2017 Golden Teddy Awards — Camps + Classes

Winner: Pacific Science Center

A beloved local institution, Pacific Science Center earned your votes for its camps focused on STEM topics, including marine science, cooking, robotics and even the chemistry of candy! You gushed over the “awesome, intriguing science curriculum” that has campers studying the science of amusement parks, spy science and wilderness survival, among other themes that will make grown-ups wish they could go to camp. Kids dig the creative and hands-on nature of camps, and you appreciate how the science center makes learning so fun. A wide array of camps welcomes kids from pre-K through eighth grade.

Finalists

You know your kids love playing with computers. At Bellevue’s STEP Computer Academy, instructors aim to turn computers from toys into tools in the hands of kids, teaching programming, robotics, game design and more. Your kids are eating it up, as evidenced by your votes.

KidsQuest Children’s Museum gets the youngest scientists digging into STEM at its half-day camps, such as Science Explorers, using real tools and staging chemical reactions. Older campers, ages 6–8, tackle principles of physics in Fantastic Forces camp, and use circuitry in art in a camp connected with Bellevue Arts Museum, among other camp themes.

Your votes put Witty Scientists among the finalists for its engaging, STEM-focused camps, such as Gross Out STEM Mania, which digs into slime, mold and fizz. CSI Mystery Camp has kids analyzing fingerprints and bite marks, and using other real-life techniques. In a testimonial on Witty Scientists’ website, one parent said her kids “have loved the fun, hands-on learning, with projects that are geared towards what kids are into.”

Steve & Kate’s Camp is known for its convenient, any-day enrollment options and provided daily lunch. You also love it for its innovative STEM programming focused on digital creativity, including robotics, music, film and more.