Super heroes at day camp

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These Kern County Museum Summer Day Camp Superheroes, who stopped long enough to pose for the camera, were (from left) Jared Elliott, Isabel Walker, Stephen Bush and John Starkey

superHero083:

All in the name of science, Kern County Museum Summer Day Camp Superheroes who paused from their mission of good for a picture were (from left) Carston Towery, Hannah Walker, Ryan Kammeraad and Nathan Mudryk.

What is it that allows super heroes to leap from tall buildings without breaking a nail, stop steaming locomotives with bare hands and hold back avalanches with only their breath? Children, attending the Kern County Museum’s Superhero Science Day Camp from June 9-13, discovered physics, genetics, anatomy and chemistry play roles in the makeup of superhuman crusaders. Given a choice, many of these same children would be environmental superheroes, if they could.

Approximately 40 children, ages 5-12, learned there was a bit of science behind all the amazing deeds of their favorite superheroes. Monday, Spiderman was highlighted with the classes actually taught a little bit more about spiders than the man. Before the day was out, they had learned that a spider’s web is known to be a polymer that has enormous energy absorption and strength-bearing properties. No wonder Spidey could tie up the bad guys and swing from building to building. Education Manager Jackie Brouillette even put a small, toy spider made from polymers into a bowl of water, and the stunned campers watched as each day it grew to about five times its normal size.

“I think children learn best when they are having fun and don’t realize they are learning,” Brouillette said.

She has been coming up with new fun ideas and themes for the museum summer camps for six years now. To prepare for this one, Brouillette said she “watched a lot of the Science Channel and got the idea for the superhero tie-in from that.” She is constantly looking for ideas on Web sites and in books, plus the group of summer camp counselors who help teach many of the classes bring in ideas of their own. The newly finished kitchen in the Lori Brock Children’s Discovery Center is also a source of scientific experiments that often have a tasty outcome for the campers.

Other superheroes that provided a scientific launch pad during the week included “Storm” for a discussion about weather and “Magneto” on the properties and power of magnets. Campers were even challenged to design their own superhero costumes and apply their imaginations to explain for what their unique powers could be used.

There were some pretty interesting results.

Nine-year-old John Starkey, aka Octopus Boy, said he “could make a cool laser that would stop global warming and put out the wildfires.”

Ten-year-old Jared Elliott had an unusual name for his superhero, “Chibunnaragon” — part Chihuahua, part bunny rabbit, part kangaroo and part dragon. “I would use the man in me for mind control to make the people who control gas prices bring them down,” Chibunnaragon…er…Elliott said.

Nathan Mudryk was 11-year-old “Dragonman” for the day. “Instead of flames, my nostrils would throw out lasers that would turn all the world’s trash into useful atoms,” said Mudryk.

It is a week off for the superheroes and museum staff. When day camp resumes from June 23-27, a new set of campers will learn about bees, butterflies and birds from the California Living Museum’s (CALM) visiting staff and geology from the museum counselors. Later in the summer children can pick from holidays around the world, kitchen science, science magic and Olympics around the world.

For more information about the museum’s summer day camps and openings call (661) 852-5000.


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