Anyone going to Splash next weekend? My 7th grade DS and I are going for the first time- wanted to put it out there in case anyone wants to connect!

I'd love to connect! I'll be in the parent's room! Send me a PM so I'll know what you look like!

What is Splash?

I had to look it up because I wasn't familiar with it either. Sounds interesting.

http://esp.mit.edu/learn/Splash/index.html


If I'm wrong ... please let me know.

yes, yes, that's it - it's for kids in 7th grade/age 12 in some combination I don't quite remember. It's the highlight of my son's year.

Sent you a PM

Sounds extremely interesting... but a little tough for this West Coast family.

Does anybody know of similar offerings from West Coast universities?

Oh how cool! No 7-12 graders here but good to know about.

I'll be there. Please say hi if you see me in the parent lounge!

I think Stanford does a Splash for those on the "other" coast. There are a handful of schools doing some type of Splash program now.

I would love it if there was one in CA! We are actually on the West Coast but are going to Boston for the weekend - my DS is a history buff and we've never been to Boston, and I thought it would be fun to see Harvard, MIT, etc., so we are making a weekend of it (we'll have Friday and Monday to do tourist things). We had some frequent flyer tickets so were able to use those, and we are leaving 50% of the kids at home

Isn't he in 7th grade? I think it said they had to be enrolled in 7th grade or, if homeschooled, at least 11.

I poked around and found this - there is a Splash at Stanford! I had no idea The next one appears to be in April of 2010 (they just had one last month as well).

Splash at Stanford

This thread is almost a year old, but the answer is yes, other campuses are running Splash programs! The current list is here: http://www.learningu.org/current-programs

My organization, Learning Unlimited, is helping spread Splash programs to new college campuses, so if we are doing our jobs well, you'll be seeing that list grow quite a bit in the next few months ;-)

Though Splash programs vary slightly by campus, the general idea is the same: college students, graduate students, and community members volunteer to teach high school and/or middle school students on topics of interest, so students might be in a class on high-energy physics in the morning and a class on salsa dancing in the afternoon. Our programs are committed to being accessible and affordable, so they are either free or inexpensive, with financial aid available. No application is required, though some classes might have prerequisites. Please check with individual programs with regards to other policies.

Please message me if I can provide any more information on Learning Unlimited or individual campus programs.

--Amy E.
Learning Unlmited

Hi - I'm wondering who is going to MIT's Splash this year. Anyone for sure? Any still on the fence. There is still plenty of time to sign your High School and Jr. High School aged kids up @ esp.mit.edu/learn/Splash/index.html

I would strongly recommend this program to anyone with kids the right age with in a 6 hour drive. 9 hours if you feel like your kids would really benifit from not feeling like they were born on the 'wrong' planet. Doing only one day (Saturday Nov 20 or Sunday Nov 21) is perfectly fine if you want to jus 'get your feet wet.' They only ask for 30$ for as much or as little as one wants to do.

There is also a Parent's program that is free and optional that runs concurrently. My meditation teacher will be leading parents in a meditation session as part of that - but I'll post more about that on a seperate thread.

Love and More Love,
Grinity

Hello again - are any families planning on doing Splash this year? DS15 and I will be there!

Let me know if you will be there too so we can chat.

Smiles,
Grinity

My girls went to the one @ CU Boulder recently and enjoyed it. It was their first time hosting a Splash program so there were definitely some organizational issues and their #s were smaller than they probably will be in future years which led to the microbiology class that dd13 was really wanting to take being cancelled at the last minute, but...

It was fun none the less and we'll likely try it again. The one @ MIT sounds great and a two day program w/ a parent program as well sounds quite awesome!

The MIT splash program is just amazing. Just standing in the registration line with thousands of other kids who 'burn to learn' is inspiring. And no need to show credentials to attend - they simply do what they do and allow word of mouth to attract and retain kids who would benefit.

Which isn't to say that they are organized or that classes don't get canceled at the last minute. (MIT Students teach them, and can flake out) For the first several years I'd count on there being at least one emotional melt down (either before, during or after) and be 'available' through out the day with a trusty book or a new 'fun looking' mini-game as a breather. This year they are having 'walk in' classes which are designed to 'rescue' the kids who have unexpected schedule changes.

Smiles,
Grinity