Suggestions for Pre-Teen - classes/camps to nurture interest

My son is 12 years old and has been an avid fan of naval architecture, design (primarily ocean liners & yacht interior design), logo design, robotics/deep sea submersibles for the last 5-6 years. His initial obsession was with the Titanic. He has drawn more illustrations of ships both external and internal than I can count---he's finally accepted that he can only keep the 'best' versions and not every draft.
I am seeking suggestions for the type of courses he will need to take either in high school or in addtion to high school to prepare for college.
He has already taken classes at our local art museum in typical art classes-drawing, sculpture, portrait, home design with some architecture influence.
I'm thinking classes in mechanical engineering or participating in a program like Odyssey of the Mind that require problem solving with the design of some object to resolve a problem would be helpful.
He does have academic test scores that place him in advanced/gifted & talented groups. Although he is only 12, he already reads and comprehends on a college level.
Any other suggestions or programs available for the pre-teen set would be greatly appreciated.
I'm glad I found this forum--thanks in advance for any assistance you can provide!

S. Haggerty
Mom to Naval Architect/Design in Training

 

The Marine Technology Society has some resources and a submarine contest for HS kids. SNAME (www.sname.org) headquarters is in Jersey City and is beginning an outreach program, Stevens Institute is in Hoboken, Webb Institute is in Glen Cove, Long Island, Kings Point is also on Long Island, and New York Maritime is in Fort Schuyler and all would be worth a visit, especially Webb, since it is free tuition, if you can get in, and Stevens, because it has a big fast towing tank. Further afield, the Coast Guard Academy is in New London CT, and welcomes visitors (and is also free).

Sparkman and Stevens and Rosenblatt are two NA firms in New York City that might be worth a visit. Derektor, in Mamaroneck, is probably the closest shipyard, and might be worth a visit. They do superyachts and ferries.

I would start out by calling SNAME, (201) 798 4800, and they can probably help arrange other visits, etc. Susan Givers does the outreach program. It might even be worth going to a section meeting, possibly the student meeting. You can link to the local section calendar thru the sname website.

 

Might check a few of those out myself, CD....

S. : sounds a lot like me not too long ago, even! As to classes (since CD already covered a lot of schools, programs): In high school, think physics, calculus, discrete/matrix math for the engineering side. Visual arts and photography great for the creative side. And if it's his thing, music (believe it or not) is really good for developing not only the thinking and creative skills needed in this kind of work, but also for the co-operation and teamwork (and fun).

 

Thanks Matt!
My son enjoys music as well, haven taken lessons in violin and piano. He doesn't play much now due to his other interests. He's also a strong swimmer although is reluctant to swim competitively (coach thinks that might change in a year or two)--he wants to learn platform diving and of course, sea diving. He keeps us quite busy! And so do his two brothers.......and their interests are quite diverse also.........thanks again!

 

Thanks CDBarry-
I'm already on the research trail for these programs--seems like we live close enough to visit many of the places you suggested and hopefully, some programs for the younger set. My Dad is retired Navy and he's trying to contact some old buddies for info as well...I remember being in some Junior Group as a kid one summer...thanks again for the great suggestions!

S. Haggerty

 

Sea Scout Program--Good Idea?

Has anyone been a Sea Scout (part of the Boy Scouts of America Program for ages 14 - 21)? and if so, do you recommend the program specifically to youngsters with an avid interest in naval architecture? It seems like Sea Scouts do a lot of hands-on type of boat repair, maintanence, sailing, and related activities.

 

ok this may seem a bit off the wall but why not let him build a wooden boat? Don't mean that to sound like I'm promoting my own personal interest but working with him to build a canoe, pram, or small skiff will help him appreciate the construction side of things.

It will also be a fun father-son project.

 

My contact with the Sea Scouts was not on this coast but I suspect it would be about the same scene here, unless you found a specific scout leader who had his act together. I found that a kid could get more out of a project of their own or going to individual events, such as described above, than he/she would out of the often tedious and disorganised scout events. As a "get on with it" kind of guy I found the scouting experience unsatisfying.

 

I have heard good and bad about scout groups, the few I've worked with (albeit only helping out breifly) have been very good. Your son sounds very, very much like me, so I'll tell you in a nutshell some of the skills that I have found useful thus far.

Computer Programming - Very useful for getting yourself out of a hole and spending no cash at the same time. Also promotes logical thinking and probelm solving. (This may or may not go down well, you have been warned)

Publishing / Graphics work / Technical drawing - Absolutely essential skills for any budding designer. More so now than ever before computer and internet based, ranging from computer aided design to personal websites, letter heads etc.

Maths - Creeps in here because you'd be surprised how much more you use most other skills, still important though. Important skills are Algebra, Basic Calculus, Simultaneous Equations, Vectors (Crucial and actually quite easy), Matrices, and Numerical methods. Most of these areas will be introduced pretty quickly when he has to solve a real-life problem.

Decision and Discrete Maths - Not something I use regularly, except for Boolean Algebra, which is important in programming. Quite useful in some cases for job planning and the like, but nothing you couldn't teach yourself in a week or so once you've got the idea of algorithms.

Sailing - Strange, I know, but there it is. Actually getting on board and feeling how a boat moves/what it does gives you more information about the boat than all the numbers. Also it helps the designer consider the client's needs.

Finally... Curiosity and Enthusiasm - Absolutely necessary in this game, but also the ability to challenge a view with a valid, well-presented argument. It is vitally important to question the way things are done, and to know the reasons why they are done. It is just as important to have the enthusiasm to push new and old projects ahead alike.

My advice would be to try to broaden his education with things like a bit of programming (which may mean that you have to learn too) and perhaps a trip to a scout group, or better, a youth sailing event at a local club. However, you've got to let the main input come from him. I know that when people try to push me into doing something, I almost always go the other way, but hey, you're a mum, you knew that!

Perhaps an idea would be to go out for a sunday down to a lake, or a marina or wherever, and perhaps ask someone if you could have a look around a boat, or if he could crew for them (you'll have more success at a dinghy-sailing club, I suspect).

In a few years time, when he's 17 or 18, encourage him to go to some yacht racing events, even pay for him if necessary, just so he can get some experience crewing for people and talking to owners.

It's a tough game to get into, and many don't. I'm not even sure if I have yet, but I'm here giving it my best shot,

Tim B.

 

It is worth noting that a lot of people go into this field because they like boats, then find out that the recreational boating field is very limited in terms of pay, interesting projects, resources and so on, go into "real" naval architecture (military, commercial, etc.) and have interesting careers. I personally was always interested in a career in commercial/military vessels, but my father was a merchant officer, and I grew up in a shipyard town.

 

I would suggest that interesting projects are all over the place in the small craft world. Personally, I find nothing less interesting than big ship design, but that is just my opinion. I don't think it is really our place to say which area is most interesting, as that is very much down to the individual. There are challenges in any size of craft. The trick, I think is knowing how to get to work on the interesting challenges.

Tim B.

 

He may like to build boat and ship models. I mean the ones that actually go in the water. My dad was a ship modeller and from what he taught me, going into boatbuilding and design was much easier. In many aspects it was only a difference of scale. It is a wonderful and fairly cheap way to experiment with youir own designs.

 

SUggestions for Budding Boat Designer

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions.
My son really likes big boat design, ocean liners, cruise ships and the like. He's chosen to do his science fair project this year on water density and it's affect on ship bouyancy---he has designed his own model boat and selected weights for the experiment.
As a family we have decided to home school next year primarily so that we can fast-track this son in his studies to naval architecture, boat design, interior design, etc. I will take many of your suggested academic areas and incorporate them into our curriculum. He's getting bored in a regular 7th grade classroom and we're hoping that if we tie his curriculum to his passion, he'll have more interest in academic pursuits.
As for Scouting--as a current leader in Cub Scouts I agree heartily that the success of any Scouting program lies with leadership. I like the idea of a dinghy saling club--we'll check it out.
All great ideas and very much appreciated!!

 

From Today's SNAME E-News

Project Outreach News

“Project Outreach” needs you! Project Outreach is a program funded by the ONR, and is designed to encourage high-school students to pursue rewarding careers in science and engineering in general, and naval architecture, marine engineering and naval engineering, advanced marine design in particular, through the dissemination of information on ship design-related careers. Based on SNAME’s extensive membership, the ONR felt SNAME would be a great source of interested members willing to visit their local high schools and middle schools to disseminate this information and get students excited about careers in the maritime industry.

The CDs and brochures have been completed, the information was mailed to 4,000 high school guidance counselors, and now the SNAME membership needs to take action. It’s simple – just call your local high school and ask for the guidance office, and tell them you would like to find out how you can reach their students to share career information. Job fairs, classroom visits, individual meetings are all great ways to reach the students.

If you need one of the DVD's or brochures, contact sgiver@sname.org, or if you have questions about the program or new ideas to continue Outreach efforts, call Susan Giver at 412-741-0995.

 

Suggestions for pre-teen classes?camps to nuture interest

An old-fashioned idea perhaps, byt try nudging him towards the books by Arthur Ransmome - not just the Swallows and Amazons series, but Ransome's other sea writings. I was weaned on them and learned a lot of the basic small boat knowledge which I carried with me into a career at sea.
Also if you have a 'friendly' small boat building yard near you take him along an introduce him to the builder/s. They'll often let him sit an watch and explain the various techniques. Just let him sniff the smells of wood-shavings, pitch and hemp. (Or don't they use those things nowadays...) Practical experience beats theory any day.