Ever built a catapult that could launch a pumpkin?
How about a device that sends sounds by way of a laser beam?
Have you ever taken apart a DVD player or a copier just to see how it works?
If it sounds like child's play, that's Kip Perkins's aim. In particular, Perkins' games center around science, and the joy of building things with your hands.
As president of a local non-profit called the Physics Factory, Perkins runs an after-school program and is about to begin a second year of summer camp, generally for students 9 and older.
Children learn to weld steel, solder and build electrical devices at the camp.
It's the perfect role for Perkins, 60, who said he's about 12 years old when it comes to his sense of wonder.
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That's clear when you watch him interact with students at the Physic Factory's "Inventor Center" at the Boys & Girls Club: Holmes Tuttle Clubhouse, 2585 E. 36th St.
On a recent weekday afternoon, he magnified his hand so a gathering circle of kids could see his pores up close. Real close.
"Ewwww!"
"Yuck!"
Giggle, giggle.
"Yeah, it's disgusting," Perkins agreed.
Perkins, who used to teach science here and in Roxbury, Mass., founded the Physics Factory with two friends who are equally enthusiastic about textbook-free learning.
One is University of Arizona mathematics professor Bruce Bayly and the other is former Tucson science teacher Erik Herman, who now works at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.
Herman said the idea began with Bayly's Physics Phun Nights and grew to include a big, green and clunky science-filled "Physics Bus." (The bus - which runs on vegetable oil - is undergoing some needed repairs, Perkins said).
Since 2006, bus trips have included the East Coast, San Francisco and Alberta, Canada, as well as several local tours.
More recently, the focus has been on the organization's after-school program and the summer camp. Grants and donations are what keep the Physics Factory going, Perkins said, and more money is always needed.
Rosemary Badian first heard of the Physics Factory about five years ago, while volunteering at the annual Math & Science Funfest.
"The kids blossom and gain self-confidence almost visibly as they learn how to use tools, make things to take home, and interact with Perkins and the other helpers at The Physics Factory Inventor Center," said Badian, a Physics Factory board member and a former Raytheon engineer who serves as a community relations specialist for the company.
Eventually, with Badian's help, Perkins began the community workshops at the Boys & Girls Club.
"The activities Perkins does with the kids seem to benefit most those kids who are having trouble in school, as they learn how to do things, and they increase their self-esteem through the activities," she said. "They are also learning math, science and other useful skills - although they don't realize they are learning."
Daniel Valenzuela, 11, said his father used to be a carpenter and so he was familiar with some of the tools Perkins introduced at the Inventor Center.
"My favorite thing was my airplane. I worked on that very fast and it was fun making it," he said.
Josiah Martin first used power tools with the help of his family's landlord and he has enjoyed learning more at the Physics Factory. "This way, if you want to make a chair, you can make a chair if you want," he said.
His brother, Isaiah, said he's built several things, including a dog house and a box to store treasures. "You name it, I'll build it," he said. "It's fun."
Katie Rumney said physics camp is a "paradise of a play," full of gadgets and machines and "so much to explore." Her son, Nick, attended last year and loved it.
"Now everything that dies in the house, he takes apart," she said, laughing. "I need to dig a basement and fill it with all kinds of stuff."
"I love the Physics Factory," said Nick, 11. Among the highlights: Taking apart DVD and video players and then using "some of the cool parts."
Nick, a fifth-grader at Miles Exploratory Learning Center, also enjoyed making rockets and launching them.
This year, he's on to robots and lasers.
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Want to make a donation, or learn more about the Physics Factory and its summer camp? Visit www.physicsfactory.org
The camp includes such topics as motors, lasers, sensors, hovercraft, magnets, sound, potato guns and lights. Camp is divided into morning and afternoon sessions at $150 per session per week. Discounts are available for siblings and for full-day participants.
Contact reporter Patty Machelor at 806-7754 or pmachelor@azstarnet.com