Summer STEM Camps Create Hands-On Fun + Immersive Learning for Kids & Teens

Want your child to learn about subjects in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math), and have fun doing it? Help them further understand the inner workings of what's all around them by enrolling them in a STEM-fueled summer camp. You may be surprised at the wide variety of highly-acclaimed summer camps in the St. Louis area that put new and exciting twists on STEM concepts, creating hands-on fun for kids with the benefit of introducing them to some of the latest technologies in AI, engineering, coding and more. Here are some STEM camps to take a look at:

Summer At SLU

Summer At SLU has long been known for offering a wide variety of camps for kids in kindergarten through 12th grade. This year is no exception. New to the Summer At SLU lineup are AI and cybersecurity camps for middle and high schoolers. Other camp themes include Creative Game Design with MITScratch, Build Your Own Mobile Apps with MIT App Inventor, Enginnering Summer Academy, Coding Fun with Javascript, Mad Science: Earth and Space Investigators, Cool Coding Basics with Java or Python, GeoSTEM Data Science, AI & Python: Smart Bots and Games, Game Design with Java, Business AI & Innovation, Data Analytics & Visualization and many more. Find the list of camps and register at summer.slu.edu. 

^{Saint Louis Chess Club Summer Camps}

Saint Louis Chess Club Summer Camps 

Saint Louis Chess Club’s chess summer camps are an engaging and educational choice for your child this summer. Saint Louis Chess Club offers expert guidance, skill development, and advanced learning opportunities for those ready to level up. Saint Louis Chess Club is unique in the sense that every camp is designed to provide a supportive and fun environment where students can practice their new skills through hands-on activities and workshops. Your child will develop confidence and a deeper understanding of the game with the help of Grandmasters and experienced instructors.  

Full and half-day camps are available for ages 6-14, with camps held weekly from May through August at various locations throughout St. Louis. There are also virtual learning opportunities available for those who can’t make it into an in-person camp or want even more chess education, as well as a Digital Classroom offering exciting online chess instruction for students in grades K-12. Plus, use promo code STLParentChess at registration and save 10%. Go to stlchessclub.org/chesscamps to sign up. 

Chaminade College Preparatory School Summer Camps 

Chaminade College Preparatory School has a variety of academic and STEM summer camps for boys and girls that offer a unique blend of learning and enjoyment, ensuring a productive and engaging summer. STEM camps include Generative AI camp for grades 7-12, Model Rocket for grades 4-8, Woodworking for grades 5-12, Video Editing for grades 5-12, CSPN Broadcasting for grades 5-12, three eSports camps, and Enginering: Build It for grades 5-12. Visit chaminade-stl.org/summer-camps for more information and to register.

^{Forsyth School Summer Discovery STEM Camps}

Forsyth School Summer Discovery Summer Camps 

Forsyth School’s Summer Discovery summer camp program provides a balance of structure and age-appropriate freedom, offering children age 3 through grade 7 a largely “unplugged” experience with a neighborhood feel. Forsyth School’s STEM camps include Little Lab Explorers for Pre-Primary school-aged children, Messy Makers, Materials Mayhem, Brain & Body, Eco Engineers, Curiosity Lab, Elements in Action, and Break It & Make It for Senior-K through grade 2 children, and 3D Printing, Robotics, AI Creators, From Scratch and Break It & Make It for grades 3-7. Learn more about Summer Discovery camps at forsythschool.org/summer-discovery.   

Westminster Christian Academy

Westminster Christian Academy in Town and Country offers a wide variety of STEM camps for kids in kindergarten through grade 8, running in June and July. Camp themes include STEM Explorers, Forces & Motion, Engineering & Design Thinking, Chemistry & Reactions, Energy & Simple Machines, Coding & Robotics, Earth & Space Science, and Environmental Science & Sustainability. There is also a camp called Stoked for Science for campers in grades 3-8 that offers a high-energy week of immersion into chemistry, biology, forensics, and food science. Learn more and register at wcastl.org/summer.

Maryville Center for Access and Achievement

Maryville University’s Center for Access and Achievement specializes in STEM camps that make learning exciting and hands-on. Combining real-world experience with cutting-edge technology in a fun and supportive environment, complete with expert instructors who are passionate about inspiring the next generation of tech leaders and setting them up for success in today’s digital world. Maryville Center for Access and Achievement features programs like Science and Robotics (ages 4-12), Teen Tech (grades 6-8), and Coding Camp for high school students. Learn more at maryville.edu/stem.

^{SLUH Summer STEM Camps}

SLUH STEM Camps 

Kids can embrace innovation and become a creative, collaborative and critical thinkers at St. Louis University High this summer. Camps for girls and boys are held at the school's well-regarded campus facilities, including a new Innovation Lab. SLUH is offering three weeks of STEM Summer Camp, certified by the Robotics Academy at Carnegie Mellon University. Robotics Summer Camp focuses on the programming of the new LEGO Spike Prime Robot, as well as data storage and the binary number system. As of this writing, one week is already at capacity. Visit sluh.org/summer for more information and to register.

Whitfield School Summer Programs

There’s so much to discover about STEM at Whitfield School’s Summer Programs! Kids in grades K-12 can spend the summer participating in hands-on STEM projects and leadership development in Camp Whitfield, or be challenged with STEM Camp, offering hands-on, project-based experiences in science, technology, engineering and math, Digital Photography, ACT & SAT Prep, Animation, and Inspirit AI, which introduces students to today's most powerful generative AI tools while guiding them to design and build an original AI application from scratch, focused on solving a social problem they care about. The program is taught in person by Stanford and MIT graduates specializing in AI. Go to whitfieldschool.org/summer-programs for more information. 

^{Whitfield School's Summer STEM Camp}

Mad Science of St. Louis 

With 13 locations across the St. Louis area, your child will discover the perfect blend of fun and learning at Mad Science of St. Louis’ summer camps! Campers launch rockets into the sky, investigate the mysteries of Earth and space, explore the gross (and fascinating!) side of science, or crack codes like real secret agents. Whether your child is building robots, designing space-age solutions, or coding games that get them moving, every day is packed with discovery and confidence-building fun. Visit stlouis.madscience.org for a list of camps, locations and dates and to sign up.

Code Ninjas Summer Camps in Kirkwood and Wildwood

Transfer your child’s love for technology into an exciting learning adventure with Code Ninjas of Wildwood. Offering 18 different camps for ages 5-14, Code Ninjas Camps provide kids with a fun learning experience while gaining valuable tech skills, led by Code Ninjas Senseis. Camps for ages 5-7 are designed for the youngest Ninjas, with a dedication to inspire kids to become creators through hands-on STEM projects, block-based coding with Scratch, Spike LEGO, Robotics, and game design using Minecraft and Roblox. Camps for ages 8 and up include Minecraft Redstone Engineering, Roblox Coding Basics, YouTube AI Production Studio, Digital Art & Game Design, and 3D Modeling Basics. Half and full-day camps are available, as well as before and after-care. Learn more and sign up at codeninjas.com/camps.

Bricks 4 Kidz Summer Camps 

At Bricks 4 Kidz, campers will learn STEM topics in a unique way: building moving models from Technic LEGO bricks. Bricks 4 Kidz offers basic brick-building themed camps (Journey with Sharks, Mario, Pokemon, Star Wars, Minecraft, Harry Potter, and more) that will build your child’s self-confidence and problem-solving skills, foster teamwork and collaboration, and spark their imagination. Bricks for Kidz camps are held all across the metro area, including Kirkwood, Town and Country, Center of Clayton, Mehlville and Lindbergh school districts, Lodge of Des Peres, Wentzville Rec, Olivette, Ballwin, Manchester Parks & Rec, Rossman School, and more. Go to bricks4kidz.us/stl to sign up.   

See even more summer camps in our popular Summer Camp Guide

Still looking for Spring Break Camps? See our guide here

Main photo courtesy of Summer at SLUH.