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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 July 3 - Sept 1 inclusive in full-week, 5-day sessions (except Aug 8-11, which is 4 days due to the Civic holiday).
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!)
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
Weekly themes
We have 2 Maker Week themes & 2 Minecraft Week themes - if signing up for multiple weeks, we recommend signing up for different camps (e.g., Maker Week 1 & 2, Minecraft Week 1 & 2, or any Maker Week & any Minecraft Week!)
Maker Week 1 theme
Week 1: (July 3-7) & Week 2: (July 10-14)
Monday
In the morning, we’ll make our own light-up summer cottages: building the base of the cottage, decorating the outside, and putting together the LED circuit to make the whole thing work. In the afternoon, we’ll go into the digital world, and design custom door signs to be lasercut out of wood
Tuesday
In the morning, we’ll use TinkerCAD to design our own 3D printed magnets, and watch the first of our creations get printed. In the afternoon, we’ll learn about the process of animation, and use the online Wick animator to draw and animate our own gif emojis.
Wednesday:
Today, we’re building and decorating teeny Mars rovers, based after Nasa’s Perseverance! We’ll build the motor circuits, set up the wheel mechanisms, and build the body of our bots. Finally, we’ll decorate our bots and get them ready to “explore” your house!
Thursday:
Today, we’re making 3D-printed cat lamps! In the morning, we’ll use TinkerCAD to build a cat from basic shape blocks. In the afternoon, we’ll build the base of our cat lamp, decorate it, and wire the circuit to light the whole thing up!
Friday: On our final day, we’ll design and build a custom treasure chest. In the morning, we’ll use Adobe Illustrator to design custom “cutouts” for the front of the chest, and watch our laser cutter make them real. In the afternoon, we’ll build and decorate the chests!
Maker Week 2 theme
Week 4 (July 24-28), Week 6: (Aug 8-11, 4 days), Week 8: (August 21-25)
Monday:
In the morning, we’ll build Brush Bugbots: critters that use a propeller and their many tiny “feet” to move around. In the afternoon, we’ll fold origami jumping frogs, and build a circuit with copper wire so that their eyes light up when they jump!
Tuesday
In the morning, we’ll design custom tiny books: designing the covers on Adobe Illustrator, laser cutting those patterns into wood, and building/binding our books, then “print” our covers and bind the tiny books to go inside of them. In the afternoon, we’ll do an Hour of Code: an online program that teaches kids their first coding lessons in a fun format!
Wednesday
On Wednesday, we’ll start off the day by designing 3D printed articulated animals! We’ll start with a “flat” shape, then add the spaces and joints to make our animals bend. In the afternoon, we’ll make a light-up anglerfish with a mesmerizing pattern of lights!
Thursday
Today, we’ll build a shambling zombiebot with a creepy, jerky walk! We’ll wire our motor circuits in the morning, and start putting our zombies together. In the afternoon, we’ll finish up the zombies, and decorate them to bring them to “life”!
Friday
Our last project for the week is a stuffed animal with a technological twist! In the morning, our makers will draw what they want their stuffed animals to look like, and then “draw” the pieces necessary to make it on Adobe Illustrator so we can lasercut them out of felt. In the afternoon, we’ll sew our plushies together and glue the cutout pieces on!
Minecraft Week 1 theme
Week 3 (July 17-21) & Week 7 (Aug 14-18)
Note: In the afternoons, we’ll be engaging in structured play on a “survival mode” Minecraft server together! This week’s challenge: building a city from the stone age to the age of electricity!
Monday
In the morning, we’ll make a real-life redstone lamp. In the afternoon, we’ll self-separate into groups and map out the locations of our cities.
Tuesday
In the morning, we’ll design and build a custom creeper plushie, using our lasercutter. In the afternoon, we’ll get villager eggs to populate our cities, and build up homes for them!
Wednesday
In the morning, we’ll design our own 3D-printed keychains based on Minecraft tools. In the afternoon, we’ll build the redstone “power grid” of our cities!
Thursday
In the morning, we’ll use motor circuits to build a Minecraft-style enchanting table with a book that actually rotates! In the afternoon, we’ll build defenses for our cities.
Friday
In the morning, we’ll build a Minecraft Warden with a real-life sonic “attack”! In the afternoon, we’ll test out those defenses with a large-scale pillager raid on the city!
Minecraft Week 2
Week 5 (July 31-Aug 4) & Week 9 (Aug 28-Sept 1)
Note: In the afternoons, we’ll be engaging in structured play on a “survival mode” Minecraft server together! This week’s challenge: survival expeditions into Minecraft’s most dangerous terrain!
Monday
In the morning, we’ll build a Nether Bastion with genuine glowing “lava.” In the afternoon, we’ll build our main base, and prep for our expeditions!
Tuesday
In the morning, we’ll design and lasercut tiny Minecraft-style banners. In the afternoon, we’ll build our first base in the Nether, and set out in exploring groups from that base.
Wednesday
In the morning, we’ll use the tools of TinkerCAD to design our own custom creepers. In the afternoon, we’ll build a base in the End, and set out in exploring groups from that base!
Thursday
In the morning, we’ll use motor circuits to make a tiny Minecraft frog. In the afternoon, we’ll build a base in an Ancient City, and set out in exploring groups from that base!
Friday
In the morning, we’ll use the online Wick animator to draw and animate a gif of an exploding creeper. In the afternoon, we’ll pick our favourite biome, and explore it further!