Summer Lab 2023

Registration for 2023 is now closed.

At Lab, we know that learning is a year-round experience, which can, and should, take many forms. Summer Lab builds on over 70 years of summer programming at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, bringing together the resources and faculty of the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools with exciting programs offered by experts from across the city. All of this takes place in and around an unparalleled university setting that enriches our summer fun in incomparable ways.

In an environment that focuses on kids, Summer Lab students and campers make new friends, learn new skills, connect, play, make art, explore the environment, perform, and much, much more. The programs are fun and like everything at Lab, they are designed to inspire curiosity, creativity, and confidence in each child. 
 
At Summer Lab, the love of learning never goes on vacation.
 
 


Dates, Deadlines, and Important Information

Image Navy Pier Field Trip for Summer Lab

Summer Calendar

Full Session: June 20–July 28
Session I: June 20–June 30
Session II: July 5–July 14
Session III: July 17–July 28

Closed June 19, July 3, and July 4 in observance of holidays

Contact Us

Please check meeting times and dates in each listing that follows, and feel free to contact the Summer Lab office with questions about structuring your child’s days:
summerlab@ucls.uchicago.edu    
773-834-7766  

2023 Programs

Full Session: June 20–July 28  |  Session I: June 20–June 30   |  Session II: July 5 - July 14   |  Session III: July 17–July 28

Acting Adventures

For children entering grades 3–5
Create a character, learn how to move on stage, and dive into the nitty gritty of playwriting, dramatic play, and vocal/physical exploration in the scene-making process

Acting Adventures

For children entering grades 1–2
Using the frameworks of legends, myths, fairy tales, and more, your child will learn the basics of acting and more

Acting Adventures

For children entering Kindergarten
Using the frameworks of legends, myths, fairy tales, and more, your child will learn the basics of

Adventure Kids Day Camp

For children entering grades 3–8
A safe, high-energy, and rewarding program based on core values of trust, communication, and teamwork with field trips, sports, special events, and more

Baking from Scratch

For children entering grades 6–8  
Learn to knead dough for bread, shape loaves, make cinnamon rolls, and bake quiche; learn the how and why of ingredient to understand the basics of baking

Baking from Scratch

For children entering grades 3–5 
Students will learn to knead dough for bread, shape loaves, make cinnamon rolls, and bake quiche

Bulls & Bears

For children entering grades 6–8
Learn investing fundamentals and how to start investing; hands-on experience learning new tools and gaining new skills

Ceramics

For children entering grades 3–5    
Your artist will learn hand-building techniques, like pinching, coiling, and slabs and about the stages of clay and how to make an object that survives drying without breaking

Chess

For children entering grades 6–8
Develop your child’s intellect through the royal game of chess

Chess

For children entering grades 3–5
Develop your child’s intellect through the royal game of chess—beginner, continuing, or advanced players welcome

Coding: Build Your Own App

For children entering grades 3–5    
Learn the skills of a coder and the mindset of an entrepreneur through building apps—your own app and also an app for local nonprofits

Coding / Robotics

For children entering grades 1–2
Build coding skills and explore robotics with weekly rotations of sports, music, library, art, and outdoor water play

Comic Makers

For children entering grades 6–8 
Students will use exercises, games, and group projects to smartly fuse words and pictures culminating in the creation of a short comic book

Continents, Cultures and Bread! / Multisensory Math

For children entering grades 1–2
Students learn to make bread from multiple cultures while they balance learning a variety of math strategies along with a weekly rotation of sports, music, library, art, and outdoor water play

Cooking / Gardening

For children entering grades 1–2
Hands-on cooking and gardening with a weekly rotation of sports, music, library, art, and outdoor water play

Cooking / Greeking Out

For children entering grades 1–2
Adventures in cooking and Greek mythology with a weekly rotation of sports, library, art, and outdoor water play

Crochet Circle

For children entering grades 6–8          
Explore the wonderful world of crocheting!

Crochet Circle

For children entering grades 3–5
Explore the wonderful world of crocheting!

Dance Fusion

For children entering grades 6–8
An introduction to hip hop dance and latin moves (kid-friendly music) incorporating creative movement and promoting body awareness and coordination while learning rhythm and musicality

Dance Fusion

For children entering grades 3–5 
An introduction to hip hop dance and latin moves (kid-friendly music) incorporating creative movement and promoting body awareness and coordination while learning rhythm and musicality

Darkroom Photography

For children entering grades 6–8
This class takes your learner into Lab’s own darkroom to teach them in a tactile way about the relationship between light and time, and how those two things come together to create a photograph

Debate

For children entering grades 3–5
Students work in groups and practice their debating skills in a supportive environment, including developing arguments, issuing rebuttals, providing examples, rebuilding their case and summarizing points of view

Directing the Stage

For children entering grades 6–8          
Students will learn the fundamentals of directing, script analysis, blocking, rehearsing, cleaning, and presenting

Dungeons & Dragons Adventures

For children entering grades 6–8
Your young hero will work cooperatively together with peers and use creative problem-solving skills while playing the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game

Elementary Executive Functioning

For children entering grades 4–5
This class is designed to build executive functioning skills for independence while doing something fun

Entrepreneurship

For children entering grades 3–5
Students will learn everything they need to know to become a junior entrepreneur

Executive Functioning & Study Skills

For children entering grade 6 
This class is designed to teach your child the key executive-functioning strategies and study skills needed for success in school and daily life

Foundations for Learning to Read

For children entering grade 1
This class is designed for readers who continue to work on letter-recognition skills, sight-word memorization, or beginning blending skills

Fun With Math Fact Fluency

For children entering grade 3 
Students will incorporate digital games, board games, math tiles, puzzles, math projects, math talks, and basic convention review to build math fact fluency

Game Design

For children entering grades 3–5
Your child will learn the skills of a game maker through conceiving, designing, and creating their own mobile app games

Graphic Design

For children entering grades 3–5
Your young artist will learn how to use their doodling skills by doing design projects for local nonprofits or small businesses

Hacking and Cybersecurity

For children entering grades 3–5
In this specialty camp, your child will learn how to “hack” through fun coding (and code-breaking) games

Hi-Five Sports

For children entering grades 3–5
Offering a full menu of team sports including soccer, basketball, and baseball

Hi-Five Sports

For children entering grades 6–8
Spend each day participating in a few of the major team sports like baseball, basketball, volleyball, soccer, flag football, lacrosse, or floor hockey

Hollywood Stunts

For children entering grades 6–8     
Learn how to safely perform professional stunts while also acquiring unique skills that strengthen hand-eye coordination and body control

Hollywood Stunts

For children entering grades 3–5 
Learn how to safely perform professional stunts, strengthening hand-eye coordination and body control in the process, and gaining insider knowledge and industry tips

Hoopin’ It Up

For children entering grades 6–8
Your athlete will participate in a variety of basketball-themed activities

Improv

For children entering grades 6–8
Jumpstart creativity, develop new skills, and have fun with on-your-feet games and exercises that build confidence anew

Improv

For children entering grades 3–5
A warm, joyful, and supportive environment that celebrates each day with a variety of fun, “on-your-feet” games and exercises

Improv / Art

For children entering grades 1–2
Fun on-your-feet games with improv, in-depth mix of arts and crafts, with a weekly rotation of sports, music, library, art, and outdoor water play

Indoor Skydiving LEGO® Robots

For children entering grades 6–8
Learn how to build a LEGO space capsule robot powered by solar energy and code it to fly in a friendly team competition

Intensive Reading and Writing

For children entering grades 3–4
Come have fun while learning with us this summer! We promise your child will get excited about this reading and writing class

Junior CEOs

For children entering grades 6–8
Students act as CEOs for leading companies and collaborate to make strategic recommendations to address real business issues

Kids Martial Arts

For children entering grades 3–5  
Designed to build self-discipline, confidence, and increase concentration and focus—all while having fun

Kindergarten

For children entering Kindergarten
Summer Kindergarten is a time for children entering kindergarten to connect, play, and explore

Kitchen Chemistry: Desserts

For children entering grades 7–8 
Topics in chemistry via chemical reactions in the kitchen will be covered in the process of making a variety of sweet treats

Language Arts

For children entering grade 5

Students focus on honing the analytical reading and writing skills they will need as their reading class advances

LEGO® / Chess

For children entering grades 1–2
Students will create LEGO® films and stop action video, and become ultimate chess players (beginner, continuing, and advanced players welcome), with a weekly rotation of sports, music, library, art, and outdoor water play

LEGO® Robotics: Super Powered

For children entering grades 3–5  
Designed to build self-discipline, confidence, and increase concentration and focus—all while having fun

Literacy Lab

For children entering grade 2
Come have fun while learning with us and get excited about this reading and writing class

Math Explorers: The Ultimate Challenge

For children entering grade 4
Multi-digit whole number operations, fractions and mixed numbers, decimals, percentages, order of operations, basic algebra, geometry and probability will be covered

Math Quest: Building a Strong Foundation

For children entering grade 4
Review and practice to strengthen important math skills, namely multi-digit operations, understanding and working with fractions and mixed numbers, gathering data, and creating graphs to interpret information

Middle School Introduction to Chemistry

For children entering grades 6–8
Students engage in hands-on learning activities as they explore properties of matter, changes of state, and special properties of water

Music Videos/Breakdancing

For children entering grades 3–5    
Learn how to choose or create an instrumental track, storyboard, cast, choreograph, film, and edit their own original music video that tells a story while featuring breakdancing

Nature Explorers

For children entering grades 1–2
Designed to build self-discipline, confidence, and increase concentration and focus—all while having fun

Novice Policy Debate

For children entering grades 6–8 
This workshop emphasizes debate fundamentals, giving students exposure to argumentation theory and providing students an evidence packet designed to help guide them through the debate topic

Nursery School

For children entering Nursery 3 or 4
Join us for an unforgettable kaleidoscope of summer fun

Public Speaking & Argumentation

For children entering grades 6–8    
Student develop skills to responsibly develop arguments, sway audiences, manage public speaking apprehension, research current events, reach skeptical audiences, and develop debate strategies

Python

For children entering grades 6–8     
Learn how to code in the programming language that created YouTube, Google, and Instagram.

ROBLOX® Coders and Entrepreneurs

For children entering grades 6–8    
Discover the Lua language through a visual block coding system while designing worlds in ROBLOX®

Sports Management

For children entering grades 3–5
For the sports lover, future team General Manager, sports team owner or ESPN analyst

Still-Life Pictures

For children entering grades 3–5
Observational Studies of Natural and Built Objects 

Story Time

For children entering Kindergarten
Calling all story lovers! We will spend our summer days together playing with stories

Third Grade Math Explorers

For children entering grade 3
Topics will range from multi digit operations, fractions and mixed numbers, decimals, measurement and data analysis, graphing, to geometry and probability

Web and App Development

For children entering grades 6–8  
Students build and customize dynamic websites and mobile-friendly apps using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript

Wild Wonders

For children entering grades 3–5
Young zoologists will enjoy this educational wildlife expedition to analyze reptiles, birds, amphibians, fish, insects, and more

Words + Pictures = Comics

For children entering grades 3–5
Ultimate comic book creation through group exercises, drawing games, and comic reading

YouTube® Content Creators

For children entering grades 6–8
Learn the Dos and Don’ts of the platform and how to practice good digital citizenship; develop your on-camera presence, your own channel branding, and professional editing skills