Who stole the theater tickets out of the school dressing room? And what dastardly villain drank that cream soda? Over the past three summers, 160 girls, ages 10 to 14, have used science and advanced technology to solve such mysteries at Click!, a camp designed by the Girls, Math & Science Partnership (GMSP), a program of Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Science Center. The camp aims to engage young women in science, math, and technology at a critical stage when they frequently lose interest in these fields.
During the six-day camp, girls take on secret agent personas and tackle a variety of cases. For example, in the Case of the Tossed Treasures, the girls use global positioning systems to find “gemstones” looted from a local museum. On the last day, the girls piece together clues they’ve gathered all week to solve a final mystery. Campers also have several opportunities to work with women scientists throughout the week.
There are currently two levels of Click!—one focusing on biomedical science and the other on environmental science. A third level will debut in 2009.
Organizations that would like to implement the program can purchase it from GMSP. For more information, visit GMSP’s web site or contact Jennifer Stancil, executive director of GMSP.
About the image: Girls participating in Click! investigate water quality on the confluence of Pittsburgh’s rivers to solve an environmental mystery. Photo courtesy the Girls, Math & Science Partnership