6-01-05
College for Kids Cures Teenagers' Summer Boredom
"Mom, I'm bored!"
As we draw closer to the time when school lets out for summer, these are the words parents dread to hear. What to do with the kids when they tire of the summer doldrums.
Send them to college. College for Kids, that is, at Penn State Behrend, where students six to seventeen can exercise their brains and bodies, staying energized and sharp throughout the summer months. Taught by an expert faculty, the one-week courses run from June 13 to August 12 and target particular age groups with activities they're sure to enjoy.
For the thirteen and up crowd, nineteen courses are being offered with titles like "Beginning Guitar," "Powerful PowerPoint," "Super Scrapbooks," and "Intermediate Golf."
For those students wondering how the American legal system works, Don Wagner, Esq., and lecturer in political science, will take kids through all aspects of the law, separating fact from fiction in his "Criminal Justice Camp: The Law and You."
"So much of what people know about the system is from television shows and civil trials. I show episodes of Law and Order and other television shows to highlight what's true and what's not," Wagner said. He plans to bring in the PA State Police mobile crime lab (the real CSI) and a member of the Erie County Sheriff's Office.
In the "Sign Language" course, Stacy McCoy will introduce students to the world of signed English, building students vocabularies as well as their understanding of deaf culture. "The last day we'll have an interpreter so students can ask questions," she said. "I hope they'll be thinking how this can translate into a career in the future, perhaps in education or interpretation."
Weather 101, a class that gives students an overview of weather and the atmosphere, will be taught by Tom Atkins, a meteorologist at WJET-TV. Atkins says the students will most importantly learn "all about storms." The students will also learn the use of instruments in forecasting the weather, how meteorologists try to forecast the weather, and how the weather affects people. An additional feature to the class is the field trip to the WJET television station, where the students will see weather forecasting behind the cameras.
-More- For the pilot in every teenager, the Introduction to Aviation class will teach the student the basics of flying. Students will learn the history of aviation, how aircraft fly, and how pilots prepare. The highlight to the aviation class is the field trip to the Erie International Airport: Tom Ridge Field, which will give students a chance to explore aviation in a real life setting.
The morning session is 9:00 a.m. to noon and the afternoon session is 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Early and late day care is available for an extra fee. For descriptions of these and other courses or to register visit www.pennstatebehrend.psu.edu. More information is also available by calling 814-898-6212.