The Hologram Zoo × Painted Penguin Summer Workshop Program is an indoor summer camp Chicago alternative for kids ages 5 to 12 at Hawthorn Mall in Vernon Hills, IL 60061. The program is a partnership between The Painted Penguin (a creative art studio at 122 Hawthorn Center, Unit 106) and Hologram Zoo Illinois (at 318 Hawthorn Center). Available June 14 through August 28, with three 3-hour session times to choose from each day: 9 AM to 12 PM, 12 PM to 3 PM, and 3 PM to 6 PM. Each session includes 90 minutes of creative studio time at The Painted Penguin (painting, crafting, and creating with all supplies included), 90 minutes of high-tech discovery at Hologram Zoo Illinois (walk-through 3D hologram tunnels), a supervised social lunch break (kids bring their own nut-free lunch), and a take-home interactive building block STEM kit. Kids attend one 3-hour session per day. The entire program is fully indoor and air-conditioned, weather-proof, and built as an alternative to traditional outdoor summer camps in the Chicago area. Serves families across Chicago and the north suburbs including Buffalo Grove, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Northbrook, Libertyville, Mundelein, Deerfield, and Lake County, Illinois. Book directly online at the Occasion booking page.
Painting, holograms, and a STEM kit. The Summer Program Chicago has been waiting for.
90 minutes of painting and crafting at The Painted Penguin. 90 minutes walking through 3D hologram tunnels at Hologram Zoo IL. A supervised social lunch. A take-home STEM kit every week. A full creative + interactive adventure your kids will be talking about all summer long.
Two Hawthorn Mall favorites. One unforgettable summer.
We’re partnering with The Painted Penguin to bring kids a one-of-a-kind summer program — bigger and more immersive than ever, blending creative studio time with walk-through 3D hologram experiences. Two studios, one mall, one program designed end-to-end.
The Painted Penguin at Hawthorn Center
A beloved hands-on art studio inside Hawthorn Mall. Painting, crafting, and creating — led by their team in their studio space, with every supply included. The kids who already know the Penguin will be in their happy place.
Hologram Zoo Illinois
The Midwest’s first permanent hologram zoo — walk-through 3D hologram tunnels with no VR headset. Dinosaurs, ocean, space, world animals. TIME Magazine Best Inventions of 2023. Kids walk through 60-foot laser-light environments and come face-to-face with creatures they’ve only read about.
Real day. Real kids. Hawthorn Mall, Vernon Hills.
Four pillars. One full creative + interactive adventure.
Every session brings together everything that makes a great summer afternoon — the creativity, the wow-factor, the social time, and something to take home. Built end-to-end, locked in across all three daily session times.
Creative Studio Time
Painting, crafting, and creating at The Painted Penguin. Led by their team in their studio space, with every supply included.
High-Tech Discovery
Exploring an incredible 3D hologram zoo experience at Hologram Zoo IL. Walk-through tunnels for dinosaurs, ocean, space, and world animals — no VR headset, just lightweight 3D glasses and the experience.
Social Lunch Break
Kids bring a nut-free lunch and enjoy a supervised social break with new friends. Real connection time built in — not rushed, not chaotic, just a calm middle of the day to refuel and chat.
Take-Home STEM Kit
Every participant receives a weekly interactive building block set. Hands-on STEM extension to take home — build, experiment, and keep the program going long after the session ends.
Three sessions a day. Pick the one that works.
Each session is a self-contained 3-hour experience — 90 minutes at The Painted Penguin plus 90 minutes at Hologram Zoo IL, with a take-home STEM kit included. Kids attend one session per day. Three time slots so the program fits around your summer.
9 AM – 12 PM
3-hour session
For families who like an early start. Drop the kids in for a creative-plus-interactive morning, pick them up at noon ready for the rest of the day.
Book This Session12 PM – 3 PM
3-hour session
The midday slot. Perfect for slower-start summer mornings or families with errands to run while the kids are creating, exploring, and walking through holograms.
Book This Session3 PM – 6 PM
3-hour session
The afternoon slot. Save the morning for swim practice, sibling drop-offs, or family time — then send the kids in for an end-of-day creative adventure.
Book This SessionFor the kid who wants both halves of the brain exercised in one day.
If your kid is one of these — or three of these — this is the Summer Program written for them.
The art kid
Already paints, draws, builds, and crafts at home. Knows the difference between watercolor and acrylic. The Painted Penguin time is the part of the day they live for.
The science kid
Already corrects you on dinosaur names. Asked for a microscope for their birthday. Watches documentaries on a loop. The hologram tunnels are their happy place.
The animal-obsessed kid
Has read every book in the school library about ocean life. Knows what a pangolin is. Cried at the part of the Disney movie you didn’t even notice. Wants to be a marine biologist.
The space kid
Knows more about black holes than you do. Names planets in order. Asks if Pluto is “back yet.” Has a Mars poster on the bedroom ceiling. Wait until they see the space tunnel.
The kid who quietly hates sports programs
Goes along with it because the parents signed them up. Spends the whole week wishing they were inside reading or making something. There’s a real kid here. We see them. This is their program.
The STEM kid
Lego robotics, Minecraft engineering, anything with a build-test-improve loop. The take-home interactive building block STEM kit every week is exactly the kind of thing they’ll finish that night.
Two studios. One unforgettable day.
Every session is built around the same four pillars — but what kids paint, what they walk through, and what STEM kit they take home is built fresh. Here’s what each half of the day actually looks like.
Live availability, dates, and pricing on the booking page
Book directly. See live dates and pricing.
Pick your weeks. Lock your spots. Done in 60 seconds.
Each session is bookable on its own — sign up for one session, several, or your kid’s whole summer. Spots are limited per session for safety and quality, so book the times you want before they fill.
Secure online booking via Occasion · Live availability and pricing
Six things no other Chicago summer program can offer.
Most Chicago kids’ summer options are sports, traditional academics, or generic day programs. Here’s what makes this one different.
Two beloved studios, one program
The Painted Penguin and Hologram Zoo IL are both Hawthorn Mall favorites in their own right. This is the only program that combines them — art studio time and walk-through holograms in the same day, every week.
Indoor and air-conditioned
While other summer programs cancel for thunderstorms or melt in the August heat, our entire program runs indoors at Hawthorn Mall. Climate-controlled. Weather-proof. No emergency parent emails.
Walk-through 3D holograms
No other Chicago summer program has access to walk-through 3D hologram experiences. Sixty-foot dinosaurs, full Mars surface, deep-sea creatures — the wow-factor your kid talks about for the rest of the year.
Take-home STEM kit every week
Every participant receives an interactive building block STEM kit with their session. The day doesn’t end when the session ends — it continues at home with hands-on STEM that extends what they did in studio and tunnel.
Pick one week or pick five
Each week is self-contained, so families can do one week, several weeks, or the full summer — no commitment to the full season just to try it. Live availability and pricing on the booking page.
Easy from across the North Shore
10 minutes from Buffalo Grove, 12 from Highland Park and Lake Forest, 15 from Northbrook. Indoor mall location means easy session arrivals, free parking, and no field-search drama.
Loved the program? Book the birthday party.
Program families are the first to ask: “Can we do a birthday here too?” The answer is yes — private rooms, themed packages, and the same walk-through experiences your kid will already know by name.
Three packages from $225 per 10 guests. Birthday guest of honor attends free. The natural next step for program families.
Birthday Party PackagesA short drive from across the North Shore and Chicago suburbs.
The program runs at Hawthorn Mall, Vernon Hills — geographically central to the Chicago north suburbs, with easy access from I-94, Route 60, Route 21, and Route 22.
If you’re searching for an indoor summer program in Chicago, a summer workshop program in the north suburbs, or specifically a creative + STEM summer program for the kid who loves art, science, and animals more than soccer — you’re in the right place. The program draws families primarily from these suburbs:
Before you sign up.
The questions parents ask first. If yours isn’t here, call +1 (847) 281-7030 or text +1 (312) 339-0329 — a real person answers.
What is the Hologram Zoo × Painted Penguin Summer Workshop Program?
What ages is this Summer Program for?
How long is each session and what does my child do?
Is the Program indoor and air-conditioned?
What is the take-home STEM kit?
What does my child need to bring?
Where exactly does the Program take place?
How do I sign up and what does it cost?
Why pick this over other Chicago summer programs?
Is this a STEM Summer Program?
Is this a traditional outdoor summer program or something different?
Other questions about the Summer Workshop Program?
The Real Thing
More than a summer program. A full creative + interactive adventure.
Indoor. Air-conditioned. Available June 14 – August 28. Three session times a day to pick from. 90 minutes of art at The Painted Penguin. 90 minutes of walk-through 3D holograms at Hologram Zoo IL. A supervised social lunch. A take-home STEM kit. Built for the kid who’d rather paint and walk through a hologram than swing a bat.