STEAM CAMP

calendar1 WEEK SESSIONS

studentGRADES : RISING 1ST-4TH

SIGN UP FOR 2027 NOTIFICATIONS

At DEAN STEAM Camp, campers join a team of fellow innovators to ask why, test solutions, and try again when an idea fails. Counselors guide, and campers decide. Using science, technology, engineering, art, and math, campers practice four steps of discovery:

  • Wondering & Predicting (The Hypothesis): Every breakthrough starts with asking, "What if?" Campers look at a problem, use their imagination, and make educated guesses about how to solve it.
  • Building & Testing (The Experiment): Science isn't just reading books; it's hands-on. Campers roll up their sleeves to test their ideas through physical builds, chemical reactions, and structural trials.
  • Observing & Recording (The Data): Campers use notebooks, charts, and tools to carefully track their results, noticing what changed and why.
  • Tweaking & Evolving (The Iteration): "Failing" is just finding out what doesn't work! When a test doesn't go as planned, campers analyze the results, modify their thinking, and try again.

Each storyline sparks curiosity and rallies campers together. They share ideas, divide tasks, and build on each other's thinking. They weigh evidence, question results, and reason their way to answers. When a plan fails, they adapt and find a new approach.

The method campers practice at DEAN STEAM continues far beyond the camp weeks. A camper who has rebuilt a failed design knows what to do when something doesn't go as planned: test an idea, study what happened, and adjust. Your child will leave with a sense of wonder, resilience, and the confidence to keep asking why.

icons 1

SKILLS & TECHNIQUES

Each week, campers engage in hands-on projects, learning key skills and mindsets:

  • Foundation Skills: Design thinking, engineering principles, and construction techniques through brainstorming, planning, and assembling.
  • Technical Abilities: Safely operating age-appropriate tools while building focus, self-regulation, and responsibility.

    Also, as they build and create, campers strengthen essential character skills too:
  • Collaboration: Working in teams to problem-solve and persevere through challenges.
  • Resilience and Perseverance: Refining designs and sticking with bringing big ideas to life through trial and error.

By the end of each session, campers take home their finished creations, along with a new level of confidence, enhanced skills, and the mindset of a true innovator.

icons 1 GENERAL DAILY SCHEDULE

DEAN Zone, Breakfast, & Assembly
7:30am-9:00am
Morning Circle
9:00am
Activity Period
approximately 1 hour
Snack and Stretch Break
approximately 15 minutes, outside weather permitting
Activity Period
approximately 1 hour
Lunch, DEAN Zone & Pool
approximately 1 hour, outside weather permitting
Activity Period
approximately 2 hours (included in this time can be a stretch break as needed)
Daily Reflection
2:45
Assembly, Snack & DEAN Zone
(until 5:30pm)

HOURS

Flexible Drop Off & DEAN ZONE
7:30am - 9:00am
Core Program
9:00am - 3:00pm
DEAN Zone & Flexible Pick-Up
3:00pm - 5:30pm

Camper mixing ingredients in a bowl at DEAN Science Sleuths STEAM camp

SCIENCE SLEUTHS

Get messy. Ask why. Crack the case. Campers become science sleuths called in to solve a mix-up at the DEAN Lab. Someone swapped the labels, spilled the jars, and left a trail of mystery powder across the floor. Three suspects were in the lab last night: Professor Fizzwell, Dr. Crumble, and lab intern Penny Potion.

To crack the case, sleuths test a new substance each day and follow the same steps real scientists use: predict, test, record, and explain why. Each result adds evidence to the case file, and every investigation rules a suspect in or out. The week ends at the camper showcase with an explosive final lab test and campers naming the culprit with scientifically backed evidence.

This hands-on STEAM program teaches the scientific method and the chemistry behind everyday kitchen ingredients, all through a lab whodunit for rising grades 1-4.

Camper testing a robot rover at DEAN Space Station Rescue STEAM camp

SPACE STATION RESCUE

The Case of the Runaway Rover. Campers become astronauts aboard Space Station Orbit-7, and the alarm is sounding. Moon rocks drift across the lab, the cargo lift is jammed, and the rover drives off. Something has thrown the station's forces out of balance. The crew must find the cause and fix it fast.

To get the station running again, astronauts figure out how to steer the drifting moon rocks with pushes and pulls, free the cargo lift with levers and pulleys, and catch the rover by calculating its speed and building ramps to block its path. Every repair unlocks a clue and a new tool for their astronaut kit. As the clues add up, the team gets closer to tracing the trouble to its source.

This hands-on STEAM program teaches the physics and engineering behind real machines like cranes, elevators, and Mars rovers, all through a space mystery for rising grades 1-4.

Campers building and testing structures at DEAN Lost Treasure of Coral Island STEAM camp

THE LOST TREASURE OF CORAL ISLAND

Legend says the gold is still there. Campers become treasure hunters searching Coral Island for Captain Silverhook's lost gold. The old pirate hid it deep inside a sea cave beneath a dormant volcano that is now waking up. Rumbles from the coming eruption have blocked the path. The lookout tower topples, the dock sinks into the sand, and the only crossing has crumbled into the sea.

To clear the way, campers test why triangles and arches hold weight, how a wide base stops a wobble, how to build for shaking ground, and how to sketch a plan first. Each solved repair earns a piece of the captain's torn map. Then comes the biggest challenge: a new bridge strong enough to carry the heavy chest, steady in ocean gales, and solid when the volcano starts to rumble. The week ends with campers crossing safely, claiming the chest, and presenting their designs at a camper showcase.

This hands-on STEAM program teaches the engineering and architecture behind real structures like the pyramids and the Golden Gate Bridge, all through a treasure hunt for rising grades 1-4.

Camps Landing Pages DEAN (4)-4

 

BLUEPRINT CREATORS NAVIGATORS (5TH-8TH)

Design it. Plan it. Own it. 

Blueprint Creators is a one-of-a-kind experience for Navigators who are ready to take full ownership of their learning. Campers choose from a wide range of project paths, including woodworking, STEAM engineering, sewing and textiles, culinary creation, writing and publishing, and design-based builds, then take the lead in bringing one meaningful idea to life from start to finish.

At the start of the week, campers select a project from a catalog of options and work with an expert instructor to design a personalized plan. Whether they’re engineering a prototype, sewing an outfit, writing and publishing a book, building a custom skateboard, or creating a dining experience, campers manage timelines, break big ideas into steps, and adapt when challenges arise, all while building project management, self-direction, and creative problem-solving skills.

At the Friday Showcase, campers proudly showcase their completed projects, celebrating a week of focus, perseverance, and growth. They leave with confidence, independence, and the mindset to tackle complex challenges well beyond camp.

Culnary Art image 1

Passport to YUM


Culnary Art image 2

the world of sweet imagination


Culnary Art image 3

is it cake?


Girl in a jacket

DEAN Camps - Premium summer day camps serving Haverford PA (Main Line/Philadelphia area) and Lawrenceville NJ (greater Princeton). Specialty programs for ages 4-16 include woodworking, machine sewing, robotics, culinary arts, performing arts, STEM, and leadership and entrepreneurship development. Full-day care with breakfast, lunch, and snacks included. Serving families from Bryn Mawr, Ardmore, Radnor, Princeton, Hopewell, and surrounding communities since 2001. Call 610-660-9600.