FORT WAYNE – If you’re looking for an alternative to video games or a babysitter to keep your children busy over winter break, look no further than Science Central’s Winter Break Camps. Winter Break Camps provide parents with an affordable and safe place for their children to spend their time off school, and provides children with fun hands-on educational opportunities in science, technology, engineering and math.

Science Central’s 2013-14 Winter Break camps run Dec. 23, 26 and 27, 30 and Jan. 2 and 3, 2014. All camps are single-day offerings, with a 10 percent early bird discount available for registrations of three days of camp in the same week if completed by Nov. 28, 2013. There are both half-day and full-day camps available for ages 3-5, and full-day camps available for ages 5-11, with a variety of topics.

Half-day camps for ages 3-5 run from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Cost for half-day camps is $25 for non-members and $20 for members per session. Activities for the half-day camps are different for the morning and afternoon sessions. Full day camps for ages 3-5 run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, and the cost per camp is $35 for non-members and $30 for members.

Costs for full-day camps for ages 5-11 are $30 for non-members, $25 for members per session.

Camp offerings for 3-5 year olds include: Santa’s Toy Shop (Monday, Dec. 23), where children will build science-themed toys and decorations; Building Winter Fun (Thursday, Dec. 26), with exploration of the architecture of igloos, log cabins and gingerbread houses; Frog, Toad and Button Games (Friday, Dec. 27), where detective skills will involve children in games of sorting, matching, and fly catching; Candy Factory (Monday, Dec.r 30), where children will use scientific skills to make lollipops, jelly beans, and gobstopper art; Sky Watcher (Thursday, Jan. 2), where the wonders of the sky will be explored, including watching up-to-the-minute weather on Science On a Sphere; and Dynamite Dinosaurs (Friday, Jan. 3), where children will dig and discover what scientists know about these fantastic beasts from the past.

Children ages 5-11 can participate in the following camp offerings: Santa’s Toy Shop (Monday, Dec. 23), building science-themed toys and decorations; Earth 3-D (Thursday, Dec. 26), where campers will build structures to withstand volcanoes, tsunamis and earthquakes; experiment with ooey gooey plate tectonics, and witness historic natural disasters on Science On a Sphere; Sub-Zero Science (Friday, Dec. 27), will give campers the opportunity to experiment with the extreme cold of dry ice and liquid nitrogen, find out how states of matter are affected by extreme temperatures, and make liquid nitrogen ice cream; Candy Factory (Monday, Dec. 30) will offer a sweet experience as campers use scientific skills to make lollipops, jelly beans and gobstopper art; Disease Detectives (Thursday, Jan. 2) turns campers into medical detectives as they investigate viruses, bacteria, and everything germy from every corner of the globe; and In a Galaxy Far, Far Away (Friday, Jan. 3), rounds out the winter camp season as campers explore to infinity and beyond as they make their own light saber, take a spin on Science Central’s Millennium Falcon, and travel the galaxy with the help of Science Central’s newest exhibit, Science On a Sphere.

For more information on individual camps, or to register on-line, visit www.sciencecentral.org, or call 260-424-2400, extension 451.