The Greater Boston area is filled with STEM learning opportunities for children. These summer camps can guide your children through the integrated use of science, technology, engineering, and math.
Your child not only learns problem-solving skills for educational settings, but they also learn real-life skills that play an important role in their everyday decision-making process at any of these STEM camps in Boston.
Each program is a little different but is overall focused on project-based learning and serves young kids to teenagers in any grade level. There is everything from day camps to more traditional overnight camps.
1. Game Camp Nation
Game Camp Nation has several locations across the East Coast, with one popular one in the Boston area. Known for its game design and coding courses, you can choose for your kids to commute back and forth for daily classes or stay overnight for a full camp experience. There are plenty of activities outside of STEM learning, including swimming, sports, and more.
Created for children 9 to 19, Game Camp Nation also offers private tutoring along with summer courses. The camps take place from May to August with day-to-day camps running Monday through Friday and overnight camps for the entire week. Students can also learn about pixel art and leadership through their class offerings.
2. Steve & Kate’s
Steve & Kate’s Boston locations in Fenway, Hyde Park, and Jamaica Plain put children in charge of their experience. They’ll be able to select what they want to do from a huge list of activities for all ages 4-12.
It’s all-inclusive, so once you pay for a daily or all-summer pass, your children are fully covered for lunch and activities. Your kids can learn about coding, animation, or robotics on the tech side. They can also get active and play team sports and go through obstacle courses.
Children who lean on the creative side can visit the tinker lab to release their imaginations, the sewing salon to design an outfit, or even create some fairy bread in the bakery! Lunch and snacks are provided as well as a special popsicle treat so there is always something delicious to eat.
3. iCodeSchool Wellesley
iCodeSchool offers STEM education classes for children 5-18 in Wellesley. Select from instructor-led classes to self-paced courses on campus and online. They run camps and programs all year long, so the fun and learning don’t stop when the school break ends. Their project-based style of teaching allows students to apply their coding skills right away and stay motivated.
They have over 28+ varieties of fun and educational STEAM camps including Minecraft, Roblox, 3D design, Animations, and Drones. Their Belt program offers a structured curriculum that students follow to eventually become a master black belt in coding as they learn everything from game development to machine learning and much more.
The Paths Program has students choose the topic of their choice and dive deep into learning through projects and presentations with their fellow peers. They always have the option to learn about a different topic if they change their minds.
iCodeSchool Wellesley has multiple awards in STEAM camps and after-school enrichment classes, having been winners and top-ranked for 4 years by the popular Boston Parents Magazine.
4. Boston Leadership Institute
Give your child a head start with their career ideas at the Boston Leadership Institute. Their programs are created for teens interested in engineering, technical fields, business, and medicine. Boston Leadership Institute is more than just a summer camp. It’s a great way to delve deeper into subjects that can begin a career path.
Your teen can choose from one-week programs focusing on specific projects or three-week choices focusing on research and in-depth learning at advanced levels. They also offer what they call Edge programs, helping high school students prepare for upcoming classes in the STEM field.
5. Science Research Academy
The Science Research Academy in Lexington helps middle school students develop and complete research projects for a school and competition setting. They offer three types of programs lasting from 5 days to 12 weeks.
In their 5-day summer camp, students can get experience working on hands-on science projects. They also offer the Science Fair and Independent Research program, which both last 12 weeks. They provide a structured way of learning where students can dive deep into a research project of their choosing and learn how to develop it under the mentorship of experienced and previous science fair winners.
The programs serve as an excellent introduction for curious kids who want to work on projects that include subjects of computer science, biology, engineering, environment, and more. They work as a team to develop their project and learn things like data analysis and conducting experiments while following the curriculum set by the Science Research Academy.
6. Empow Studios
Empow Studios is an award-winning STEM summer camp with locations throughout Massachusetts and also Connecticut. Your child can choose from many computer science classes and experiences, including game development, Roblox design, Minecraft coding, 3D design, and more.
Geared towards kids ages 7-15, they offer more than 20 different week-long camps. With so many options, it won’t be easy to decide, but they don’t have to, as there are discounts available if you sign up for more than one session. Empow Studios also offers self-paced semester classes and other classes throughout the school year.
7. Emagination STEM Camps
Emagination STEM Camps are held at various universities across the USA, including on the beautiful campus at Bentley University. With both day and sleepaway camps available to kids anywhere from 8 to 17 years of age, there is something for every child here, including recreational activities like games and sports.
Students can choose from several courses to fill their days. They teach Roblox design, web design, 3D modeling and printing, animation, graphic design, and more with each two weeks in length. For residential campers, the dorm rooms, meals, and entertainment are all a part of the package, making this an experience your child won’t soon forget.
8. Edge on Science
With two locations in Beverly and Auburndale, Edge on Science makes it easy to get to. Your child can choose from a variety of daily courses that encompass hands-on practical skills. Learning ranges from working with drones and coding to 3D printing, engineering, bridge building, and more.
Upcoming 4th graders through high school can enjoy everything covered in their week-long courses. In addition, they also have a counselor-in-training program for students who wish to go above and beyond simply learning the curriculum. They cover subject areas and also teach campers leadership skills, giving them a chance to assist other students.
9. Community Boat Building
Some of the best STEM summer camps in Boston have their very own niche. And that holds true for Community Boat Building, focused on building boats. Catering to kids around 7 years to middle school age, campers can choose from model boat courses to a two-week option where your child can build a full-size boat.
In addition to boat building during the summer, there are also lessons offered throughout the school year at many Boston Public Schools. And if you or your child are interested in fully experiencing the boats on the water, they also offer water rentals. In partnership with the public schools, there are boats for sale built by 5th graders and fine-tuned through an experienced group of volunteers.
10. Cambridge Friends School
Cambridge Friends School is a private school focusing on diversity, inclusion, and Quaker values. They educate pre-K through 8th-grade students in North Cambridge. It offers eight weeks of varying topics, one week at a time. Students will have a lot of fun exploring while learning about leadership and self-exploration.
Your child can choose from space and animal exploration or become a science detective learning research skills. Or maybe they’re interested in learning about fairy tales and time travel. The topics are seemingly endless, but all will capture your child’s attention while they work on projects, play games, and make connections with other campers.
11. MITES Summer
High school juniors can thrive at this opportunity to experience MIT for six weeks. Hosted on the MIT campus, kids take several courses that help them develop leadership and scholarly abilities to get them on the path to a possible STEM career. Consisting of core math, engineering, and science classes along with several electives to choose from, it feels like a real semester at college. Except it’s all jam-packed with action into one epic summer camp.
MITES Summer is completely free for everyone who gets accepted. With the exception of transportation to MIT, the entire program is covered by generous donations from individuals and foundations. Not only will your child gain academic skills, but they also meet other like-minded individuals with some of the same goals. Once accepted into the program, there are no fees involved making it an exceptional educational opportunity for lower-income families.
12. Coastal Ocean Science Academy (COSA)
Coastal Ocean Science Academy can teach kids more about the natural world. Campers can get to experience the joys of learning about oceanic science. They spend days at this one-week summer program learning about coastal habitats while exploring tidepools, participating in hands-on environmental science activities, touring labs, and much more.
Taking place at Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center, this isn’t your typical indoor program. In their real-world courses, your child will get their feet wet and explore marine science. The educators are the same professors that teach in their college programs, so you know your teen is learning from excellent instructors.
13. GROW
GROW is short for Greater Boston Area Research Opportunities for Young Women. They provide a highly sought research internship. You need to be a high school junior residing within 30 miles of Boston with an excellent academic record to qualify.
The internship takes place at Boston University starting at the end of June and culminating in mid-August. It’s a six-week session involving lab research covering many science topics. Interns perform lab work and hear from speakers and experts from many fields of study. Students must complete a rigorous application to be accepted. Upon completion, your child will have gained academic and real-life skills, along with a stipend to make their time here more comfortable.
Also, take a look at our other extensive list of New York City STEM summer camps.