15 Summer Programs for Middle School Students in Florida
Wondering how to make the most of your summer while building skills for the future? Summer programs for middle school students in Florida offer a great way to explore new interests, gain experience, and connect with peers. You could have an interest in robotics, marine science, or engineering—these programs allow you to explore a range of fields. Many of them are hosted by respected universities and institutions, which means you’ll be learning from experienced educators and professionals.
For students in Florida who are curious about science and STEM-related areas, these programs can be an ideal starting point. They allow you to experiment, build, research, and code in environments designed to encourage discovery. We’ve put together a list of the top 15 summer programs for middle school students in Florida. These programs incorporate a mix of academic rigor, practical learning, and opportunities to explore your interests early on.
1. FGCU GEMS (Girls in Engineering, Math, & Science)
Location: Florida Gulf Coast University campus, Fort Myers
Cost: No cost
Dates: Available year-round, announced a month in advance
Application deadline: Rolling
Eligibility: Middle school students (grades 6-8)
GCU’s GEMS event invites middle school girls to participate in STEM experiences in small groups, guided by FGCU faculty and student mentors. You might get to analyze soil compositions under a microscope, build environmental science experiments, design simple coding tasks, or prototype engineering models–all through inquiry-based workstations. The focus is on active learning: you’ll question, experiment, collaborate, and reflect alongside other girls in a supportive setting that showcases female STEM role models. Classroom components mix with outdoor activities and playful challenges like creating soil art or testing materials. Small group sizes and faculty engagement mean you’ll ask questions, try things independently or in pairs, and receive real-time feedback.
2. Veritas AI’s AI Trailblazers
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies based on program type
Dates: 25 hours over two weeks (weekdays) during the summer cohort.
Application deadline: Varies according to cohort | The upcoming summer cohort’s applications close on June 22
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 – 8
If you’re a middle school student interested in how artificial intelligence works, AI Trailblazers helps you explore fundamentals like Python programming, data analysis, image classification, neural networks, and AI ethics through an online format. The program runs for around 25 hours and combines interactive lectures with small-group mentor-led workshops at a 5:1 student-to-mentor ratio so you can receive direct guidance while working on projects. For example, past participants have created machine learning models that classify music by genre or tools that recommend educational resources based on user preferences. It delivers a hands-on introduction to AI while supporting individual exploration and project development.
3. FGCU Summer Research Opportunity
Location: Florida Gulf Coast University campus, Fort Myers
Cost: No cost
Dates: July 7-18
Application deadline: NA
Eligibility: Middle school students (grades 6–8), especially girls in STEM outreach
If you join SRO, you’ll take on a guided two‑week research project linked to this year’s theme–like exploring how soil and environmental factors impact skeletal findings. You’ll develop a hypothesis, collect field and lab data, analyze results, and create a final presentation of your findings for faculty and peers. Faculty and student mentors guide each step, helping you learn scientific methods, proper data recording, and conclusion-writing. Through team-based work, you’ll observe patterns, test a real research question, and refine your interpretation of results. The experience mirrors what happens in actual scientific studies and gives you insight into how STEM investigation is conducted in professional settings.
4. Lumiere Junior Explorer Program
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies based on program type
Dates: 8-week summer cohorts start in June and July each year
Application deadline: Varies according to cohort | The upcoming summer cohort’s applications are due on June 23
Eligibility: Middle school students with a strong academic background
In the Lumiere Junior Explorer Program, you’ll work one-on-one with a PhD-level mentor from institutions like Harvard or MIT over an eight-week virtual program to design and finish a research project you choose. Your mentor supports you from developing your research question through organizing and presenting your results, with structured weekly check-ins and feedback. The program uses a rolling admissions model with deadlines that depend on each cohort’s start date. Participants have explored topics ranging from biology to artificial intelligence and end up with a polished project to showcase. You can find the application in the brochure!
5. University of South Florida Middle School Camps
Location: University of South Florida, Tampa
Cost: $495 – $550 per camp
Dates: Five-day camps between June and July, exact dates vary by camp
Application deadline: Rolling until full
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 – 8
USF offers a series of themed week-long in-person camps for students entering grades 6–8 on its Tampa campus, covering areas like coding, archaeology and art, cybersecurity, robotics, esports, and photography. Camps range in cost from around $400 for Cyber Camp to about $1,000 for the Robotics option, depending on the subject. You’ll spend time on projects such as building and programming robots, creating digital comics based on archaeological finds, or exploring ethical hacking. Programs are staffed by USF faculty and skilled youth-program professionals, and they emphasize both collaborative learning and personal skill development.
6. YMCA Middle School Summer Camps
Location: Multiple locations throughout Central Florida
Cost: No cost for middle school day camps at school sites. For camps at local YMCA centers, the cost is $250 for non-members and $200 for members.
Dates: Multiple week-long camps available in the summer
Application deadline: Varies by camp
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 – 8
At the YMCA Middle School Day Camps, you’ll choose from themed tracks like STEM challenges, athletics, culinary arts, digital media, drama, visual arts, or performance, and spend each week rotating through sessions that match that theme. You might spend a morning building and coding a STEM project, then pivot to cooking in a group kitchen session or creating a short film with peers in digital media. Weekly community service or service-learning activities are built into the schedule, giving you a chance to work with others on small outreach initiatives. You’ll also have once-a-week time in a swimming pool or on a field trip, depending on your location. Throughout the week, you'll work in small groups guided by trained counselors who support collaboration and leadership in a social, active environment.
7. Ransom Everglades School Explorers Academy
Location: Ransom Everglades School, Miami
Cost: Session 1: $1,149 | Session 2: $1,099 | Session 3: $1,199
Dates: Session 1: June 16 - 27 | Session 2: June 30 - July 11 | Session 3: July 14 - 25 - $1,199
Application deadline: Rolling until full
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 – 8
Explorers Academy invites students to engage with electives designed for older middle schoolers, such as marine science work on Biscayne Bay, drone-flying sessions, makerspace projects in the DREAM Lab, debate workshops, and kayaking or snorkeling. Each day begins with a full-group kickoff and ends with a shared reflection, helping you connect lab work, field trips, and creative electives back to broader learning goals. You’ll move through rotations that might include STEM labs, environmental excursions, or creative sessions like pool-based recreation or speech activities. Faculty design the schedule to balance investigative learning, social time, and interactive electives, all within a community-focused campus environment.
8. University of Central Florida Geo Explorer Summer Institute
Location: University of Central Florida, Orange County
Cost: $375
Dates: July 21 – 25
Application deadline: May 2
Eligibility: Rising 6th and 7th-grade students
Geo Explorer is a one-week program that offers hands-on work with geospatial tools like GIS, drone mapping, and virtual or augmented reality through labs and field exercises on UCF’s main campus. You’ll conduct mapping projects, work in the GeoBus mobile lab, experiment with drone technology, and use VR/AR applications to visualize spatial data as part of group-based learning. Instruction includes lecture-style exploration of geographic methods and plenty of guided lab time where you apply tools to real mapping challenges and low-altitude drone flights. Mentors include UCF undergraduates and graduate students who coach your project planning, data collection, and science communication. Through this program, you'll learn how modern mapping systems are used to interpret social and environmental systems and practice real geospatial workflows.
9. University of Central Florida GLAMPing Camp
Location: University of Central Florida, Orange County
Cost: $200
Dates: June 2 – 6
Application deadline: Applications open in March
Eligibility: Rising 6th and 7th-grade students
GLAMPing introduces students to key NSF Grand Challenges in engineering, paired with hands-on activities in makerspaces and labs on UCF’s L3Harris Engineering Center campus. You’ll work on creative problem-solving tasks–assembling circuit models, designing prototypes, or coding simple robotics–guided by faculty and peer mentors, all while discussing how real engineers tackle global challenges. The curriculum also includes sessions on leadership and personal development to help you reflect on how teamwork, confidence, and technical skills come together in STEM contexts. As a camper, you’ll interact with peers on group tasks, debug your work, iterate on designs, and reflect on the process of creation and collaboration.
10. Pinellas County Schools Summer Enrichment Camps
Location: Various Pinellas County Schools in Largo
Cost: $75 per session or $25 per session for students eligible for free or reduced-price meals
Dates: Multiple camps available in June and July
Application deadline: Rolling until full
Eligibility: Middle and high school students; each camp has specific grade requirements
Across Pinellas County, the school district provides dozens of middle‑school summer enrichment camps in areas like AI, journalism, construction, design, robotics, culinary arts, and performing arts. You’ll spend focused sessions exploring one interest, maybe designing a small construction or robotics project, creating a short film or mock news broadcast, or even writing and acting in a theater piece. AI camps may use block‑coding tools like BBC Micro:Bit to move from fundamentals to a small programming challenge, while journalism sessions involve interviewing, story writing, photography, and video editing. Construction-themed tracks let you experiment with blueprint reading, soldering, and basic architectural design under instructor guidance. Small-group settings paired with teachers or industry mentors let you try skills hands-on, learn by doing, and connect what school lessons look like in real-world disciplines.
11. Seacamp Programs
Location: Seacamp, Big Pine Key
Cost: Starting at $400 per week for the summer | You can find the cost details here.
Dates: Vary by program (check the exact dates here)
Application deadline: Rolling
Eligibility: Students between the ages of 10 and 17
If you're interested in marine science, Seacamp delivers direct immersion in ecology, fieldwork, and research through daily labs, snorkeling trips, and water-based activities. You'll choose course blocks–from introductory marine communities to more advanced topics like coral reef ecology or marine invertebrates–designed around 21-hour course formats that include labs, boat trips, and guest speaker sessions. Instructors are trained marine scientists, and you spend significant time wading, kayaking, or snorkeling to identify species and collect data in real environments. You'll conduct interdisciplinary activities, such as exploring mangrove ecosystems or studying adaptations of marine animals. Higher levels let you try reef fish surveys or animal behavior tracking..
12. Camp Challenger
Location: Challenger Learning Center, Tallahassee
Cost: $250 for week‑long camps
Dates: Weekly sessions available from May through August
Application deadline: Varies by program
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 – 8
At Camp Challenger, you join a themed STEM track (such as rocketry, coding, game design, or space simulation) and work through hands-on challenges like building LEGO robots, experimenting with snap circuits, or prototyping animations. The environment is built for immersive, active learning: you test designs, iterate, measure outcomes, and present your final project to peers and instructors. Educators guide each team workstation and help you troubleshoot, encouraging experimentation rather than rote instruction. You end the week with tangible results (robots, circuits, multimedia projects) and a clearer sense of engineering processes and product design. This camp helps you experience how real-world problem-solving in STEM fields happens, within a university-affiliated lab space.
13. FAMU-FSU College of Engineering – ACEE Summer Camps
Location: Virtual
Cost: $200-$250 per camp
Dates: Weekly sessions available from May through August
Application deadline: Varies by program
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 – 8
In this online, week-long program, you work with mailed robot kits like Finch robots and follow small-group virtual lessons to learn about electrical engineering, robotics coding, and AI basics. Each session has you design, code, and test robots to perform tasks, build neural network models, and explore wireless power and communication concepts. You will communicate in real time with mentors who guide your debugging, iterate on design decisions, and coach you through programming challenges. You'll collaborate remotely with peers on robotics or AI challenges and reflect on what design choices led to better performance. By the end, you’ll have programmed functioning hardware and gained insight into engineering workflows–planning, building, testing, and iterating.
14. CROP Summer Middle School
Location: Florida International University, Miami
Cost: Unspecified
Dates: June 30 – July 18
Application deadline: June 6
Eligibility: Students in grades 6–8
Florida International University’s CROP program involves math and English instruction woven around a central “Path to College” theme, where you complete research-based projects and practice presenting ideas. Each day, you will engage in guided lessons that link quantitative and writing skills to real-world topics like researching, writing short reports, collaborating on group assignments, and delivering presentations. Middle school teachers lead the instruction, and FIU faculty occasionally present academic or college-related perspectives. You focus on analytical writing, critical thinking, research planning, and academic discussion, all designed to mimic a collegiate learning environment in an approachable way. By the end of the session, you’ll have completed at least one research or creative assignment that connects your academic skills to themes and goals of your interest.
15. FGCU Coding Academy
Location: Florida Gulf Coast University campus, Fort Myers
Cost: $250
Dates: June 30 - July 3
Application deadline: NA
Eligibility: Middle school students (grades 6–8) interested in computer science/coding
In this four-day program, you dive into coding by assembling and programming an mBOT robot using Scratch, and building a Kano mini-computer to write simple Python scripts. You’ll work through challenges like having your robot navigate obstacles or making mini‑programs that perform logical functions, all under the supervision of FGCU faculty and student mentors in math and computer science. The focus is on learning through trial and debugging: you'll write code, run tests, fix issues, and iterate until your project works. Group-based work means you exchange ideas with peers, help troubleshoot one another’s robots or code, and learn to document your process. You’ll also hear brief guest talks from industry professionals who explain how coding skills translate into real job roles.