Camp Invention encouraging learning and problem solving at St. Charles

LIMA, Ohio (WLIO) - The minds of local kids showing creativity and innovation this week at St. Charles Catholic School.

This week students from multiple local schools have gathered at St. Charles to participate in Camp Invention, a camp led by the National Inventors Hall of Fame which empowers youth how to innovate, create and problem solve.

This is the first year for the camp at St. Charles and there were two groups of students. One room was working on illusion with animation and creating a spin-mobile while the other room was working on creating bobbleheads and creating circuit boards to produce morse code. The camp provides an opportunity for the students to learn on their own and fix their mistakes.

"I see their imaginations; they didn't realize that they could be engineers in putting circuits together and motors," said Candace Keating, a St. Charles teacher and director of Camp Invention. "They've taken apart a motor and put it back together, and the light bulb is lit up in them."

"I think trial and error is a big thing for kids nowadays - a lot of times parents do the work for them, so they don't have to figure out their mistakes," said Anthony Wilkerson, dean of students at St. Charles. "One thing that we do is that we have a hand off approach that you have to correct your own mistake. It's not on us to correct it, you need to correct it or it won't work. It really teaches kids that they've got to keep trying, they just can't give up."

For St. Charles 6th grader Miles Marsh, he was excited to learn a new skill he can use with his brother.

"What's been most exciting about camp is probably learning Morse code, talking to my brother while we're in bed, and we're sure not supposed to talk. We can communicate to each other in Morse code," said Marsh.

The camp is open to children entering Kindergarten through 6th grade and they look to bring Camp Invention back next year.