I explored the US SIG Genius Summer Camp

Young Writer's Introduction:
Jackie Li was born in Berkeley California and currently lives with her parents in Singapore. She is a sixth grader at Singapore American school, and enjoys reading, swimming, art and traveling while not in school.

I think that SIG was a fun place to be in for a summer vacation. There were many different courses you could take, fun Saturday trips around the area, and so many people to collaborate and play with! I really enjoyed my time there because I met new people and got to gather information about things that I never learned before.  

I want to explain a bit about the different course and class options for everyone. You could be resident, a person who would stay at the SIG dormitories for the night instead of going home. This plan works the best for people from other countries that come to attend this program. There is also the commuter option, where you would have to leave at around 4:00 to go home, and the people who leave nearby the campsite are most suitable for this plan. There is also the extended commuter, where you can stay a bit longer than the normal commuters. You will be able to have dinner with the residents, be able to participate in the mini games at night, and have the study time to do your homework, like all of the residents. I wanted to stay a bit longer with my friends that were all residents, so I became an extended commuter. The thing is, you will not be staying at the dorms, you will leave when the residents are getting ready for bed. You will also be able to join the residents and the counselors in the Saturday trips. When I was at SIG, I was in the Berkeley campsite, so for the Saturday trips, we went to downtown Berkeley and San Francisco. I really enjoyed being a extended commuter, and I think you will too!

The different classes you can take at SIG are fun too. There was an art class, a video making class, an architecture class, a chemistry class, a biology class, an improvisation class, an algebra class, and many, many more! There are many classes to choose from, so don’t worry if your child is a bit picky about classes, there is a wide range of selection for all topics. And if your child is an older one, then there are some classes that are made especially for older students that are in the SIG program. I think that some classes need you to be specifically interested in a topic to take, but some are for everyone! For example, I think the chemistry class was suit able for everyone because the teacher was very playful and outgoing, and the teacher had many interactive experiment where we would be able to learn and have fun at the same time! But for other classes, like stocks and money markets, may not be for everyone because you may not enjoy listening to facts about money and marketing. So when you choose your classes, make sure they are the ones that you are interested in, or you’ll have to stick with them for the whole SIG course!

In general, I think SIG is a great way to help improve your child’s social and academic skills. It is fun and teaches your child many things that they may not have known before. It also helps your child learn to adapt to new surroundings and learn how to interact with others and make friends. I made many new friends during my time at SIG and I hope that you will also send your child to SIG, too!