Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy science activities for almost-9 year old?

DS(almost)9 and DD6 are almost polar opposite in their interests. She is very artistic and creative, outgoing, and loves soccer and anything with fur. He is not all that creative, but excellent at math and science, and the only sport he really enjoys is taekwondo (he has tried others, but doesn't do well in them and gets frustrated - he is surprisingly good at taekwondo.) Anyway, DD has done everything from soccer to art lessons to community theater, loves every minute of it, and does really well. DS, however, has a serious shortage of activities in which he can participate. I would like to find him some science-related activities, if possible. Maybe a science club of some sort? I told him he could go to Space Camp next summer, and he is incredibly excited about it. But I get the impression that right now, he feels left out because all of his sister's interests are being nurtured and all I can do with him is teach him astronomy at home. (He does enjoy that, but it's not the same as being around other kids with similar interests). Does anyone have any ideas for how to combat this problem? I live on the coast of NC, if that helps - not the world's most academically-oriented area.

It's difficult to be helpful, without a lot of local knowledge - and we too have experienced that there just isn't much out there for sciency kids. (A friend and I were moaning about the lack of science summer camps here, and fantasising about starting one - oh, except that we both have jobs already. Oops.)

Are online communities any use? There are various online maths sites that have some kind of community attached to them, where kids can e.g. compete against one another or discuss problems. Art of problem solving is the one I know best (Alcumus plus discussion forums plus a competitive game called For The Win which I have no direct experience of) but I think Mathletes has something similar...?

Have you checked into local college/universities? Many have programs for K-12 students during the summer months, and while quality varies (greatly!) among classes and programs, a surprising number have a STEM focus.

Lego Robotics is another great outlet for kids like this if you have a robust program near you (or you can start your own FLL team).

I *just* today found a lovely online Science course. It has live teleclasses for chemistry experiments as well as a full curriculum right from K through to 12! It's run by a former NASA rocket scientist, and is aimed at homeschoolers, but I cannot see why anyone couldn't do it and really enjoy it.

http://www.superchargedscience.com/