Summertime for teenagers usually means rest, playing time, and catching up on sleep, friends and outdoor activities.   But for gifted and talented kids, this summer also offered a chance to spend three weeks at Dartmouth College in a Summer Institute for the Gifted (SIG) program to explore, excel and make new friends.

Students Gather on Dartmouth Campus

With classes held on the Dartmouth College campus in Hanover, New Hampshire, a typical class had students from the Boston area, New York City, Los Angeles, Texas and China, all bringing their skills and experiences, ready for a new challenge.   Many of the Chinese students had not been to the US before so practicing their English for three weeks allowed them to both speak more fluently and get to know the American teen culture, albeit the brilliant side.

Students in grades 7 through 11, from around the country and the world, descended on the Dartmouth Campus on August 1st.   Full of excitement, their jetlag trying in vain to slow them down, these students jumped into a full program with 5 classes a day and evening programs filled with activities, such as musicians, comics and jugglers, and staff and student talent shows.

The Physics of a Wormhole

SIG offers residential and day camps around the country for talented students to take advantage of extra opportunities that their home schools do not provide.   Among the 33 course offerings at Dartmouth this summer were “Existential Essentials,” “Robot Rendezvous,” “Theories of Time Travel: Space-Time Physics and Wormholes,” and “Crime Scene Investigation,” allowing students to be inspired and challenged while exploring beyond the standard curriculum.

Other SIG campuses in New England are a Residential Program at Amherst College (Massachusetts) and Day Programs at Boston University and Fairfield University in Connecticut, with a new campus opening at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut in 2011.

Also new in 2011 is a day program offered at Dartmouth.   While this year’s campers were all residential, next year those who live in the area can attend the classes and recreational activities all day for the three weeks while returning home each evening.