The trend in recent years has been to equip kids with the tools to rock out -- Paul Green School of Rock, Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls, even a recently announced Rock Radio Camp to be presented by WYEP. It gets one to wondering whether the next generation of rebellious kids might be wearing tuxes and shredding on cellos and piccolos.

This weekend, one such camp -- Camp Jam -- brings its Ready-Set-ROCK Tour through our area, promoting the organization's multiple camp locations and events, and giving kids (and, in fact, their moms) the chance to impress some judges and perhaps win a free trip to camp.

Both stops on the tour take place tomorrow (Saturday, the 18th) -- the first is at 11:30 a.m. at Swissvale Music, on Noble Street in Swissvale. The second is a little later, at 2 p.m. at Brighton Music on Babcock Boulevard. Kids will get the chance to play a 30-second rock solo (on guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, or vocals) (what does a vocal rock solo entail? not sure, you'll have to come on down to find out!) for a chance to win a week at Camp Jam or a store gift card.

What should be more amusing to onlookers, however, is the contest in which moms are invited to sing one of four rock hits along with a live band, with the possible reward of getting the kid out of the house and off to Camp Jam for a week.

Good luck, kids, moms, and innocent bystanders who have to witness a bunch of moms karaokeing in a heartfelt way!