AgriLife Extension to hold tot science camps in San Antonio

Youth 2-5 years old can learn about plants, insects, science

SAN ANTONIO –Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will be holding a Tots Science Camp June 14 and June 28 in Suite 208 of its office in Conroy Square, 3355 Cherry Ridge Drive, San Antonio.

The camps will be from 10 a.m.-noon and are open to children from 2 to 5 years old. Attendees will be given age-appropriate instruction, be shown basic science experiments and participate in fun and educational hands-on activities.

The cost is $20 per camp per child. A snack will be provided, and parents are strongly encouraged to stay with younger children.

The June 14 science camp will focus on plant basics, said Natalie Cervantes, AgriLife Extension youth garden coordinator in Bexar County and the camp’s instructor.

“Camp attendees will learn the parts of  a plant and how plants get energy from the sun and food from the soil,” Cervantes said. “They will be able to see how roots work through an experiment, and participate in take-home crafts activities that will show them how to plant at home.”

For her experiment, Cervantes will place a white carnation in dyed water and have the tots watch the carnation change colors.

“This will show them how the roots take liquid all the way to the tips of the flowers and also how flower shops can make different-colored flowers not found in nature.”

Cervantes said learning about plants helps young people better understand the role of plant life in the environment and gives them a fun and highly relatable way to become involved in science.

Space is limited to the first 20 paid registrants and campers must be registered by June 7 to attend.

The focus of the June 28 science camp will be entomology.

“This camp will show tots how to become junior entomologists,” said Molly Keck, AgriLife Extension entomologist in Bexar County and instructor for this camp. “We will cover the basics of what makes an insect an insect, and campers and their parents will get the chance to see live insects and arthropods, dig through dirt to discover what insects are living together and build their own bug-collecting device.”

Keck said teaching tots about bugs shows them how important insects are to the environment and the role they play in everyday life, including agricultural production.

A registration form for either camp may be obtained from Suite 212 of the AgriLife Extension office or online at http://bexar-tx.tamu.edu under the Entomology tab and by clicking on the “Insects and Kids!” link.

Make checks payable to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Return completed registration forms along with payment to: Molly Keck, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, 3355 Cherry Ridge, Suite 212, San Antonio, Texas 78230.

For more information, contact the instructor for your camp at the AgriLife Extension office for Bexar County, 210-467-6575.

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