Make things, friends & memories!
Have your child spend their Summer Break meeting new friends & learning tech skills at The Maker Bean Cafe at 1052 Bloor St. West! Using tools such as laser cutters, 3D printers & wood-working tools, and with 1 laptop per child, your children will create something straight out of their imaginations!
Summer camps run from June 30 - Aug 29, 2025 inclusive in full-week, 5-day sessions (except June 30-July 4 and Aug 5-8, which are 4 days due to statutory holidays).
We have 2 Maker Week themes & 2 Minecraft Week themes - if signing up for multiple weeks, we recommend signing up for different themes (e.g., Maker Week 1 & 2, Minecraft Week 1 & 2, or any Maker Week & any Minecraft Week!) Detailed descriptions of each activity below.
For kids 6-12 years old, both experienced & new makers alike.
Kids also head outdoors for at least 1.5 hours per day to Dufferin Grove or Dovercourt Parks (5-minute walks from The Maker Bean) for active games & fresh air. Please ensure your kids are dressed for the appropriate weather.
Pricing
$495/5-day week
$395/4-day week
Lunch and snacks for the full week available (veggie options available too) for $80, use drop down menu and add lunch to cart
Times
Camps run 9 AM – 4 PM daily, drop off from 8:50 AM, pick up promptly at 4 PM
Full-week themes by date:
Maker Theme 1: July 7-11, Aug 5-8 (4 days)
Maker Theme 2: July 21-25, Aug 18-22
Minecraft theme 1: June 30 - July 4 (4 days), July 28-Aug 1, Aug 25-29
Minecraft theme 2: July 14-18, Aug 11-15
Detailed descriptions of daily activities
Note: during 4 day weeks, activities that fall on the day of the holiday will be skipped.
Maker Theme 1
July 7 - 11, August 5 - 8 (4 day week - no camp Monday, August 4)
Monday - Customized Laser Cut Puzzle Box
Today campers will build and customize laser cut puzzle boxes. We’ll have a quick lesson on Adobe Illustrator tools and digital drawing before getting designing some patterns and pictures to go on the outsides of our boxes. While our team is busy cutting out campers' custom pieces, we’ll get started constructing the lid and locking mechanism for our boxes! Finally, once all our pieces are ready, we’ll assemble and decorate our boxes to our liking!
Tuesday - 3D Printed Keychains + Spirographs
Two fun projects today! Campers will start the day with a crash course in TinkerCAD, a beginner friendly drag and drop 3D modeling platform. We’ll learn about how 3D printers work, as well as what makes for a successful 3D print, before designing our very own 3D printed keychains! In the afternoon we’ll switch gears to 2D art by building motorized spirographs!
Wednesday - Glowing Jelly Fish Lamp + Electric Eel Pencil Case
Today campers will bring the magic and mystery of the deep sea to their desks. First up, we’ll build some DIY jelly fish desk lamps. Campers will learn about circuits and wire up their own LED lights to a battery, before constructing the body of the lamp out of laser cut pieces. In the afternoon we’ll sew some cute electric eel pencil cases to help keep our art supplies organized.
Thursday - Secret Messages and Decoder Glasses + Intro to Coding with Scratch
Today's activities are top secret! Campers will begin the day with a physics lesson about colour and light. We’ll use these principles to write secret messages that can only be seen with our custom decoder glasses. Once we’ve mastered secret codes, we’ll move on to computer code. Campers will get a crash course in Scratch, a beginner friendly, drag and drop coding software, before coding their own games. Over and out!
Friday - Motorized Robot with Optional LED Antenna
Today campers will put all the skills they’ve learned this week to the test by building a motorized robot with an optional LED antenna! We’ll begin by wiring up our motors and our lights. Then we’ll construct our robot wheels out of laser cut wood pieces and cardboard. Finally it will be time to assemble our robots bodies and install our electronics.
Maker Theme 2
July 21 - 25, August 18- 22
Monday - Coded Nametags with Scratch + Robot Plushies
To kick off this week, campers will get a crash course in Scratch, a beginner friendly, drag and drop coding software. Then we’ll use what we learned to make coded name tags, where clicking each letter of our names tells our computer to perform a different action. In the afternoon, campers will learn about the many connections between stem and sewing by making their own robot plushies.
Tuesday - 3D Printing Magnets + Potted Plant Lamps
Two fun projects today! Campers will start the day with a crash course in TinkerCAD, a beginner friendly drag and drop 3D modeling platform. We’ll learn about how 3D printers work, as well as what makes for a successful 3D print, before designing our very own 3D printed magnets! In the afternoon, campers will get a quick lesson in circuits before wiring up an LED and crafting a potted plant desk lamp. We’ll install our LEDs in our plant pots, made from laser cut pieces, and complete our lamps by using felt, paper and a variety of other crafting materials to make foliage and flowers!
Wednesday - Animation with Flip Books and Wick Editor
Today campers will explore the magic of animation by learning how to make GIFS. We’ll start the day by making flip books, to help us plan the frames of our digital animations. Then campers will get a quick overview of Wick Editor - a drag and drop introductory animation platform. We’ll learn some basic techniques and tools to help us bring our ideas to life, then we’ll get started creating our animations! After all our GIFs are complete, we’ll set up our chairs for Maker Bean Theatre and share our animations with the group on the big projector screen!
Thursday - Motorized Ice Cream Truck
In this hands-on activity, campers will combine construction with electronics by making an ice cream truck that runs AND has a headlight. Campers will learn the basics of electronics and then put their knowledge to work by wiring up a single axis motor and an LED. Campers will then construct the body of their ice cream truck, and decorate them with all kinds of frozen delicious treats before installing our electronics. The last step is adding on some wheels to make our ice cream trucks go. Yum!
Friday - Wind powered LED house
Today Campers will put all the skills they’ve learned this week to the test by building an LED house that’s powered by wind! We’ll learn about energy in all its different forms before wiring up a motorized fan to a battery, this will create the “wind” for our experiment. We’ll then wire an LED to another motor and fan.
Minecraft + Making Theme 1
June 30 - July 4 (4 day week - no camp Tuesday, July 1st), July 28 - August 1, August 25 - 29
Monday - Laser Cut Minecraft Character Keychains
Today campers will use Adobe Illustrator to design their Minecraft skins as keychains. We’ll have a quick lesson on Illustrator tools and digital drawing before getting started on our designs. Then each camper will have a turn using the laser cutter to engrave their designs on a piece of birch before decorating and attaching a key ring or string! In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and play Minecraft together!
Tuesday - Slime Blocks
Time for a chemistry lesson! Today Campers will be making slime blocks! Useful in conjunction with pistons to move both blocks and entities, there’s nothing quite like them! We’ll begin by making our slime solution before adding colour, sparkles, and any other additives they’d like! Once our slime blocks are complete, we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and play minecraft together!
Wednesday - 3D printed Mobs
Today campers will get a crash course in TinkerCAD, a beginner friendly drag and drop 3D modeling platform. We’ll learn about how 3D printers work, as well as what makes for a successful 3D print, before designing our very own 3D printed minecraft mobs! We’ll make everything from armadillos to zombie villagers in Minecraft’s signature pixelated style. In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and try to find the mobs we 3D printed!
Thursday - LED Warden
Few mobs in Minecraft are as feared as the warden! Today campers will build their own warden lamps complete with glowing souls! We’ll start the day with a quick lesson about circuits, then campers will wire up an LED to light up their warden lamps. After that we’ll assemble the bodies of our wardens with laser cut pieces and install our lights. In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and try to defeat the warden!
Friday - Axolotl Walking Bot
Today campers will be building axolotl walking bots! This friendly, fan favourite mob can be found in lush caves, humid wooded biomes, and the basements of local coffee shops. Campers will wire up a single axis motor, then we’ll assemble the bodies of our axolotls out of laser cut pieces before installing our motors inside. In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and go looking for some axolotls!
Minecraft + Making Theme 2
July 14 - 18, August 11 - 15
Monday - LED Diamond Sword
We’re kicking off this week by crafting some diamond swords to keep us safe on our Minecraft adventures! We’ll start the day with a quick lesson about circuits, then campers will wire up an LED to light up their swords. Campers will take turns engraving their names on their swords with our laser cutter, before assembling, decorating and installing their LED’s. In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and craft some diamond swords to fight mobs!
Tuesday - 3D Printed Minecraft Magnets
Today campers will start the day with a crash course in TinkerCAD, a beginner friendly drag and drop 3D modeling platform. We’ll learn about how 3D printers work, as well as what makes for a successful 3D print, before designing our very own 3D printed Minecraft themed magnets! In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and play together!
Wednesday - Ore Block Hinged Box
Whether iron, emerald or rare ancient debris, an ore block is always a pretty cool find! Handy for crafting all sorts of items, these blocks are as useful as they are abundant, but the best thing about them by far is what they hold inside! Today we’ll be building hinged boxes in the shape of ore blocks to hold all our favourite real life crafting materials! In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and go searching for some our blocks to craft with!
Thursday - Coding Minecraft inspired Mini Games with Scratch
Today campers will get a crash course in Scratch, a beginner friendly, drag and drop coding software. Then we’ll use what we learned to make Minecraft inspired mini games. Maybe campers will code a crafting table simulator, a mountain biome platformer or even creeper target practice! We’ll help campers bring their wildest ideas to life! In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server for a gaming session!
Friday - Chicken Wobble Bot
Chickens are a staple mob for Minecraft homesteaders, providing an endless supply of both eggs and entertainment! Today campers will build chicken wobble bots that run and jump around just like in the game! We’ll start by wiring up a dc motor to a battery, and attaching a propeller, this will make our chicken move! Then we’ll assemble our chickens from laser cut pieces and decorate them! Finally we’ll install our motors and watch our chickens hop around! In the afternoon we’ll all join our private Maker Bean Minecraft server and find some chickens!