Exposing young ladies to eye opening, educational and fun experiences is the focal point of a two day camp called GEMS, Girls Enjoying Math and Science. Gems are for girls’ 5th-8th grade, and located at SMART Centre Market, located in Wheeling, West Virginia. Experiments involve hands on activities that range from astronomy, to biology, to mathematically determining the thickness of a soap bubble.
GEMS bring hands on learning experience to 5th-8th grade girls in West Virginia.
A guest speaker, Carol Stevens – the owner of a local engineering firm – discussed different fields of engineering and what sort of projects she has worked on. After the presentation, more hands on learning commenced with the task of building the largest, free-standing, structure out of just index cards. There is usually a fee for attendance to GEMS, but this year tuition was donated by the Woman’s Giving Circle of the Community Foundation for the Ohio Valley.
Twenty girls sharpened their math and science skills and learned new concepts during the annual Girls Enjoying Math and Science — GEMS — camp at the SMART Centre Market in Wheeling on Monday and Tuesday.
Laura Lurns · Learning Success expert
Key takeaways
- At the camp, run by two science educators, the girls learned about math and science through hands-on training, using experiments and activities to reinforce the lessons.
- The emphasis of the camp was on having fun and making learning enjoyable. There were no tests or grades, only occasional contests.
- In addition to the two science teachers, a guest speaker was brought in to show an example of careers in engineering, to give a positive role model to the girls.
Take the dyscalculia test
Is your child struggling in school?
Get your free personalized learning roadmap
You describe what you see at home. We turn it into a plan you start this week.
- Answer 5 short questionnaires about what you already notice, 30–45 minutes at your own kitchen table
- Your child sits no test and gets no score: nothing to schedule, nothing for them to dread
- You do the answering, the AI does the writing, and a person reviews it before it reaches you
- Access all 40+ courses instantly: reading, math, focus, processing and more, with new ones added regularly
Why we use AI, plainly: it writes from a knowledge base our team maintains and audits. We work through it line by line and pull anything the evidence stops supporting. The roadmap you get on Tuesday reflects what we corrected on Monday, and a human still reads it before you do.
Your school district must evaluate your child free of charge if you ask in writing, whatever your income and whatever the outcome (US, 34 CFR 300.111 and 300.301(b)). That route takes time and answers a different question than you do. This one starts today, from what you already know.
Your answers stay yours. We do not sell your personal information, and we do not hand identifiable assessment data to outside AI companies to train their models.
A screener is a starting point, not a diagnosis. If your child might need formal accommodations (an IEP or 504 plan), or you suspect a vision, hearing or medical cause, pursue a professional evaluation too. That is the only route to those supports.
