Summer Camps Innovate and Adapt

Engineering planes, quarantine reviews, math equations—all these and more were part of the 2020 MICDS summer camp season!

This year, MICDS held three main camp opportunities: Eliot Summer Academy, Global Online Academy, and Changemakers: Global Leadership Institute. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all classes were taught and experienced online in a virtual format during June and July. In August, we held small hybrid Middle School classes with both in-person and online instruction.

In Eliot Summer Academy (ESA), students participated in over 250 hours of learning over the course of the summer. In five weeks of classes, they solved many math equations, crafted college essays, conducted science experiments, and shared lots of virtual high-fives.

In 9th Grade Science Bootcamp, students prepared for the new school year and met some of their new teachers and peers while taking on an airplane engineering challenge. Rising freshmen had to construct and then fly model airplanes to see whose plane could fly the furthest while maintaining the maximum amount of time in the air. Rachel Phillips ’24 shared, “The plane project was great because it was a fun challenge, and it also gave us an idea of what to expect from science and engineering projects we might have to complete in class this year.”

Another experiment in Brian Coco’s class included Mentos and Coca-Cola. Students like Zoe Zlatic ’24 dropped Mentos into different types of cola (regular, diet, and zero-calorie) to measure the time it took each one to stop fizzing and overflowing.

In English Teacher Maggie Dunson’s Middle School Reading Processes & Strategies and Middle School Writing courses, students completed a fun activity on what she dubbed “Creative Writing Wednesday.” Rising Middle Schoolers were tasked with writing reviews of their quarantine experiences like they would review a hotel. Check out the prompt Ms. Dunson provided via the Washington Post.

Here are some sample quarantine reviews:

Charming ranch with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. Perfect for families of 3 or 4 looking for a place to stay. There is a barking alarm that goes off every morning at around 7:30, but there are also unlimited dog cuddles and kisses. All meals are provided, but you have to clean up after yourself. Roommates sometimes tell you what to do which can be annoying, but usually, they are nice and buy you snacks. I would give it 4/5 stars. —Emily Leyland ’25

This house is very welcoming and peaceful but only at night. During the day, you will hear loud screams and lots of crying from a certain guest. You should also watch where you are walking or else you may step on some of the Legos that are scattered everywhere. Make sure to bring a sweatshirt because the guests like to keep it really cold inside. I really enjoyed the endless supply of cookies n’ cream ice cream and the lovely family dinners outside on the patio. Dress code is optional, but one certain staff member would be happier if you actually changed every day. —Sophia Hueser ’26
 
As for the entertainment in the house, we have Disney Plus and Netflix, so we can stream any show or movie whenever we want. We also have a ping pong table that can be enjoyed by the residents living here as well as a fully operable Xbox One S. The only downside to being in the house all the time now is that our basement can get very cold at times, and it is also gradually getting more and more packed with the everyday necessities that are needed to thrive in this very strange time. —Charlie Glass ’25