Adventure, fun and science collide to make summers awesome at Exploration Place in Wichita. Your camper will spend the summer exploring new topics and learning through hands-on interactive STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) activities. They will make new friends and create exciting memories to last a lifetime.
Are you a member? Members save $40 per child, per week.
Step into the world of Minecraft-no screens required! In this hands-on camp, young builders bring their favorite game to life through creative projects, problem-solving challenges, and real-world science fun. Each day explores a different part of the Minecraft universe, from crafting tools to surviving in the wild!
Campers will get to grow their very own “Chia Head” character
Build tools and learn survival skills like map-making and compass navigation
Test chemistry with a foamy Elephant Toothpaste Volcano experiment
Get ready for takeoff! Future aviators come and learn the science behind flight. From forces of aerodynamics, design engineering, to teamwork and problem-solving activities. Campers will learn how to soar through the skies!
Learn cockpit controls and practice real aircraft signals
Decorate your own model airplanes, testing how wings, weight and fins affect flight
Experiment with hoop gliders and wind turbine propellers
Hear ye, young squires and noble engineers! Jump back in time to become a master builder, a brave knight and a crafty inventor. Each day brings creativity, problem-solving and merry competition in a medieval kingdom brought to life.
Create thine own coat of arms by choosing symbols and colors worthy of royalty
Test thy aim in target practice to protect the castle in “Keeper of the Castle”
Forge catapults and trebuchets along with drawbridges and watchtowers to explore physics, geometry and the art of fortification.
Hands-on challenges, medieval games and epic battles await young knights and engineers!
Let’s dive into the wacky world of goo, gunk and everything gross. Campers can make slime, squish brain jelly molds, investigate worms and explore germs. This camp aims to discover how science explains the weird and wonderful around us by;
Mixing polymers to create gooey slimes
Exploring worm farms and the job of decomposers
Learning how acids, bases and chemical reactions can create bubbling and fizzy effects
Dive into a splash-filled week of discovery as campers explore the amazing science of water. With bubbling experiments, water challenges and hands-on teamwork every day, this camp makes a big splash into STEM.
Join us for a week of chemistry-based experiments where young scientists mix, measure and marvel at bubbling reactions, growing crystals and wiggly creations. Perfect for curious minds, each day is packed with exciting discoveries and take-home creations that make learning unforgettable.
Experiment with pH scales and various color-changing reactions
Make your own fizzing bath bomb to take home and enjoy
Get ready for takeoff! Future aviators come and learn the science behind flight. From forces of aerodynamics, design engineering, to teamwork and problem-solving activities. Campers will learn how to soar through the skies!
Learn cockpit controls and practice real aircraft signals
Decorate your own model airplanes, testing how wings, weight and fins affect flight
Experiment with hoop gliders and wind turbine propellers
Hear ye, young squires and noble engineers! Jump back in time to become a master builder, a brave knight, and a crafty inventor. Each day brings creativity, problem-solving and merry competition in a medieval kingdom brought to life.
Create thine own coat of arms by choosing symbols and colors worthy of royalty
Test thy aim in target practice to protect the castle in “Keeper of the Castle”
Forge catapults and trebuchets along with drawbridges and watchtowers to explore physics, geometry and the art of fortification.
Hands-on challenges, medieval games and epic battles await young knights and engineers!
Dive into a splash-filled week of discovery as campers explore the amazing science of water. With bubbling experiments, water challenges and hands-on teamwork every day, this camp makes a big splash into STEM.
Let’s dive into the wacky world of goo, gunk and everything gross. Campers can make slime, squish brain jelly molds, investigate worms and explore germs. This camp aims to discover how science explains the weird and wonderful around us by;
Mixing polymers to create gooey slimes
Exploring worm farms and the job of decomposers
Learning how acids, bases and chemical reactions can create bubbling and fizzy effects
Gotta catch ‘em all…science experiments, that is! Train like a master while exploring geology, chemistry, flight and Earth sciences. Campers will catch new skills, battle challenging experiments and evolve their creativity each day!
Explore rock cycles with chocolate chip “rocks” to discover how the Earth’s layers form and shift.
Build and test kites while learning about aerodynamics, flight and forces.
Get messy with dragon spit slime
Show off your Pokémon-inspired creations and join in a fun trading card game finale!
It’s time to take flight! In this high-flying science adventure, campers become aerospace engineers as they explore the science of flight – from hot air balloons and airplanes to rockets and kites. Each day of camp will bring new challenges that aim to combine creativity, building, and real engineering principles.
Compare bird bones vs. human bones to uncover how nature’s designs help things soar.
Explore how air pressure and heat make things rise with mini hot air balloons and Bernoulli’s Principle
Learn about the pioneers of flight while building your own model airplane.
Calling all young artists and storytellers. Create your own characters, comics and mini animations in this imaginative camp. From sketching heroes and storyboarding scenes to producing stop-motion shorts, you’ll bring your ideas to life!
Design your own main character, complete with name, powers and personality, for a mini comic strip starring your new hero
Take on the body language challenge and speech bubble battle to practice action scenes and dialogue
Learn storyboarding – how movies and cartoons map out each scene, plot point, and character development
Get ready to create, laugh and bring your wildest stories to life.
Become a Weather Wizard to explore the atmosphere, storms, wind and lightning. Discover the science behind the sky above with these fun and interactive experiments. Learn how meteorologists track and predict weather and create your own weather tools and phenomena by;
Creating clouds in a jar to watch condensation in action
Investigating plasma and lighting safely with hands-on demos to understand rising and falling air currents
Experimenting with hot and cold air interactions with tornado bottles
Building thermometers, barometers and rainbows while practicing observation and data collection.
Dive beneath the waves and explore the mysteries of the deep! Campers become ocean scientists as they use engineering and problem-solving skills, explore oceanography, and use teamwork and critical thinking tactics. Each day of camp is packed with hands-on experiments, creative challenges and teamwork adventures that make learning about the ocean an unforgettable experience.
Engineer balloon-powered submarines and ROVs to rescue underwater artifacts
Learn about ocean zones, light and color changes beneath the waves.
Apply critical thinking to prioritize resources for survival in a remote ocean environment
Gotta catch ‘em all…science experiments, that is! Train like a master while exploring geology, chemistry, flight and Earth sciences. Campers will catch new skills, battle challenging experiments and evolve their creativity each day!
Explore rock cycles with chocolate chip “rocks” to discover how the Earth’s layers form and shift.
Build and test kites while learning about aerodynamics, flight and forces.
Get messy with dragon spit slime
Show off your Pokémon-inspired creations and join in a fun trading card game finale!
It’s time to take flight! In this high-flying science adventure, campers become aerospace engineers as they explore the science of flight – from hot air balloons and airplanes to rockets and kites. Each day of camp will bring new challenges that aim to combine creativity, building, and real engineering principles.
Compare bird bones vs. human bones to uncover how nature’s designs help things soar.
Explore how air pressure and heat make things rise with mini hot air balloons and Bernoulli’s Principle
Learn about the pioneers of flight while building your own model airplane.
Become a Weather Wizard to explore the atmosphere, storms, wind and lightning. Discover the science behind the sky above with these fun and interactive experiments. Learn how meteorologists track and predict weather and create your own weather tools and phenomena by;
Creating clouds in a jar to watch condensation in action
Investigating plasma and lighting safely with hands-on demos to understand rising and falling air currents
Experimenting with hot and cold air interactions with tornado bottles
Building thermometers, barometers and rainbows while practicing observation and data collection.
Dive beneath the waves and explore the mysteries of the deep! Campers become ocean scientists as they use engineering and problem-solving skills, explore oceanography, and use teamwork and critical thinking tactics. Each day of camp is packed with hands-on experiments, creative challenges and teamwork adventures that make learning about the ocean an unforgettable experience.
Engineer balloon-powered submarines and ROVs to rescue underwater artifacts
Learn about ocean zones, light and color changes beneath the waves.
Apply critical thinking to prioritize resources for survival in a remote ocean environment
Calling all young artists and storytellers. Create your own characters, comics and mini animations in this imaginative camp. From sketching heroes and storyboarding scenes to producing stop-motion shorts, you’ll bring your ideas to life!
Design your own main character, complete with name, powers and personality, for a mini comic strip starring your new hero
Take on the body language challenge and speech bubble battle to practice action scenes and dialogue
Learn storyboarding – how movies and cartoons map out each scene, plot point, and character development
Get ready to create, laugh and bring your wildest stories to life.
Discover who you are by stepping into the shoes of a biologist, a chemist, a physicist and an engineer! We will explore real-world science through different challenges, experiments and creative projects. From extracting DNA samples and designing wind-powered vehicles to building chain reaction machines. Let the science quest begin!
Explore the building blocks of life with DNA extraction and brain dissection
Mix, measure and experiment with color-changing reactions and chemical properties
Design marble roller coasters and investigate motion, air resistance and gravity
3…2…1…Blast off! Become a cosmic explorer and engineer during an unforgettable week of space and astronomy. Campers will journey through the solar system, uncover the secrets of stars and galaxies and even build working rockets. From creating nebula art and glowing constellations, every day is a new mission filled with hands-on experiments, creative design and out-of-this-world science.
Design, build and launch your own rocket
Build and drop-test marshmallow “astronauts” in the lunar lander challenge
Explore NASA’s latest spacecraft and design your own space habitat for life beyond Earth
Harness the Sun’s power to bake a solar oven snack!
Unleash your inner architect with Brick Builders camp! Using LEGO-style building, your camper will master motion, structures and storytelling. Packed with new challenges for each day to enhance your campers’ abilities by designing moving contraptions, city structures and famous landmarks, all leading to crafting epic story scenes. Build. Innovate. Tell your story. Become a brick master!
Build spinning tops, simple cars and motion-powered models
Explore famous architecture and learn why structures stand tall
Collaborate on epic story builds with characters, scenes and short narratives
Compete in creative, engineering and teamwork challenges judged in a final showcase!
Get ready to gear up, aim high and unleash your inner skills in this high-energy week of STEM and strategy! Your camper will explore and test the science of air pressure, motion and physics while designing their own gear, testing blasters and engineering an epic Nerf battle arena. Help create custom shields, targets and optimize dart flight paths. This camp is the perfect combination of brain-power and strategic planning!
Discover how aerodynamics, velocity and trajectory affect dart flight
Experiment with air pressure, launch angles and motion to improve your aim
Join forces for challenges like capture the flag, defend the stand
Join your camper for an end-of-the-week Parents vs Kids Battle
Ever wonder how amazing things like airplanes, cell phones or even zippers were created? Someone had a problem… and came up with a genius idea to fix it! Now it’s your turn to think like a real inventor. You’ll take an everyday problem and create an invention that could make life easier, cooler or way more fun. You’ll get to:
Design your invention using cool 3D CAD tools
Use artificial intelligence to help you create an eye-catching marketing plan
Build a working prototype (yep, something that actually does something!)
Pitch your big idea to a panel of “investors” in a Shark Tank–style showdown
Lights, Camera, Action! Get ready to jump into the exciting world of stop-motion and live-action productions. In this camp, your stories come to life as you collaborate in groups to create your very own movie shorts or animated adventures – complete with sound effects, props and creative twists. Grab your director’s cap, let your imagination run wild and get ready for a week full of popcorn and pixelated fun!
Practice all elements of digital storytelling using multiple formats
Use forced perspective to appear giant compared to your friend
Manipulate unexpected items to recreate the sound effects in the movies
Create and edit a short to showcase to family and friends at the end of the week!
3…2…1…Blast off! Become a cosmic explorer and engineer during an unforgettable week of space and astronomy. Campers will journey through the solar system, uncover the secrets of stars and galaxies and even build working rockets. From creating nebula art and glowing constellations, every day is a new mission filled with hands-on experiments, creative design and out-of-this-world science.
Design, build and launch your own rocket
Build and drop-test marshmallow “astronauts” in the lunar lander challenge
Explore NASA’s latest spacecraft and design your own space habitat for life beyond Earth
Harness the Sun’s power to bake a solar oven snack!
Ever wonder how amazing things like airplanes, cell phones or even zippers were created? Someone had a problem… and came up with a genius idea to fix it! Now it’s your turn to think like a real inventor. You’ll take an everyday problem and create an invention that could make life easier, cooler or way more fun. You’ll get to:
Design your invention using cool 3D CAD tools
Use artificial intelligence to help you create an eye-catching marketing plan
Build a working prototype (yep, something that actually does something!)
Pitch your big idea to a panel of “investors” in a Shark Tank–style showdown
Lights, Camera, Action! Get ready to jump into the exciting world of stop-motion and live-action productions. In this camp, your stories come to life as you collaborate in groups to create your very own movie shorts or animated adventures – complete with sound effects, props and creative twists. Grab your director’s cap, let your imagination run wild and get ready for a week full of popcorn and pixelated fun!
Practice all elements of digital storytelling using multiple formats
Use forced perspective to appear giant compared to your friend
Manipulate unexpected items to recreate the sound effects in the movies
Create and edit a short to showcase to family and friends at the end of the week!
Unleash your inner architect with Brick Builders camp! Using LEGO-style building, your camper will master motion, structures and storytelling. Packed with new challenges for each day to enhance your campers’ abilities by designing moving contraptions, city structures and famous landmarks, all leading to crafting epic story scenes. Build. Innovate. Tell your story. Become a brick master!
Build spinning tops, simple cars and motion-powered models
Explore famous architecture and learn why structures stand tall
Collaborate on epic story builds with characters, scenes and short narratives
Compete in creative, engineering and teamwork challenges judged in a final showcase!
To give parents flexible childcare options, before and after-care are available to all campers for no additional fee and with no additional paperwork. Drop your camper off as early as 7:30 am and pick up by 5:20 pm. The core camp activities will happen between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm. Additional fees will only be charged if you pick up your camper past the 5:20 pm cut off (see FAQs for details).
Complete your paperwork before the first day! Check your email, click the link and complete all the required paperwork for your child’s camp before check-in on day one.
Wear closed-toe shoes and dress for the weather and activities. We will play outdoors and get messy!
What to bring:
Pack a lunch in a leak-resistant container with an ice pack if perishables are included. The lunch box and all items inside the lunch bag should labeled with the camper’s name.
Bring a water bottle labeled with the camper’s name.
No need to include snacks. We provide a healthy morning and afternoon snack for all campers.
Exploration Place Summer Camps are peanut and tree-nut free. Please do not pack nuts or nut butters in lunches.
We offer a full refund of your camp fee if you inform us at least two weeks (14 days) before the camp starts. In case of medical necessity, a major emergency, or military deployment any time before the camp begins, a full refund will be provided. If you decide to cancel 1 to 13 days before the camp, we are unable to refund your fee, but we are happy to transfer your registration to an available camp on a different date.
We offer a full refund of your camp fee if you inform us at least two weeks before the camp starts. In case of medical necessity, a major emergency, or military deployment any time before the camp begins, a full refund will be provided.
If you decide to cancel 1 to 13 days before the camp, we are unable to refund your fee, but we are happy to transfer your registration to an available camp on a different date.
Unfortunately, we cannot accept children before 7:30 am or care for them after 5:20 pm. Guardians who pick up children after 5:20 pm should expect to pay additional fees. If a guardian consistently picks up children after 5:20 pm, the child will not be permitted to return to camp.
We will be asking guardians to sign permission forms found in Playground App for children to play outside at the amphitheater, Exhibits, and Dome Theater. Any spaces where the public may be present with our campers is considered a field trip space and a guardian signature is required to go.
Yes! Weather permitting. If the heat index is 95 degrees Fahrenheit or higher or the wind chill temperature is below 20 degrees Fahrenheit campers remain inside. Please dress appropriately for the weather so your child can enjoy playing outside.
Items brought to camp will remain in backpacks throughout camp hours, including before- and after-care. Exploration Place is not responsible for lost or stolen belongings.
For any camper concerns, contact the Camp Director. There may be special forms that will need to be completed. You may reach the Camp Director at (316) 660-0600 or contact us online.
All participants are expected to show respect for themselves and others; consideration for their own and others’ property; and to participate in the group activities.
Exploration Place camps are somewhat like school with 16 to 36 children and 2 to 4 counselors. The days are filled with fun hands-on STEM activities. Children do these activities as groups of 2 to 4 just like engineers and scientists.
You will have the clearest insight into your child’s comfort and capabilities. Trust your judgment on whether this setting will suit them.
We can’t offer refunds after camp has started.
Exploration Place camps are open to any child 7 -13 years old.
We offer reasonable accommodations for children with disabilities. To request such, please reach out to our Camp Director at (316) 660-0600.
Camp counselors and leaders are available during check-in and check-out. Other arrangements may be made to speak with a camp director if these times do not work. Guardians are also encouraged to share any problems with the assistant camp director or the camp director via phone, email or in-person at any time during normal business hours. Email us at [email protected] or leave a message at (316) 660-0600.
We take all requests into consideration. Our lesson plans are targeted to a specific age; if siblings or friends are the same age, they may be in the same group. The camp director has discretion over camper placement.
Please make requests at least two weeks prior to your registered camp start date.
Onsite camp groups each have 15-30 students. Each camp group is guided by 2-3 counselors. Additional staff float between rooms to support camper STEM and play activities, restroom runs, and brain breaks for children who need them.
Campers who attend camp at Exploration Place have scheduled time in the exhibits throughout the week. Permission forms are required and can be found in the Playground App.
Campers who attend camp at Exploration Place go to Dome movies or Live Science Show when it applies to the week’s theme. Permission forms are required and can be found in the Playground App.
Yes, campers should bring a lunch labeled with their names in a leak-proof container (no paper sacks), silverware if needed, with an ice pack. Microwaves are available as needed.
Exploration Place Camps are peanut and tree-nut free. We ask that parents do not pack these items in camper lunches to avoid any allergies.
Yes, check with an Exploration Place staff member at check-in to confirm your camper’s lunch time. You are welcome to check out your camper for lunch, drop off lunch at the front desk or bring lunch to eat with your camper.
Exploration Place Camps are peanut and tree-nut free. We ask guardians not to pack these items in lunches. If your camper has any food allergies, please share this with a staff member at check-in and add the information into Playground App
Yes, all forms are required to be completed. If information is missing we will require you to complete the information before leaving your child in our care.
We use the current CDC recommendations. If your child has symptoms, keep them home until they are free of fever and other symptoms for 24 hours. Please contact the camp director to inform them of their absence.
I cannot express how thankful we are that Alex is at Exploration Place camp this summer! It’s such a relief to know Alex is with people who genuinely care about their campers. The leaders and program are absolutely exceptional. He is so happy to go to camp each day!
Ellie F.
My son loved the camp! He was disappointed when the week was over because he enjoyed it so much. He has already asked if he can participate again next year!
Summer Camp at Exploration Place is truly camp - not daycare. This alone places Exploration Place miles ahead. My kids love to go to camp.
Nothing but great things to say! I LOVE that my child’s name is remembered and welcomed each morning. I would whole-heartedly recommend this summer camp!!
I love that you include team building exercises and give them the opportunity at this age to work through the difficulties that can arise from working in a group.
Educational Resources
Want some fun experiments to do at home? Check out our Youtube Channel and other educational videos!
