Additional Resources and Camps
Camp Opportunities | Resources for Engagement
This page warehouses a collection of resources that didn’t fit the other categories, but we still think they are important to share!
AllTrails – Do you feel like spending some time outside but wonder where to go? Check out this website. Put in your location, and it will locate nearby trails for outdoor exploration. (You might also be interested in learning about the power of the outdoors by reading “How to Protect Kids from Nature-Deficit Disorder.”)
Catching Your Child Being Good – It sometimes feels easier to correct (even punish) bad behavior, but it turns out we may make better progress doing the opposite. Check out this resource for catching your child being good!
Family Pastimes – Have you ever tried to play a board game with your child, only to experience an emotional meltdown if they lose? Consider checking out cooperative games! Family Pastimes has an enormous selection of cooperative games for every age range. In a cooperative game, the players work together against the situation of the game, winning or losing together.
Family Tools – This link features several downloadable PDFs with tips for helping parents. Topics include things like “Teaching your child to become independent with daily routines,” and “Make the most of playtime.”
GoNoodle – This website has tons of free resources that can help you and your student at home. The videos are categorized by age range, and they walk viewers through various exercises that can help us to calm down when we feel anxious, and other mindfulness activities.
Mindfulness Coloring Pages – Have you heard of coloring as a way to practice mindfulness? Check out these downloadable mindfulness coloring pages!
PBIS World – This website is designed for teachers for help with Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), but there are strategies that can be helpful at home, too! Just click on a behavior from the main page and find ideas for how to work with your child through those challenges.
ReadTheory – Does your student need extra support in reading? Have you struggled with figuring out the best way to do that? Check out ReadTheory. You can create a parent account, and the site will figure out your students reading level, helping them to level up in a personalized way.
Camp Opportunities
Provided below are resources for camp opportunities. These are just a few camps that have been collected. You might search in your local community for other summer camp opportunities. Camp is a great experience to help to continue to grow your child. A camp can bring a great experience for a student who might be unmotivated. Look for camps that will interest your child.
Free Camps
The Cincinnati Zoo’s Home Safari Resources – While not technically a “camp,” this page allows you to watch and learn about the zoo’s animals from home.
Erie Metroparks – If you have access to email and YouTube, you can participate in Erie Metroparks’ free virtual nature summer camps.
Girls Who Code – This group offers a free, two-week summer program for girls entering grades 10-12, offering experience with coding. Stipends are available to cover other costs, too.
Numerade Online Bootcamp – Numerade boasts free prep camps taught by college professors and high school teachers. Click the link to see which school subjects are included in these free offerings.
Fee-Based Camps
Boonshoft Museum’s Camp in a Box – Boonshoft will mail a kit called “Camp in a Box” for a fee, and it comes with materials for STEAM-based activities.
Bowling Green State University – BGSU offers Academic Enrichment Camps for grades 3-8. Camps meet online for 60 minutes each day for two weeks, and campers receive two weeks’ worth of instructional content in what they call a “camp crate.”
Camp Invention – A STEM summer program for grades K-6 that turns curious kids into innovative thinkers.
Camp Nuhop Overnight residential summer camp – Designed for children with learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders, and behavior disorders, this camp is in Perrysville, OH and it features programs for boys and girls.
Classroom Antics STEAM Summer Camps – There are a variety of topics kids can engage in their camp experience, and this link will take you to a page where you can explore all of them.
COSI Connects Kits – The Center of Science and Industry (COSI) offers a variety of $30 kits which include five days’ worth of activities.
Great Lakes Science Center Camps – This organization offers camps during the summer as well as during Winter and Spring break.
Northern Kentucky University Summer Camps – Available for students in grades 2-8, NKU offers a handful of camps for various age groups. Scholarships are available for Ohio students who meet the requirements for the “Free and Reduced Meal” programs.
Ohio University Summer Camps – This link outlines various camps through Ohio University (including virtual camps), and in addition, there are other resources on this page that may be of interest.
Sternberg Science Camps – The Sternberg Museum, from the state of Kansas, offers a collection of virtual camp experiences from ages 6-18.
Varsity Tutor Virtual Summer Camps – Designed for students aged 5-13, these camps span topics from Space to Dinosaurs!
Virtual Tech Camps – Designed for students ages 7-19, these virtual camps feature tech-based topics, like Minecraft and Scratch.
Write State Summer Enrichment Programs – Offering the “Discovery” program for grades K-6, and “Odyssey for grades 7-9, there are lots of options available here for summer enrichment opportunities.
Websites/Resources for Engagement
This section features resources to help engage students. This is websites/resources for students to provide opportunities to be engaged. There are several resources for gifted students but can be used for all.
Amazing Educational Resources – This website features lots of great content and a dynamic search feature. When you click this link, it will take you to results tagged “Always Free,” but you can change that if you like. You can also use the “Category” drop-down menu to customize your search. Categories include student profile types, instructional approaches, and more.
Future Problem Solving – “FPSPI is a dynamic international program involving thousands of students annually from around the world. Developed in 1974 by creativity pioneer Dr. E. Paul Torrance, Future Problem Solving (FPS) provides competitive and non-competitive components for today’s curriculum via a six-step model which teaches critical and creative thinking, problem-solving, and decision making.”
The Gifted Guy website, Todd Stanley – Collection of strategies, ideas, and lessons created and accumulated over his twenty years in education. Among those strategies and lessons, you will find his blog on EdCircuit, his youtube channels that include Todd Talks for teachers and Enrichment with the Gifted Guy for students, professional development topics, a list of all his books, and finally resources for educators to use in their own classrooms. The link will take you to the enrichment opportunities for students:
Hoagies’ Gifted Education Page – Hoagies’ page calls itself the “all things gifted page,” and it shows. This link will take you to tons of resources around contests, awards, and scholarships.
Hoagies’ Gifted Education Page – This is another Hoagies’ page, but this one is designed for children. It features different links for entertainment like magazines, movies, book suggestions, etc.
James Patterson’s ReadKiddoread.com – This page features book reviews organized by age range. You can select ages 0-8, 6+, 8+, and 10+. Reading reviews and feedback can help ensure you pick the perfect title for engaging your student!
National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) – This site features resources for educators and caregivers of gifted students during COVID-19.
Ohio Association for Gifted Children (OAGC) organization – The page is designed for the families and caregivers of gifted students. You can find lots of resources, events, and information regarding gifted students here.
Science Olympiad – Science Olympiad is a pay-to-play academic competition for teams of up to 15 students that compete in 23 different events. The events span scientific disciplines including physics, chemistry, biology, earth science, engineering, inquiry, and space science.