You are currently browsing the archives for the iD In The News category.
July 26th, 2011 by: Elise
July 26, 2011
by Carl Lieberman
iD Tech Camps, now in their fifth year at Seton Hall University in South Orange, are not the typical summer camp experience.
Classrooms on campus are transformed into digital education hubs with video game artwork on the walls, dazzling displays of code on the screens and dozens of students learning everything from video game creation to graphic design for advertising.
Launched in 1999 in Silicon Valley, iD, short for internalDrive, Tech Camps are a family-owned company that offers weeklong courses hat covering a host of computer-related fields, while still offering a more conventional camp experience.
“We’re not just a tech camp,” said Director Amanda Jones.
Instead, the program emphasizes “both facets of camp life” and includes games and outdoor time in addition to the computer labs.But the focus is still on sharpening 21st century skills in campers.
Students use industry-standard software and hardware such as Wacom tablets, Multimedia Fusion 2 and Adobe Photoshop.
The games used are acclaimed and contemporary, like Valve’s Half-Life 2 and Obsidian Entertainment’s Neverwinter Nights 2. Chris Dodd, 12, of Maplewood, a returning camper, took a course on video game modifications using Blizzard Entertainment’s popular real-time strategy game, Star Craft II: Wings of Liberty.He applied knowledge from previous sessions to create several new maps for the game.
“I liked the variety of things to do,” he said. “It’s not just computers.”
“It’s really fun and we’re all doing different things,” agreed Adam Yawdoszyn, 13, of South Orange. Yawdoszyn learned about C++ and Java, two computer languages.
He started the week with basic tasks such as printing his name and went on to more complex coding, such as teaching a computer how to play games.Campers will create a final project, a culmination of the skills learned during the week, which will be shown off during family day at the end of the course.
It allows campers to tackle high-level projects with rewarding results. Yawdoszyn said he loved the feeling of “actually playing the game that you know you made” and knowing “that you can do all of that.”
Cameron Lodd, another 13-year-old South Orange resident in the C++ and Java course, made an encryption program for his final project.
“You’re incorporating everything into something great,” he said, mentioning that he gets the “best feeling” when everything he made works.
The camp aims to offer individuals the knowledge and practice to hone computer skills. Robotics, video editing, game design, Flash animation, and many more are offered during the summer. Each course is one week, and campers are free to attend multiple sessions.
In addition to the normal camp activities, this year iD Tech Camps have partnered with the Arbor Day Foundation to plant a tree for every camper in an effort to support the environment. ”iD always looks for new ways to stay green” Jones said on the partnership, adding that it is “a new step for iD.”
As the week ends, campers finish their final projects for family day and reflect on the fun and learning they had done over the week. ”I’m sad it’s almost over,” said Lodd.
iD Tech Camps are for youngsters aged 7 to 17. Tuition begins at $799 for commuter students and $1,298 for overnight students. The camp began the last week in June and continues until early August, though space is extremely limited.
July 26th, 2011
Posted in: iD In The News, Princeton University, Seton Hall University
July 21st, 2011 by: Ryan
Kids develop video games, apps at “Tech Camp”
By Karen Kucher
Sitting at his computer, Thomas Nielsen was immersed in a video game, an imaginary world where a tiny purple squid named Inky battled the King Tomato, the Strawberry Queen and evil turnips.
But Thomas wasn’t playing the game — he was creating it. More specifically, he was making a sequel to the game he designed the previous summer.
“It was only like four levels last time. I’m trying to go for eight, at least eight,” he said.
Click here to read the full article about our CA summer camps
July 21st, 2011
Posted in: iD In The News, UC San Diego
July 21st, 2011 by: Elise
July 21, 2011
By Karen Kucher
Sitting at his computer, Thomas Nielsen was immersed in a video game, an imaginary world where a tiny purple squid named Inky battled the King Tomato, the Strawberry Queen and evil turnips.
But Thomas wasn’t playing the game — he was creating it. More specifically, he was making a sequel to the game he designed the previous summer.
“It was only like four levels last time. I’m trying to go for eight, at least eight,” he said.
Thomas is 10. And about to enter the fifth grade.
Click here to read full article.
July 21st, 2011
Posted in: iD In The News, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara
July 21st, 2011 by: Ryan
Digital camp prepares kids for jobs of the future
By Anna Bitong
At a time when most teens are still exploring a variety of paths, Joshua Lipstone, 17, has chosen his future career.
For seven summers, Joshua has attended iD Tech Camps at Cal Lutheran University, which teach kids 7 to 18 how to create iPhone apps, robots, video games and websites. The camps are offered at 60 universities across the country, including UCLA and Stanford.
This summer, Joshua is learning to create a website using HTML and Flash.
“I went to these classes because I was interested in computers, but they really have (increased) my interest as well,” said the youth, who participates in an independent study program through River Oaks Academy in Westlake Village during the school year.
After high school, he hopes to attend Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, Caltech in Pasadena, or Massachusetts Institute of Technology to study computer science.
Tyler Hom, 17, joined the camp for the first time this summer to learn how to use Adobe Dreamweaver.
“I really like it. I’ll definitely leave this camp knowing more than my dad (an illustrator). Now I have some expertise,” said Tyler, who will be a senior at Westlake High School and also plans to study computer science in college.
As they build websites and create video games at the Cal Lutheran campus on a Thursday morning, students are so focused on the task at hand that their eyes rarely leave the computer screen.
Without interrupting the steady click of his mouse as he lined up animated military tanks for his video game, aspiring architect Sam Simonoff, 11, said the class would help him prepare for his career.
“It requires building, math and computer skills,” said the Robert Frost Middle School student.
Graydon Simons, 10, looks forward to a career as a video game designer.
“The best part of this class is making your own video games and getting to use animated objects,” said the student at Round Meadow Elementary in Calabasas.
Other campers enjoy the chance to be creative.
“I’m making a website about an invention I just made up,” said Jesse Chien, 11.
Camp director Ken Gorman said the kids are serious about learning.
“They come here to work. It’s nice to run a camp where I very rarely have a disciplinary problem. They get along really well. They want to come in the morning; they don’t want to leave at night,” said Gorman, who also teaches at Oaks Christian School.
Before returning as an instructor at the camp, Peter Sylvester was a student for five summers. He said the best part of the class was discovering his talents.
“I learned I could actually make games myself if I have the tools and knowledge,” he said.
Camp sessions range from one to six weeks and include recreational activities such as swimming and gaming tournaments.
Costs start at $799 for day camps and at $1,298 for overnight programs.
When their session is over, students can maintain their skills through free monthly online workshops
For more information, visit www.internaldrive.com
Click here to read this Thousand Oaks summer camps article on toacorn.com
July 21st, 2011
Posted in: Cal Lutheran University, iD In The News
July 20th, 2011 by: Elise
Monday, July 20, 2011
By Meghan Morris
He’s only 7 years old, not yet a second-grader at Valley Forge Elementary School, but Adam Gould is certain of his future. He does not just aspire to be an inventor: this, he says, is what he was made for.
“I was created to be an inventor,” he said, chasing a robot he created named Bob around the floor.
At iD Tech Camp, he has the opportunity to explore this budding passion during a day program at Villanova University.
Gould is one of 74 campers, ages 7 to 17, who are exploring technology through hands-on projects, like building robots or creating movies, and small-group instruction in both day and overnight sessions.
“It’s always great to have a place for kids who may not necessarily be into that kind of sports camp,” director Sarah Clausen said. “This really engages them in a new way, with technology and computer sciences.”
Students choose from a variety of courses, learning how to create computer programs, iPhone apps, websites, videos and more.
Kristy Majetich, a junior studying computer science at Villanova, is one of 10 instructors at the camp. For her programming class, she begins with the basics of Java and C++ and moves on according to the class’s ability.
“My goal is for the kids to understand what they’re doing and get excited about Java because you can do so much with it,” Majetich said.
Some students attend the camp for several years, building on the previous years’ lessons. Sam Kruger, who will be a freshman at Friends’ Central, has gone to iD Tech since 2007.
“I’ve taken almost all the courses here, but I’ve made different things each time,” he said.
This summer he is attending the camp for four weeks. On July 14 Kruger was busy creating a computer game similar to Dance Dance Revolution that he described as a challenge, due to the game platform, but one that he could certainly tackle.
“I used the stuff I learned here to make a video and a Web site for school projects,” Kruger said. “I help my family with technology because they’re not great at it.”
In addition to school assignments, Clausen said that students use camp as a way to explore future careers – whether they are 7 years old, like Adam the inventor, or looking into college degrees.
“A lot of our students are teens, so a lot of them are using the camp as a stepping stone to take AP Computer Science or go into college-level courses,” she said.
Students do take time out, away from computers, to enjoy the summer. Villanova campers’ favorite free-time activities include four-square and Ultimate Frisbee, and overnight campers have movie nights and gaming tournaments.
“It’s a camp, so we do some of that fun camp stuff,” Clausen said. “We’re not at computers the entire day; we do get outside and run around.”
Click here to read the article in the Main Line Media News.
July 20th, 2011
Posted in: American University, iD In The News, Ohio State University, Villanova University
July 19th, 2011 by: Elise
July 19, 2011
By Bill Conrad
PLANO — Video games ranging from Rock Paper Scissors to Call of Duty clones were created during last week’s iD Tech Camp.
Plano ISD students Robert Zhu and Sterling Chambers were just two of the young video game designers who attended the camp, where campers learned everything from basic programming to video editing.
“We use technology to teach the kids how to design video games and learn basic programming using languages such as C++,” said Olympia Thomas, camp director. “One new thing we are doing is our iPhone app classes. The kids are able to program an iPhone app. The kids can create them at a very young age, beginning at 7 years old.”
Click here to read the full article.
July 19th, 2011
Posted in: iD In The News, Southern Methodist University, St. Edward’s University, Trinity University
July 19th, 2011 by: Ryan
Brown University hosts a summer camp for the cyber age
By Gina Macris
PROVIDENCE — In another era, 11-year-old Joseph Laflamme of Smithfield might not have developed his storytelling skills, since English is not his favorite subject at school.
But as a video-game developer, Joseph has created Freezor, a villain covered in icy blue fur who steals the tacos in “Julio Taquito’s Epic Adventures in Quality Mexican Food.”
To get the tacos back, the game player must board a spaceship and chase Freezor across another dimension, dodging the circular blades the monster throws like Frisbees.
Click here to read the full article about our Providence summer camps
July 19th, 2011 | Tags: accredited summer camps, camps at Brown, computer camps, computer games, Rhode Island summer camps, video game camps, video games
Posted in: Brown University, iD In The News
July 19th, 2011 by: Ryan
Designing the next great video game
By Bill Conrad
PLANO — Video games ranging from Rock Paper Scissors to Call of Duty clones were created during last week’s iD Tech Camp.
Plano ISD students Robert Zhu and Sterling Chambers were just two of the young video game designers who attended the camp, where campers learned everything from basic programming to video editing.
“We use technology to teach the kids how to design video games and learn basic programming using languages such as C++,” said Olympia Thomas, camp director. “One new thing we are doing is our iPhone app classes. The kids are able to program an iPhone app. The kids can create them at a very young age, beginning at 7 years old.”
Click here to read the full article about our summer camps in Texas
July 19th, 2011
Posted in: iD In The News, Southern Methodist University, Trinity University
July 19th, 2011 by: Ryan
Camp Geared for the High Tech Kids
By Mark Storer
Scott Miller stared hard at the computer screen, making decisions that might decide the fate of the world. This world, at least.
Scott, 7, of Thousand Oaks, recently attended an iD Tech Camp at California Lutheran University, taking a class called Game Design using Fusion software and creating the characters and the story for a game he called, “Crabs Are Taking Over the World.”
Scott could well be the next computer software guru, though he wasn’t thinking about that just now. He was the youngest of 13 students, all boys, though that’s not a requirement, in idtech camp, as it’s known.
Click here to read the full article about out Southern CA summer camps
July 19th, 2011
Posted in: Cal Lutheran University, iD In The News
July 18th, 2011 by: Elise
Technology camp builds app-titude
By Regina Wang
Chapel Hill — In this summer camp, rock climbing isn’t half as cool as creating a video game about rock climbing.
In a dimmed room where rows of computers replace ropes courses, campers – mostly boys – speak in programming language and make rampant jokes about Macs and PCs. Forget about swimming or building campfires, they spend intensive hours learning how to create iPhone apps, designing video games, and enjoying the camaraderie of fellow gamers.
“It’s a fun way to prepare you going into the industry,” said Ed Rayburn, 16, of Winston-Salem. “You don’t have to be a nerd.”
Technology-driven summer camps are growing in interest and size; iD Camps, a California company that runs the program in Chapel Hill, says it has gained 2,000 new campers this summer, boosting its overall enrollment to 20,000 nationally. The company rents classrooms on college campuses, such as Harvard, MIT and UNC-Chapel Hill.
Click here to read the full article about our summer camps in North Carolina
July 18th, 2011 | Tags: academic summer camps, programming camps, teen summer camps, web design
Posted in: College of William & Mary, Emory University, iD In The News, UNC Chapel Hill, Vanderbilt University
