The Summer Laureate University for Youth (SLUFY) program is accepting applications for this year’s educational event for high-ability students in kindergarten through eighth grade. 

This summer’s programming is set to run 12:30 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. daily from July 10 to July 21.

Now in its 38th year, SLUFY is a program of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Jodie Mahony Center for Gifted Education that gives high-ability students the opportunity to explore their interests and talents through classes in a variety of subjects. Students also will meet other talented students, forging friendships that last long beyond the summer program.

For the first time in 10 years, the summer camp is returning to the UA Little Rock campus.

Certified master teachers, graduate students in gifted and talented education, and other experts enthusiastically help these youths learn and grow in new, exciting ways. Courses offered involve fun, hands-on activities in math, science, the arts, social studies, and language arts, all targeted to specific age groups.

Kindergarteners will explore the world of “creepy crawlies,” including the anatomy of bugs and insect habitats. They will also go on a world tour, exploring the history and languages of Mexico, Brazil, Egypt, Kenya, Germany, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Australia, and Canada.

First- and second-graders can learn how to cook mac n’ cheese, cobbler, and other food favorites during a power outage by harnessing the power of the sun and creating a solar oven, while third- and fourth-graders see how NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer rovers are used to explore faraway worlds.

Students in fifth and sixth grade can learn the ropes of being a professional actor or journalist, determine the probability of winning game shows like “The Price is Right” or “Deal or No Deal,” and explore J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” series through fiction writing.

Seventh- and eighth-graders can learn how to defend themselves from zombies and survive an invasion during a zombie apocalypse and explore the technology of the 1990s.

The cost to attend SLUFY is a $25 application fee and a $275 tuition fee, which includes all supplies and materials, field trips, and a T-shirt.

For a full list of courses, to inquire about scholarships, or to register online, check out the Summer Laureate University for Youth website.

In the upper right photo, a SLUFY instructor teaches gifted children the finer points of making windmills in the SLUFY program. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III/UA Little Rock Communications.