HEYWORTH, Ill. (WAND) - For most kids, spending the summer at school is probably not the most exciting. But for kids at Heyworth Elementary, their STEM Camp is the highlight of the season. 

"STEM Camp is really fun and all the other people should do it," said Jackson Lambert, an incoming fifth grader. "All my friends said this is just school in the summer, but its not. It's so much better." 

The kids alternate between three different rotations, which expose them to different elements of STEM. They work on art projects, individual experiments, and also group projects. For many kids, the Rube Goldberg rotation is the highlight.

"We taught them about the six simple machines and their challenge was to at least pick one of the machines to incorporate into what they were building," said Michelle Harris, Coordinator of the STEM Camp and Heyworth School District Employee. "The groups got to decide what they wanted their machines to do. This group wanted the machine to give them candy." 

But it's not as simple as picking candy out of a box. The kids designed at least seven individuals elements to move marbles around the library and tip a box of candy over. Harris said the project is designed to be difficult so the kids learn how to work together and problems solve. 

"We had to get the golf ball to go down the screw and knock something over, but we couldn't get it to knock stuff over fast enough," said Peyton Janvrin, a fifth grader. "We had to think about what to do to get it to stick, but not stick too much. So we had to stick duct tape to things enough for it to be less sticky." 

Harris said the kids also tend to struggle to work together, but in the end usually collaborate well. They enjoy the chance to learn while working with their hands. 

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