Courses
EarthCamp: Earth Sciences Part A + D&D
ages 13+
[1 WEEK SUMMER 2025] July 7 - 11, 2025
Course Description:
Join us for a fabulous week-long camp pairing an entire semester of Earth Sciences and a D&D campaign!
Each jam-packed day will include 3 hours of group application of Earth Science concepts, followed by two D&D sessions divided by an intensive afternoon of off-line independent Earth Science preparation for the next day.
We will explore all of Earth Science Part A’s 16 week semester High School Lab class over the course of the week. This will be a heavy week! 🙂 Topics will include: the nature of science and Earth Science; the structure and history of planet Earth; minerals and rocks; Earth’s materials; plate tectonics; geologic activity including mountain building, earthquakes, and volcanoes; freshwater; oceans; soils; and erosion.
Before coming to camp each day to apply their knowledge through games, activities, and labs together, students will be expected to spend at least 3 hours independently learning the three units through the assigned readings and watching IN ADDITION TO THE THREE IN CLASS HOURS.
They will be reading Ch.1-9, 13-14 and 21 of CK-12’s free online textbook, Earth Science for Middle School, and watching its embedded videos. The text is compatible with text to speech software.
Each day in the early afternoon and again in the evening, they will also be playing a D&D campaign led by Lior Delicate, my 17-yr-old.
Schedule and Cost:
11:00 a.m.- 2:00 p.m. ET Earth Sciences with Eliyanah
30 min. break to run around or grab food, etc. – though eating will be welcome at any time through the day!!
2:30-3:30 p.m. ET D&D with Lior
3:30-7:00 p.m. ET Offline to do the prep independently for the next day
7:00 p.m. ET D&D for an hour or two with Lior
Get some sleep and rinse and repeat! 🙂
Cost: $300
For Code of Conduct, and all the details that apply to all Elex Learning classes and workshops, see THE FINE PRINT.
Required Homework:
Expect 3+ hours of reading AND watching per day during the offline portion of each day, including PRIOR to the first class. This is in ADDITION to the 3 in class hours.
NOTE that the textbook is compatible with both Speechify and the free Chrome browser extension Natural Reader Text to Speech for those that prefer to hear the content.
Some days there may be some short additional activities to complete outside of class time such as making a model of a crystal with Lego or marshmallows; exploring a virtual model; or finishing an activity started in class such as a topographical map exploration or a GIS scavenger hunt.
Course Materials:
TEXTBOOK (FREE):
CK-12 Earth Science for Middle School Flexbook2 Ch.1-9, 13-14 and 21
https://flexbooks.ck12.org/cbook/ck-12-middle-school-earth-science-flexbook-2.0
ABILITY TO USE ArcGIS IN A BROWSER WHILE ON ZOOM:
You may need a second device to run ArcGIS in a browser while on Zoom for the weeks that we do ArcGIS activities, if the device you are using to Zoom with won’t allow you to do both. ArcGIS will not run on a phone. (It will load, but does not have the functionality required on a phone.)
PRINTOUTS AND OTHER SUPPLIES:
Printout of the Course Binder
Typical school supplies including coloured pencils
Materials to build the model of a crystal:
Legos or marshmallows and toothpicks
Materials For the Salinity Density lab weeks:
4 colours of food colouring
salt
a test tube (or other small clear container such as a juice glass, empty spice bottle, or small 250mL Mason jar)
eyedropper
a kitchen scale
A measuring cup that can measure 100-250mL in mL
Salt
a 5mL measure
a calculator
a spoon for stirring