For every Major, you'll be divided into classrooms of 5th–6th graders and 7th–8th graders. Our student to staff ratio is 8:1 with no more than 16 students per Major.

Artist's Studio
Comic Book Creators
Digital Movie Stars
Go-Kart Racers
Lego Robotics
Magazine Makers
Sorcerer's Apprentice
Video Game Design
Young Entrepreneurs

Artist's Studio
Become a famous artist in only two weeks! If you have a passion for art, we'll teach you the rest. Learn basic to advanced techniques of drawing and painting. We'll teach perspective, composition, and how to create and mix a color palette. Through our process, you will discover your own style. Will you draw objects as they appear or are you more abstract? We'll finish the session with a real gallery exhibition where you will learn to title, price and hang your art in the style of a New York art-show opening. Cool Factor: Create a masterpiece and learn how to produce a professional art exhibit. Back to top

Comic Book Creators
Create and star in your very own comic book. Use a combination of hand-inking techniques, state-of-the-art digital artist tablets and Adobe software to create your very own graphic story. Devise a plot line and storyboard ideas, then digitally and manually create all the art for your very own graphic story. At the end of the session, you'll go home with an original comic book to share with your friends. Cool Factor: Use Wacom digital drawing tablets, Photoshop and other awesome design software. Back to top

Digital Movie Stars
Lights, camera, action! Learn how to make the types of movies that always inspired you. Decide on a genre like comedy or documentary and discover how to portray your story with pictures, sounds and effects. Develop skills in storyboarding, filming, editing, sound and post-production. At the end of the session, you will have a professional DVD complete with a custom-made DVD cover! Cool Factor: Film the action using 2008-model digital movie cameras and produce movies using iMovie. Back to top

Go-Kart Racers
Learn how to build your very own Soap-Box Derby car from scratch. We'll walk you through the design and construction fundamentals of creating a non-motorized vehicle you can actually ride in. While you custom design the shell of your car, you'll learn about aerodynamics and physics of speedy vehicles. At the end of the session, we'll have a series of races to test the speed and strength of the cars. Don't forget to drive your car home with you when you leave! Cool Factor: A perfect combination of engineering and carpentry – learn how to build a car that’s designed for speed! Back to top

Lego Robotics
We’re bringing one of our most popular classes from The Tech Museum Summer Camps to you at Galileo Summer Quest! Using the latest Lego NXT technology, learn how to engineer a structurally sound robot and program it to complete advanced tasks. Create a robot that can survive natural disasters, retrieve objects and navigate difficult terrain. Finish the week off by taking your robot through a series of real-life experiments to test its strength and your programming savvy!

JUST ADDED for session 2 exclusively for 7-8th graders:
Extreme Robotics Challenge! Learn how to program with Lego’s newest NXT technology and put your knowledge to the test in a series of extreme robot battles! Participate in challenges against fellow students to see whose mega robot can withstand the steepest slopes, the tightest turns and our ultimate robot obstacle course built by you! This is not your everyday robotics competition!
Cool Factor: Program with cutting edge Lego NXT Technology, plus software similar to what was used in controlling the Mars Rover. Back to top

Magazine Makers
Work as a team to design the magazine you've always wanted to read. Learn the fundamentals of magazine publishing, and create your own issue with unique photos, layout and content. We provide the technology, including digital cameras and desktop publishing software for formatting and editing your publication. Play the roles of editor, journalist, photographer and graphic designer over the course of the session. Leave with extra copies of your masterpiece—hot off the presses! Cool Factor: Use Photoshop and leading desktop publishing software Serif Page Plus. Back to top

Sorcerer's Apprentice
Amaze your family and friends with the magical new skills you'll discover this summer. Learn basics such as card tricks to the advanced art of making objects disappear. The magic doesn't end when camp is over—create your own illusions and props to take home. Learn presentation and performance skills that leave your audience wondering "How did you do that?!" during your magic show debut! Cool Factor: Build your own props to take home so you can wow your friends with magic shows when the summer is over. Back to top

Video Game Design
After running this class at The Tech Museum Summer Camps for years, we're bringing it to Galileo Summer Quest! Here's your chance to come up with the next video game blockbuster. Start your game-design career early in this class by learning all the roles of a real video game developer as you design and program your own game. You are provided with your own computer to develop characters, story lines, backgrounds and unique music as you create the game you've always wanted to play! Cool Factor: Use the newest Version of Multimedia Fusion and state-of-the-art computers. Back to top

Young Entrepreneurs
Create the product or service of your dreams and learn how to turn it into a successful company. Your team will do everything from writing the business plan to developing the product/service. You will have a virtual budget to produce, market, and sell your creation. At the end of this session, it's either boom or bust when you sell your product to customers in the Galileo Summer Quest marketplace. Whatever the outcome, discover what it takes to transform a simple idea into a business venture. No suit or briefcase necessary! Cool Factor: Be your own boss by learning the skills it take to be a successful entrepreneur. Design a product, a professional business plan and learn sales techniques from experienced business people. Back to top