Design With Purpose
Ages: entering grades 5 through 8 in September 2023
Hours: 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
At Beaver, the design process is all about finding new ways to improve the world around us. As our campers develop new skills and collaborate with their peers, real world challenges present them with endless opportunities to tap into their own creativity. Through our series of week long immersive experiences, campers will develop new skills in design, engineering and fabrication based in Beaver’s Research & Design Center.
Go Baby Go!
Beaver is teaming up with Go Baby Go! and Boston Children’s Hospital Department of Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy to custom modify battery powered ride-on cars for children with limited mobility. Campers will work together in teams to design, customize, and build each car to meet the specific needs of an individual child.
Early in the week, each team will meet their assigned family and learn about the unique needs of their “little driver” and then be guided by physical therapists from Boston Children’s Hospital as they develop their specific designs. Then they’ll head into the workshop to rewire the car’s electrical system, develop unique supports and harnesses, and hack the accelerator and ignition. By the end of the week, the little drivers will speed off in their very own car, able to zoom around and play in ways that weren’t possible before. Campers will develop teamwork, empathy, and engineering skills as they spend the week building more than just a car.
Adaptive Futures
How do you grow your spirit of innovation? Building, creating, and using your imagination to address a real world challenge and imagine a solution, device, product, or experience that positively impacts your community is a great start! By examining real world dilemmas and developing innovative solutions to them, campers will imagine, prototype, and design various products aimed at positively impacting the world around them. They will develop skills in creative technologies from VR landscapes to 3D printing. These young designers and entrepreneurs will be able to share their final product with a panel of invested individuals who will celebrate their ideas and recognize their creative problem solving.
Sample Daily Schedule
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 8:30-9:00 am | Drop-off |
| 9:00-9:45am | Team design challenge |
| 10:00-11:30am | “Empathy Adventure” across campus |
| 11:30-12:00pm | Lunch on our outdoor terrace provided by Beaver |
| 12:00-12:30pm | Recreational time |
| 12:30-2:00pm | Prototype construction and testing |
| 2:00-3:00pm | Group feedback, redesign suggestions, and modifications |
| 3:00-3:45pm | Free swim in our 3 outdoor heated pools |
| 3:45-4:00pm | Pick-up |
Extended Day
Want more camp? You’ve got it. Our weekly Extended Day programs are available to all Design With Purpose campers for an additional fee. For more info, click here.
- 7:30-8:30 am – Drop off your camper up to an hour earlier than the regular drop-off at 8:30 am.
- 4:00-6:00 pm – Extend your camper’s day as late as possible to give them full access to more activities.
Bus Transportation
Why not let someone else be the driver? We’ll safely shuttle your camper to and from Beaver by bus. For more info, click here.
2023 Session Dates & Tuition
| Session | Dates | Tuition |
|---|---|---|
| Week 5 – Go Baby Go! | July 24 – July 28 | $950 |
| Week 6 – Go Baby Go! | July 31 – August 4 | $950 |
| Week 7 – Adaptive Futures | August 7 – August 11 | $950 |
Includes daily lunch and snack
Discounts
Sibling and 8-Week Discounts available