Welcome to Youth Academy of Excellence Camps!

Join us for a summer experience that will give you a preview of college life and a chance to study with other bright and motivated students. Classes are small and curriculum is fast paced. Participate with your peers in small group discussions, multimedia presentations, experiments, and field trips. Choose one or two weeks and study one in-depth topic each week, use campus resources, and establish long-lasting friendships.

Youth Academy of Excellence classes are designed for bright and motivated students; those in gifted and talented programs are especially encouraged to enroll.

Summer 2015 Class Registration is Now Open

YAE: Elementary

For students going into the second, third, and fourth or fifth, sixth, and seventh grade in the fall. Designed for students in gifted and talented programs. Lunch provided daily.

YAE: Writing Magic (Age 7-9)
Make magic with your words this summer in the perfect course for the young writer. Learn special writing tricks such as how to create sparkling descriptions, memorable characters, and hooks that mystify your reader. Explore different writing genres like poetry, fiction, and finding magical writing topics in everyday life. Borrow magic writing secrets from your favorite authors and even learn real magic trick or two. In this playful course, students are encouraged to develop their writing confidence and 'abracadabra!' Leave the week a proud author.

Ultimate Math Mash-up with Zaniac (Age 7-9)
Ultimate Math Mash-up with Zaniac (Age 10-12)
Get excited about math! This Ultimate Math Mash-up will use Zane Math to advance your math skills and teach you how to apply these skills to the real world! Start the camp with an assessment to identify which concepts you already know, and which concepts you can improve on. Zaniac will generate a customized curriculum for the week that will challenge you to creatively solve problems in a small groups and work through tough problems on your own. Daily feedback on progress from Zaniac instructors and scanned worksheets are confidentially posted online to keep parents involved in the learning process. After the academic component, head out onto campus and into the city to put your math skills to work. Meet with architects and engineers to learn about designing building or inventing machines. Play a video game and learn about designing your own with Electronic Arts and Engineering, the #1 computer programming school in the country! Get hands on experience in science as you explore the mysteries of the world with the Chemistry and Physics departments. This is the most in depth math program Youth Education has ever offered and it is sure to be a great experience for all!
NOTE: Co-sponsored with Zaniac.

YAE: Invention Dimension (Age 10-12)
This week will be filled with wonder and imagination as we discover how inventions have changed the way we interact with our world. We'll discover how successful people make their dreams come true, as well as enjoy the magic that comes with creating an invention that is unique to each student. This class will be an exciting hands-on adventure for all those who love to use their imaginations.

YAE: Anatomy and Physiology Lab (Age 10-12)
Come take a detailed hands-on look at some of the major organs and organ systems found in mammals. Dissect a preserved sheep eye, brain, kidney, heart, and lungs and also study the anatomy of the ear and digestive system. Test your own vision, lung capacity, and heart functions. Perform experiments with digestive enzymes, and learn about osmosis and diffusion by making and observing your own model of a kidney with dialysis tubing. Activities will also include art projects, films, microscope work, simple physiology experiments, and field trips to U of U medical and/or science labs.

YAE: Writing Wizards (Age 10-12)
Welcome to a week at the YAE school of wizardry and magic, where you'll be trained in the art of writing wizardry! Jump into portraits, turn back time, and wear your invisibility cloaks while practicing magic with your words. Learn from wizard masters how to imagine stories with developed, believable characters from everyday, ordinary moments. Try your hand at poetry, fantasy writing, and personal narratives. Examine your writing through magical writing lenses to discover how to best create powerful story endings. In addition, we'll practice our interpersonal skills by learning how to find the right spell for any situation (in or out of the muggle world), and submitting our work for publication like a professional author. Meet at Platform 9 and 3/4 for the writing wizard's ideal class!

YAE: Blast off with Solar Energy! (Age 10-12)
Explore and harness the power of Solar Energy! Learn about alternative energy sources, discover photovoltaic cells, build and cook with a solar oven and learn how to use solar energy to power everyday objects. Join us for a sizzling week of fun with the sun!

*NEW ROBOcomp: Competitive Robot Games (Age 10-12)
You're familiar with FLL, but what about a new spin on robotics competition? Learn to program an EV3 robot to play soccer. Be innovative and create new designs with robots you're already familiar with. Learn advanced programming and use logic to solve more complex tasks. Take your creation and compete against other teams and try to score the most goals. This may inspire you to enter into another international competition. You will definitely get a kick out this! (Get it!)

YAE: Intensive Art Academy (Age 10-12)
Description and link coming soon!

YAE: Middle School

For students going into eighth, ninth, and tenth grade in the fall. Designed for students in gifted and talented programs. Lunch provided daily.

YAE: Inventions of Antiquity (Age 13-15)
Long before computers and cellphones, civilizations accomplished amazing feats in science, architecture, urban planning, medicine, and art. Examine the circumstances and inventions that allowed humans to build incredible civilizations that are still admired today. Recreate some of the greatest inventions from antiquity on up to Leonardo da Vinci, and discover that all you need is a little ingenuity and foresight to change the world.

YAE: Forensic Dissection and Anatomy Lab (Age 13-15)
You could be the next CSI medical expert! Come join us for a unique forensic lab activity. Conduct a detailed dissection of a preserved fetal pig, modeling the protocols used by pathologists for a human autopsy. Investigate all the organs and organ systems, examine slides of tissue types, and learn to suture incisions. Learn and use the techniques of forensic anthropologists to solve a mystery of some "found human bones." Become a forensic botanist by dissecting and observing the anatomy of flowers to solve a murder mystery. Activities will also include films, microscope work, field trips to U of U medical and/or science labs, and opportunities to meet with real pathologists.

YAE: Seize the Story - Intensive Writing for Teen Writers (Age 13-15)
This is it. This is the week where you write (or finally finish) the best story you've written so far. Whether you enjoy writing fiction or non-fiction, in this class you'll join other teen writers in creating a story with moving description, memorable characters, and a 'so what' ending that leaves your readers wanting more. In addition, you'll learn the art of the 'query letter,' explore possible writing careers, and have the chance to submit your writing to a national teen magazine for publication. There's a story waiting out there that only you can write. Don't miss your chance to seize the story!
Link to registration coming soon!

YAE: Marine Biology and Ecology (Age 13-15)
Discover the fascinating world of salt water systems and how organisms adapt to this unique environment. Examine the intricate relationships between plants, fish, mammals, humans, and the non-living components of salt water ecosystems. Get hands-on experience dissecting specimen and studying organisms under microscopes as you learn about the anatomy, energy/food needs, and life cycles of salt water inhabitants. Take a behind-the-scenes look at an aquarium, conduct research at the Great Salt Lake, and snorkel with fish and sharks at the Bonneville Seabase.

YAE: Innovation Week—Giving Your Passion Purpose (Age 13-15)
Take your passion and match it with creative solutions to real problems and issues in the world. Learn what it takes to turn your big ideas into reality. Visit research and innovation labs on campus and discover how to become an innovator and entrepreneur. Work with a team to design and develop a creative new product. Then learn to promote and pitch your idea. The U leads the nation in entrepreneurship and innovation so join us and get experienced with the tricks of the trade.

*NEW Advanced Robotics: Moving Beyond LEGOs (Age 13-15)
Move beyond Mindstorm and take your understanding of robotics and programming to the next level. The natural "next step" to experiential learning is a NEW robotics design called STEM-Du. Become the first people in Utah to use this design. You won't find this ANYWHERE else! Designed and assembled in Japan for educational purposes, STEM-Du is programmed using the Arduino platform to provide an Integrated Development Environment. STEM-Du is compatible with many programming languages including C or Arduino software. Don't miss this chance to join us for this unique opportunity!