Union County 4-H STEM Bytes Summer Camp

I volunteered at Union County 4-H Summer Fun Program's STEM Bytes Camp, a five-day camp for ages 8-12 focused on robotics, coding, engineering, electronics, and hands-on problem solving. The camp ran from June 15-19, and each camper used a STEM Bytes journal to balance screen-based activities with offline planning, sketching, and reflection.

The first day introduced campers to STEM through activities that connected creativity with engineering. They started with a LEGO challenge, moved through a Four Corners activity about science, technology, engineering, and math, and even broke down the Chicken Dance into an algorithm to practice thinking like coders.

We started with the Micro:bit activities, but the Bluetooth and connection setup was not working. I spent my lunchtime troubleshooting with my 4-H Agent, and in the end we decided to remove the Micro:bit activities because they were not working consistently and were too complicated for the campers to follow in that setting. It was a clear reminder that unexpected issues can come up during a workshop, and you have to be ready to adapt.

Day two focused on programming movement. Campers worked through driving challenges like a precision course, a homerun route, a maze, and a pushing-object task. The schedule also included binary keychains, which connected robotics back to how computers represent information with zeros and ones.

The schedule also included a Micro:bit direction activity called Which Way Now? and a LEGO stop motion movie storyboard activity. Since the Micro:bit activities had already caused issues, the week had to shift where needed while still keeping campers working through robotics, coding, and design challenges.

The updated camp plan included an alternate Day 3 option with structural and creative activities, including gumdrop bridges, painting patterns, blindfold builds, the tallest tower challenge, boat challenge, balloon-powered cars, bridge blueprints, and robotic hands. The actual day also connected strongly to fluid power and mechanical design.

The hydraulic claw activity fit this day well because it showed campers how motion can be transferred through a simple system. Even though the day had an alternate schedule, the campers still had a great time and everything went well.

Day four focused on structural strength. Campers built robotic hands, drafted bridge blueprints, and completed You Are the Robot, where a team had to guide a blindfolded teammate through a maze using only communication. After that, they moved into the Great Bridge Challenge. In that challenge, teams used a STEM Bucks budget and a shopping list to design a bridge at least 12 inches long, wide enough for a SPIKE robot, and strong enough to hold at least one pound. Some bridges ended up holding more than 50 pounds.

Day five was the electric-themed day and the part of camp where I led my circuit-building workshop. Before my lesson, the campers did a short simple circuit activity, so they had already seen the basic idea that electricity needs a complete path to flow.

I had a full presentation and Jeopardy game planned, but once I started teaching, I realized it was hard to get and keep the campers' attention. The workshop was right before lunch, so most of them were waiting for lunch and recess. I moved through the presentation more quickly and replaced Jeopardy with an Electric Pulse group activity. Campers split into two groups and tried to pass a hand squeeze through the group as fast as possible, which helped demonstrate electricity moving through a path.

For the building part, campers worked on simple, series, and parallel circuits. I liked that they worked in pairs because they would ask each other questions and troubleshoot before reaching out to a CIT, intern, or 4-H Agent. They were energetic and curious, and they kept going even when the activity felt basic or repetitive.

This workshop taught me to be flexible because everything does not always go the way you planned. It also felt like a real example of the Feynman technique because I was explaining circuits to 8-12 year olds and had to make the ideas simple enough for them to understand and actually use.

After the workshop, campers continued refining their stop motion movies and went outside to take pictures for their pop art projects, which they had a lot of fun creating.

What I Took Away

Volunteering at STEM Bytes showed me how much planning goes into conducting a camp, but it also showed me that plans have to stay flexible. The Micro:bit troubleshooting and the changes I made during my circuit workshop both reminded me that teaching is not just about having a good activity prepared. It is also about reading the room and changing the approach when something is not working.

I am grateful for the opportunity to support Union County 4-H and help younger campers experience STEM in a hands-on way. The week was packed, but it was also a reminder that building, testing, and troubleshooting are often where the best learning happens.

STEM Bytes was a week of robotics, circuits, building challenges, and helping younger 4-H'ers see that STEM is fun!