Educational experiments, hands-on play and art activities all await campers during Mississippi Children’s Museum-Meridian’s summer camps slated for June and July. Registration for the camps is now open.

Registration is now open for Mississippi Children’s Museum-Meridian’s summer camps, which will allow students to explore a range of interests from space to art to science to backyard insects and plants.

The seven, week-long camps, led by instructors, will run during the months of June and July and are designed for children ages 5-10 years old.

For this year’s camps, the museum is introducing a half-day camp, new camp themes and optional box lunches provided by Cater’s at the Museum to further meet the needs of both parents and children, according to a MCM-Meridian press release.

Student favorites, such as NASA Astro Camp, Camp Backyard and Camp Creative will all return this summer, along with new themes, including Space Camp and Silly STEAM Camp.

Each camp runs from Monday through Friday. The first camp, June 3-7, will be a half-day camp while the other camps will be all day, starting at 8 a.m. and ending at 5 p.m. Camps will not be held from July 1-5 in observance of the Independence Day holiday.

Camp rates range from $125 for the half-day camp to $250 for the all-day camps, or $280 if adding the optional box lunch. A 10% discount on registration is available for museum members. Included in the camp fees are supplies for activities and experiments, the standard daily museum admission to exhibits, and morning and afternoon snacks.

In collaboration with Cater’s at the Museum, MCM-Meridian is offering optional box lunches for campers. Parents can select from peanut butter and jelly, turkey and cheese, or ham and cheese sandwiches, which come with chips, a cookie and a bottle of water.

Kicking off the summer will be Silly STEAM Camp, June 3-7, which will be a half day of fun for science enthusiasts, where they will conduct hands-on experiments aimed at exploring the mysteries of the natural world, learn about coding and participate in fun activities, such as measuring and mixing ice cream. The camp will run from 1-4 p.m. with no lunch provided.

The following week, June 10-14, the museum will host Camp Creative, an all-day camp for budding artists where campers will learn about painting, drawing and other creative art forms as they design their own masterpieces.

From June 17-21, the museum will offer Space Camp, an all-day camp for children who are fascinated by space, the planets and stars, and space exploration. Campers will learn all about the universe around them with a myriad of activities planned.

During the last week of the month, June 24-28, the museum will host its all-day Super STEAM Camp for students to explore the worlds of science, technology, engineering, arts and math. Campers will conduct experiments and learn about coding in STEAM-related activities.

From July 8-12, students can learn all about plants, insects and everything outdoors during Camp Backyard, a day-long camp. MCM-Meridian’s My Fantastical Backyard exhibit will be part of the classroom for campers to explore.

The following week, July 15-19, the museum will hold its popular NASA Astro Camp, where students can explore space and the Earth’s place in the universe through curriculum designed by NASA. The day-long camp will run from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Closing out MCM-Meridian’s camps for the summer will be the all-day World Explorers Camp from July 22-26. Campers can hop on board Missi the Traveler and explore six different countries that are based on the museum’s geography exhibit.

For more information on MCM-Meridian’s educational camps planned for this summer or to register, visit mcmmeridian.org.