College of Fun

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A young girl prepares to plant some springtime flowers

Cartooning, chef skills, spy technology, Lego robotics — these are just some of the fun, hands-on classes for kids this spring break at Southern Oregon University.

The popular series for the pre-collegiate set also features a raft of classes — including fashion illustration, baking, American Idol Jr. — for spring term, with the emphasis on learning inspiring new skills without grades and also getting used to a university campus, says Carol Jensen, director of the SOU pre-college and youth programs.

"It's not really like school. It's fun. It's the best of education. You get to have great instructors," says Jensen. "I'm sure all the schools are jealous because we get to do all the fun stuff."

Studies have shown that kids exposed to fun learning experiences on a college campus are much more likely to feel comfortable with the setting and matriculate to college, notes Jensen.

Classes are for kids 9 through 13, run two to six sessions, and cost $39 to $89, with tuition assistance (donated by the public) available, says Jensen. Classes will be held on campus at the library, computer lab, gallery, dining hall and climbing wall, with other classes off campus.

"It's a high-quality program, and to have it down the street, with sleep-away (in summer academy) is great," says Michelle Zundel, mom of students Maya and Skylar. "They wear them out with swimming, volleyball, field games and a brain bowl."

Her daughter Skylar, a fifth-grader, has been inspired to think of a career in science after classes in that area at SOU, says Zundel. Skylar plans to attend the fashion illustration course this spring.

David Lively of Medford lauds the program for its American Idol class, which helped his daughter, Kendra, 9, with stage presence and such details as how to hold a microphone.

"It was really fun. She really enjoyed it and we're very happy with it," says Lively.

Spring Break courses, held March 16-20, are viewable at www.sou.edu/youth/kids_u_spring.html.

The spring break lineup includes:

• Junior Chefs, Mix It Up! — Cooking with professional chefs, vocabulary, techniques, nutrition, safety, tools, making quick and main dishes.
• Spies R Us! — Spy technologies, hidden cameras, radio equipment, bugging, fingerprinting, cryptology, encoding.
• Colorful Comics, Cartoons and Manga — Professional markers, watercolors, colored pencils, coloring and shading characters.
• Lego Engineers, Robotics and More! — The engineering process, design, building, testing and learning how to use pulleys, motors and sensors.

John Darling is a freelance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at jdarling@jeffnet.org.

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