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CAU > On-campus Summer Programs > Youth Programs > Big Reds, and Junior Cornellians

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Big Reds, and Junior Cornellians

  • July 12-18 (Week 1)
  • July 19-25 (Week 2)
  • July 26-August 1 (Week 3)
  • August 2-8 (Week 4)

Big Reds & Junior Cornellians

  • Big Reds are ages nine and ten.
  • Junior Cornellians (JCs) are ages eleven and twelve.

Morning educational programs taught by enthusiastic Cornell students emphasize demonstrations and a hands-on approach to learning while introducing youth and young adolescents to college and career opportunities within a field of interest. Register your child for one course each week. There's plenty of healthful, kid-friendly food for meals and snacks. Afternoons and a drop-in child-care program every evening feature field trips to places of interest on and off campus and so many things to do! Your Big Red or JC will make great new friends at Cornell while joining in activities that include outdoor games, arts and crafts, juggling, swimming, and bowling.

Morning Courses for Big Reds and Junior Cornellians Together

Horse Care and Riding

Certified instructors at Cornell's Oxley Equestrian Center will introduce Big Reds and JCs to horse care, grooming, use of equipment, and riding. For beginners as well as riders with some experience, this course covers the basics of horsemanship, such as control, learning to post to the trot, and cantering. It will also include correctly leading and handling horses, grooming techniques, saddling and bridling, and all sorts of useful information, such as how to give horses a bath and how to tell their age from their teeth! Additional fee: $140.

Outdoor Adventures

Led by instructors from Cornell's Outdoor Education Program, Big Reds and JCs will sample group-challenge facilities including the Lindseth Climbing Wall and the Hoffman Challenge Course. All five mornings are filled with physical activities for kids who like to be on the move, including ground-level games, lessons on safety and technique, and rappelling. Additional fee: $130.

Sailing

An introduction to sailing with practice on Cayuga Lake, this beginners' program is supervised and taught by instructors from Cornell's Department of Athletics and Physical Education's Aquatics Program. Young sailors will learn about the parts of a boat and how to tie knots and get hands-on practice in setting sail and navigating through water. The indoor rainy-day demonstrations and outdoor fun on the lake don't require any previous sailing experience, but everyone must know how to swim. Additional fee: $130.

Morning Courses for Big Reds Only

Ages nine and ten

Arts All Around

You Create inventive, multi-dimensional art with a variety of materials to craft, mold, shape, paste, build, paint, and draw a different project every day! Using objects and textures found in nature as well as traditional tools and art supplies, you'll develop new handson skills and learn to see and explore the world with an artist's eye.

Aeronautics

Fun with Flight Explore the science of flight and learn how to design an airplane, the perfect bird, or another "flying machine." Concepts of air flow, propulsion, materials and structures, and stability and control will be demonstrated, and you'll build (and let fly) models to test these basic elements of engineering. Materials fee: $25.

Morning Courses for Junior Cornellians Only

Ages eleven and twelve (and thirteen year olds entering seventh grade)

Into the Act

Performance Skills and Skits Build confidence, communication skills, and your own unique performance style through theater games, warm-ups, improvisation, radio scripts, and scene study. Whether or not you've ever played center stage, you'll learn the basics of acting through participation and observation, enjoy performances by other young local actors, and practice an actor's preparation for great roles.

Space Exploration

A Visitor's Guide to the Universe Just as powerful telescopes have revolutionized our view of the cosmos, robotic probes and rovers now beam back to Earth startling details of alien landscapes. What do we know about the origin and evolution of the universe? Take a cosmic voyage through space and time, learn how science and technology make space travel and exploration possible, and help us imagine extraterrestrial life. Compare and contrast film fiction with cutting-edge technologies, and visit projects on campus and off to discover more about stars, planets, quasars, and galaxies.