Intrepid Museum Has A Host of Camps For Science-Curious Kids

Never fear, parents who have children enamored with the depths of the ocean or the vastness of outer space: The Intrepid Museum, on Pier 86 at W. 46th St., has camp programming on offer this year you should know about. For those that don’t know about the museum, it’s nestled into a decommissioned aircraft carrier, otherwise known as the USS Intrepid.

Lynda Kenney, the museum’s Vice President of Education and Evaluation, explained that the All-Access Makers Camp, which began in 2016, is for students 8-14 “with developmental disabilities.” Campers get their engineers on, learning how to utilize an array of materials ranging from LEGOs to computer-assisted design software.

It will have two week-long iterations over the summer–one from August 18-22 for first-time campers, and a “Camp 2.0” for returning ones from August 25-29. Applications for these are due on April 20. There will also be a spring session April 14-18 for first-time campers, applications for which are due Feb. 2.

”It’s largely underwritten,” Kennedy added. “For a week of programming, the All-Access Makers Camp is only $75.”

There will also be, in partnership with the city’s Department of Education, two week-long “STEM Matters” camps. “Parents can apply if they have children in public school,”Kennedy said.

“One will be ‘Intrepid Innovators,’ for first and second graders...Then there will also be one for third and fourth graders, ‘Intrepid Voyagers,’ which will focus on underwater archeology...They’ll be focussing on exploration in extreme environments, both in space and underseas.”

She also noted that the Intrepid Museum is now a Summer Youth Employment (SYEP) site, as overseen by NYC’s Department of Youth & Community Development. “This will be 180 hours of paid work experience, over six weeks, in the summer. It’s for girls, or those who thrive in a female-centered environment, from ages 16-18. They apply through the NYDYCD website, and we’ll take 25 of them,” Kennedy explained. They’ll be “proto-typing ideas using different softwares, practicing 21st century skills like collaborating and goal-setting, and meeting women in the field. Then they’ll have an opportunity to apply for a school-year internship.”

Kennedy also noted that the museum hosts summer field trips for kids who may not have the availability to attend camp: “These can self-guided, with a scavenger hunt or ‘look-out’ guide, or they can participate in an educator-led program–if they really want to focus and talk about the technology and design.”