Ad Astra ALC

10/14/2026

Our Ad Astra learners had an incredible opportunity to visit the College of Optics and Photonics building at UCF, where we experienced a presentation about photonics and engineering, followed by lab tours.

I attached a list of coursework for UCF’s Photonics and Engineering Bachelor’s of Science degree for those curious about what it takes to pursue this exciting field.

10/12/2026

10/03/2026

Give kids the space to be themselves, and you might be surprised by what they create. ❤️

What does a day look like at Ad Astra? Sometimes it looks like a project or game, and sometimes it’s simply a bunch of kids laughing and enjoying being together.

Learners have been busy following their curiosity:

Creating Halloween costumes with EVA foam & hot glue
💅 Painting nails
🎸 Playing guitar & piano
🎨 Drawing & working with clay
🍩 Celebrating with birthday donuts
👹 Exploring the Goblin Market at Oviedo Mall
⚡ Learning to solder
⚙️ Playing with gears and figuring out how things work
🧀 Making quesadillas
🧩 Working on puzzles
Learned about humming birds
🏐 Playing dodgebal
Played VR games
⛸️ Went Iceskating!
…and SO much more!

09/18/2026

Throughout the years, I have seen time and time again kids that “become happy again” or “come out of their shell” within just weeks of being at Ad Astra. The proof is in the pudding! Here are two messages from parents this week:

“(My son) is absolutely loving Ad Astra and the friends! It fills my heart to see him coming out of his shell and feeling comfortable around his new friends! So appreciative of this community you all have built.”

And…

“My two are so happy to be back! Thanks for creating such an incredible environment for them!”

At Ad Astra, we believe in giving kids the freedom to help shape their own days. Having some time with friends and a space without all of life’s demands leaves room to be themselves…and to be creative!

This week, we learned a bit about dinosaur evolution, discussed the pros and cons of AI, worked on Halloween costumes and forts, made energy balls and cinnamon swirl bread, practiced airbrushing, learned about “domes” in architecture, played some musical instruments, and, of course, made time for plenty of group games. 💛

09/08/2026

Student directed learning can be A LOT of fun! Recently, our teens learned about taxonomy, trilobites, flowering plants, Pokémon, architecture, and the history of arches. Some learners built a Lego Milky Way, made sugar-cube arches, and learned papier-mâché. We’ve played plenty of games like chess, Skip-Bo, dodgeball, blindfolded tag, and made a Mario Kart live course! Some kids took apart an old printer to see what was inside!
We made sushi for lunch, and made French bread in a bread machine.
Some kids enjoyed yoga and Zumba classes.
We took a walk to the Geneva Cemetery, where we found a gravestone dating all the way back to 1817! Along the way we spotted deer, horses, alpacas, turkeys, moths, butterflies, a bald eagle, a tortoise, and LOTS of insects!
Their next challenge is to make their own funny PSA or infomercial. I can’t wait to see how they turn out! Oh yeah, and our 2nd field-trip was to The Orlando Shakespeare Theater to see the musical Come From Away. We laughed, cried and learned about Gander, Newfoundland, Canada—a small town that suddenly had thousands of unexpected visitors after planes landed on Sept. 11th, 2001. It was so good!

08/21/2026

✨🚀 It’s been a great start to the year!

Our first field trip took us to the Orlando Air Traffic Control Center, where students had the opportunity to explore the facility and ask questions about pathways into aviation careers. So CooL!

Our learners have been excited to reconnect with old friends while meeting some wonderful new ones.🥰

We explored more of UCF campus. We watched an impressive presentation about phototics!

The days have been filled with games, friendly conversations, and plenty of laughs. Students have enjoyed math games, drawing classes, taxonomy, the history of architecture, yoga, friendship-bracelet making, chess, Battleship, and improv.

And, of course, kids are never too old to play in the hose on these blistering Florida August days! 😎☀🌻

And we are just getting started...🥰

08/05/2026

07/24/2026

Just wanted to recognize our amazing facilitators. The care you give Ad Astra’s kids is something we deeply value and is truly priceless!

07/15/2026

Now enrolling for Aug. 11th start date!