Anthropology Camp
June 23 - August 15, 2025
Registration Open For 2025 Season
Register
Open today 10 am – 5 pm
June 23 - August 15, 2025
Dive into an unforgettable summer of adventure at the Penn Museum Anthropology Camp. Each week offers an exciting theme inspired by the museum’s world-renowned collections, blending hands-on workshops, expert talks, gallery explorations, and creative projects. With themes changing weekly, there’s always something new to learn and create.
Penn Museum Anthropology Camp is designed for children ages 6-13 who will be entering grades 1–8 for the 2025-2026 school year.
Registration is now open for the 2025 season.
Register[My child] was bubbling with excitement to share what she had created that day and what folk tales or other cultural stories she had learned.
Monsters, Giants, and Mythical Creatures
Listen to stories from around the world filled with tall tales, unexpected animals, and larger than life characters. Discover what makes a monster so scary and learn about giants, chimeras, and more. Write your own trickster tale, learn about protective amulets, and design your own mythical creature puppet.
Ancient Science
Ancient civilizations relied on astronomy, engineering, and medicine to explain the world around them, just as we do today. Learn how they navigated the seas, created calendars, and planted their crops by observing the movement of the sun, moon, and stars. Explore ancient engineering and learn about medicinal practices that influence us today. Make a votive, create your own constellation myth, and participate in a planting activity.
*No camp on Friday, July 4
Adventures on the Nile
Discover what daily life looked like along the Nile River, through Ancient Egypt and across northeastern Africa. Learn how these rich cultures influenced their neighbors in the Eastern Mediterranean through trade. Design a model boat to travel down the Nile, learn to write your name in Egyptian hieroglyphs, and hear stories from Egyptian and East African mythology.
Archaeology for Beginners
Archaeology studies the past by looking at objects left by people who lived long ago. Get your hands dirty while learning about the important work of archaeologists. Explore the tools of the trade and participate in a mock dig in your classroom, investigate stratigraphy, and draw your own site map. Learn how to think like an archaeologist while you piece together your findings.
Pop Culture Mythology
From Hercules and Poseidon to Zeus, legendary characters like these still inspire the books, cartoons, movies, and video games we love today. Even your favorite superheroes might have roots in stories from the past! Dive into the world of ancient myths and see how their epic tales have shaped the 21st century. Get creative—design your own comic book, sculpt a mythical creature, and join a Guess Who game to match popular characters with their ancient and modern origins.
Building the Ancient City
Discover what elements it takes to build a city, from paved roadways to tall structures. Learn about ancient architectural techniques and ones that we still use today. Experiment with designing Roman arches and domes, Greek temple facades, and Native American dwellings. Construct model buildings, roads, and bridges out of found materials and test how your creations hold up to earthquake and volcano simulations.