom. And no, this is not school, it is rocket science!
PS Last summer Greg had sell-out weeks and all families gave him a 9 or 10 out 10.
Guest presenter
Paula Pardo
Paula Pardo – Astrophysics major and Data Science Master’s student at Illinois Institute of Technology (GPA: 3.35)
Growing up in Bogota, Colombia, the city’s inspiring slogan, “Bogota: 2,600 meters closer to the stars,” ignited Paula’s boundless curiosity. As a child, she often dreamed of touching a star, and her grandfather, recognizing her fascination, gifted her a captivating pop-up book on the moon landing. With delicate paper parts moving gracefully, the book recreated the trajectory of Apollo 11’s rocket, instantly igniting Paula’s passion for space and rocket science. Now, as she pursues a Bachelor’s degree in Astrophysics, Paula enthusiastically dives into the world of rocket science and explores the vast expanse of the universe. Having gained experience mentoring students and effectively communicating science, she eagerly looks forward to sharing her knowledge and insatiable curiosity with the campers this summer. Paula will join us for Live with Paula via a video link when she will share the excitement of traveling to the Moon and beyond.
Program Curriculum
We start by learning about the parts of a rocket and discover what makes it fly. With a buddy, your child then designs, builds, and tests a rocket, under the supervision of the lead instructor. Teams also make water rockets out of two-liter soda bottles and fly them in different configurations. Campers will examine a cool model of the Nike Smoke sounding rocket, and then run computer simulations to check optimal solid fuel quantities.
- Learn more
At the end of the week, campers will launch their rockets for family and friends. No previous model-building experience is necessary. Returning campers or ones with model rocket experience are encouraged to build a more advanced rocket. This might involve accommodating a special payload, experimenting with recovery and landing, or perhaps adding a booster stage.
“Our daughter had a terrific week and was full of stories and enthusiasm each day when she came home.”
– the Workman Family
“Oh gosh. It just sounded like fun. My son was thrilled. He had a blast. And he got home and called his grandfather, who is an engineer actually. And they started talking. I heard them in the other room using words… altitude, calculations and that was after the first day. He was just happy!”
– Elizabeth Merritt, mom
“Our daughter had a terrific week at the Summer Rocket Blast Off. It looks like we will be setting aside shop area for rocket building!”
– Westford, MA parent
“This was a great experience for my child. The instructor was a fantastic teacher who instilled practical information and excited the students imagination. Thanks for a great experience!”
– parent
Your child is challenged to satisfy mission objectives, by modifying components like lightweight cardboard tubes and balsa fins, or adding a payload bay to launch with a small cargo. The engineering of real-world rocket science comes to life, as your child uses the same software professional engineers use. They will develop flight simulations and predictions, and learn to work collaboratively with other team members.
Why choose the EOS Summer Rocket Blast Off?
Your child will experience the hands-on challenges of real-world rocket science! Campers use rocket design simulation software to test different designs, motors, and flight conditions. And few things compare to the excitement of launching a rocket, that you have made.
By using the rocket flight simulator, campers learn the importance of accurate data entry, estimating, and troubleshooting when the simulation results are off. Under the supervision of their instructor, your child builds their rocket piece by piece, thinking, modifying, and testing. This forms an understanding of the engineering design process, in a way that they own. Fun and satisfying.
Create, simulate, build, test and fly!
