The Forest Area School District high school summer programs came to a close on Wednesday, August 3rd, 2022. This summer, the district hosted two summer programs for high school students, the ‘Summer Institute’ and ‘Animal Camp’.
The Summer Institute held three two-day sessions, each of which had a different focus. The first session had a Pittsburgh focus, and the students learned about Fort Duquesne, talked about the various bridges and painted a picture of the Roberto Clemente bridge. They also discussed electricity and made a light bulb light with a potato. The following day they traveled to Pittsburgh to visit Point State Park, the Carnegie Science Center, viewed a few of the bridges in person, and attended a Pirates game. The second session had an Erie focus, and the students learned about the Battle of Lake Erie and Commodore Perry, talked about Erie as a port, discussed Presque Isle State Park, and planted a few trees and flowers at the schools. The following day they visited Presque Isle State Park, had lunch on the Victorian Princess Riverboat on the bay, and went to the Maritime Museum to see the US Brig Niagara. The third session focused on the importance of entrepreneurship, Pennsylvania commerce, and Milton Hershey. The following day, they traveled to Hershey Park/Zoo America where they had the opportunity to visit Hershey in person, learn about the chocolate making process first hand, and enjoy the park.
The students who participated in Animal Camp learned about various animals and the habitats they live in. The students researched animals and biomes, and made and presented posters. They had the opportunity to join a Zoom Meet with a sea turtle scientist, from Gainesville, Florida, to learn more about sea turtles and ask questions. The students finished up their summer program also by traveling to Zoo America/Hershey Park to see the animals and enjoy the park.
