About Us
Candy Aboelnour, CEO and Founder of Thinkers & Makers STEAM, has extensive leadership experience through her years in the corporate industry. She has participated in various community initiatives for over 15 years. During her community work, she discovered her passion in developing youth as a mentor and educator.
Candy is a member of ITEEA and a certified STEAM Education curriculum writer with STEAM Education. She has over three years of experience conducting STEAM Education workshops in classrooms and during her summer workshops.
Thinkers & Makers STEAM is recognized by New Jersey Board of Education as a STEAM education vendor and currently works with private schools to conduct STEAM education classes.
WHY CHOOSE THINKERS & mAKERS STEAM?
We are the only program of it's kind. Our motto is "we inspire and mentor young innovators". While many programs aim to mentor youth, most fail at inspiring them.
When our students participate in hands-on STEAM projects we encourage them to embrace their creativity. We don't want to see cookie cutter projects, we want them to tweak it and make it their own. This simple act allows them to think outside of the box. Our students begin to understand that their work doesn't have to be like everyone else and that the same idea can be reached in many different ways.
Most importantly, when we conduct our projects, whether it be creating an invention or coding, we always explore the why and the how. For example, many other programs tell students to make a drawing art bot, and although they may tell them why they are making it, they fail to make real world connections. What is the purpose of the art bot and how does it connect to the community? Who can benefit from the project and what alternative tools can we use to make it better? These are some of the questions that we ask and that is why each student leaves with more skills and a better understanding of what they did. This act inspires curiosity and encourages them to want to learn more.
Learn More about our summer program
Each project we create is well thought out and we ourselves are extremely excited to share these projects. It's almost like we are a kid in a candy store and the students can sense our excitement for each project.
2020 steam summer registration
WELCOME TO TMS SUMMER REGISTRATION
Registration Rates
REGISTRATION ON HOLD DUE TO COVID-19
Registration fee
$150
Payment is required upon registration and is non-refundable. Registration fee is per child and will be added to your total fees.
Registration fee is required for our standard program and youth mentor program. Summer registrations forms are accepted after the registration fee has been paid in full.
Session 1: June 22-July 17, 2020
$1380
Age 5 - 11 years old.
Monday - Friday from 8:30 am - 3:30 pm
Location: 34 Charles Street South River, NJ 08882.
What's included:
-Take home hands-on STEAM projects
-Weekly trips
-Weekly swimming lessons and recreational swimming
-Daily team building activities
-Sports activities, coding
-Program t-shirt
-Fee program bag (subject to availability)
- Family BBQ event
Rate is per child. Siblings will receive a 5% discount per sibling.
Session 2: July 20 - August 14, 2020
$1380
Age 5 - 11 years old.
Monday - Friday from 8:30 am - 3:30 pm
Location: 34 Charles Street South River, NJ 08882.
What's included:
-Take home hands-on STEAM projects
-Weekly trips
-Weekly swimming lessons and recreational swimming
-Daily team building activities
-Sports activities, coding
-Program t-shirt
-Fee program bag (subject to availability)
- Family BBQ event
Rate is per child. Siblings will receive a 5% discount per sibling.
Junior Youth Mentor Program
Youth have an opportunity to learn how to become a youth mentor. Training will be provided prior to the start of the session and hands-on training during the summer session. All youth enrolled have an opportunity to be considered for future employment as a youth mentor with TMS. Participation in this program does not guarantee employment. All Youth mentors must attend an orientation meeting prior to the start of the program. Information will be provided on what to expect as a Junior Youth
JYM Session 1: June 22 - July 17
$680
Ages: 12 - 15 years old
Monday - Friday from 8:30 am - 3:30 pm
Location: 34 Charles Street, South River, NJ
What's included:
- Participates in weekly trips
- Participates in all daily activities
- Receives a free program t-shirt
- Will receive training prior and during the program as well as evaluations.
- Participates in weekly swim lessons and recreational swimming.
- Will receive lessons on coding and intro to robotics.
SIBLING DISCOUNTS DO NOT APPLY FOR JUNIOR YOUTH MENTOR PROGRAM.
JYM Session 2: July 20 - August 14, 2020
$680
Ages: 12 - 15 years old
Monday - Friday from 8:30 am - 3:30 pm
Location: 32 Charles Street, South River, NJ
What's included:
- Participates in weekly trips
- Participates in all daily activities
- Receives a free program t-shirt
- Will receive training prior and during the program as well as evaluations.
- Participates in weekly swim lessons and recreational swimming.
- Will receive lessons on coding and intro to robotics.
SIBLING DISCOUNTS DO NOT APPLY FOR JUNIOR YOUTH MENTOR PROGRAM.
Extended care
$200
Extended care is available Monday - Friday from 3:30 pm -5:30 pm. $200 rate is per child, per session and should be reserved by June 8, 2020
Rate is $10 per day, per child. Discounts do not apply to extended care fees.
Daycare services are available in the same building by another provided. For more details please email info@thinkersmakersSTEAM.com
get to know the creator
Who would have thought fashion design would lead me to this.
Yes, I was supposed to be a fashion designer. As a child, I spent hours sketching up new designs, so naturally, studying fashion design seemed like it was the right fit.
This dream slowly began to fade when a professor would tweak my designs to make them more acceptable to those who seemed to matter. I was still eager to learn about the fashion industry from the inside, so I participated in an internship with a fashion designer. I immediately began to push back after witnessing the models and other interns accept and partake in behaviors that was focused on the exterior image. The friendships weren't real and the creativity was no longer a priority. The passion began to fade and I had to decide if I wanted to compromise my values for people to like my designs.
I became discouraged and stopped drawing, but there was something deep inside of me that I could not ignore. No matter what I was doing, I had the urge to create and explore.
I realized that when I allowed myself to be the person I was meant to be, I was no longer afraid of what others thought. I began to believe in this gift again. As my children got older, I realized that even their ideas and creativity had been suppressed. I didn't want them to wait until they were adults to believe in themselves again. I needed to show them that dreams can still become reality, at any age.
Without active use of our imaginations, like any skill, we tend to lose the gift of imagination.
Five years ago, I discovered STEAM Education and realized that fashion designing is undoubtedly a STEAM career. Then it dawned on me, this is calling; I am passionate about sharing my experience to remind the next generation of leaders to embrace their uniqueness.
Creating hands-on STEAM projects helps students be proud of their work. I often tell my students they aren't allowed to use the word "can't" because I believe they can and I watch them blossom as they too, begin to believe in themselves.
