Personal Enrichment   

Suggested Texts: 

• Knight, Damon. Creating Short Fiction. ‎St. Martin's Griffin, 1993. ISBN: 9780312150945. 

Further your creative problem-solving growth through kid power! In this single-session workshop, you and your child(ren) will explore toys that can transfer energy from one object to another. Experiment with rubber poppers that can jump off the ground and lift objects, as well as marbles that can transfer energy between objects via collisions. Class will culminate in an engineering design challenge: create a marble tube raceway to carry your marble down a defined slope. Come ready to click, crash, boink your way through the physics of energy!

Each adult enrolled may bring up to two children, ages 5-13.

Ignite your curiosity and creativity through investigation, experimentation, and problem solving! In this single-session workshop, you and your child(ren) will explore tabletop stations with science and engineering trials. Class will culminate in an engineering design challenge: using the unique properties of various types of paper to create a critter with movable parts!

Each adult enrolled may bring up to two children, ages 5-13.

Cultivate your gardening skills for the upcoming growing season! Many types of practical information focused on organic principles will be covered, including vegetable garden design, successful plant care, propagation, easy and efficient irrigation systems, and successive planting. Learn a variety of approaches that will make the process straight forward and easy to understand. Common mistakes, how to correct these mistakes, and practices for success will be illustrated. Whether you use raised boxes or plant in the ground, you'll take home the knowledge needed to produce a thriving, flavorful vegetable garden.  

The latter half of the class will be held outdoors in a nearby garden and will involve walking on unpaved terrain. Sturdy, closed-toe shoes, clothing appropriate for the weather, and water are recommended.

Students will carpool to a secondary location. All students must sign a field trip liability waiver before the start of class in order to attend. You will be asked to sign the form during the registration process. 

Plant propagation is fun and easy. Learn to grow plants from seeds, cuttings, and division, opening up the opportunity to cheaply and easily grow an array of vegetable, flower, shrub, and tree varieties for your garden. Learn about soil mediums, growing successful seedlings, soft and hardwood cuttings, bulb and tuber propagation, and more! 

The latter half of the class will be held outdoors in a nearby garden and will involve walking on unpaved terrain. Sturdy, closed-toe shoes, clothing appropriate for the weather, and water are recommended.

Students will carpool to a secondary location. All students must sign a field trip liability waiver before the start of class in order to attend. You will be asked to sign the form during the registration process.

Many people would like to minimize their lawn or convert it entirely into a garden – not just creating a more interesting and productive space, but lessening water use and maintenance in the process. However, sod removal isn’t the only step in this process. Others include site assessment, creating a theme or design, irrigation conversion, soil health development, weed management, and – finally! – planting. Step-by-step, this class will cover a number of different ways to convert your lawn, as well as present examples of how the resulting garden could look and function. 

The latter half of the class will be held outdoors in a nearby garden and will involve walking on unpaved terrain. Sturdy, closed-toe shoes, clothing appropriate for the weather, and water are recommended.

Students will carpool to a secondary location. All students must sign a field trip liability waiver before the start of class in order to attend. You will be asked to sign the form during the registration process. 

Suggested Texts:

• Demery, James. The Fastest Way to Improve at Chess: A Thinking System to Find Better Moves. Independently published, 2018. ISBN: 9781728726793.
• Cruz, Tyler. Chess QuickStart Guide: The Simplified Beginner’s Guide to Mastering Chess Fundamentals, Learning Proven Tactics, and Executing Game-Winning Strategies. ClydeBank Media LLC, 2024. ISBN: ‎9781636100876. 

Required Materials: a pencil (no pens). Bring to every session. 

As meditative practices focused on breath and movement, qigong and laughter yoga possess remarkable synergy. In this class, we will combine the two - contrasting the energy created by the dynamic meditation of laughter yoga with the subtler, quieter internal energy of qigong. We will also delve into the qigong practice of the Five Animal Frolics: the tiger, deer, bear, ape, and bird. If you’re ready to find joy through these forms of moving meditation, come join us!

Class will be held outside when weather permits. During inclement weather, class will be held in the Water & Environmental Center (Bldg. R) Rotunda (Rm. 2003). 

Required Materials: yoga mat or blanket; water bottle. 

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 19+.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 19+.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 19+.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 19+.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 19+.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 19+.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

Suggested Materials: writing pad, tablet, and/or laptop computer. 

Suggested Texts:

• Penn, Joanna. How to Write a Novel: From Idea to Book. Curl Up Press, 2022. ISBN: 9781915425096.
• Gotham Writers’ Workshop. Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide from New York’s Acclaimed Creative Writing School. Bloomsbury USA, 2003. ISBN: 9781582343303. 

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 19+.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 8-12.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.

For ages 13-18.

All students must sign a Waiver & Release of Liability form before the start of class in order to attend. Upon enrollment, a link to the form will be included in the order confirmation email.