The Migdia park in Girona has been transformed this weekend into a large open-air laboratory. A thousand children have participated in the 18th edition of the Science Fair for Little Big Scientists.
The event has brought together students from 18 schools in the city. The children have visited the different stands to experiment with physical and natural phenomena under the supervision of specialized monitors.
University students lead experiments
The bulk of the experimental activity has been carried out by university students. Second-year students of the Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education Teaching and third-year students of the Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education Teaching from the Faculty of Education and Psychology of the University of Girona have prepared most of the proposals.
55 experimental workshops have been carried out, covering disciplines such as weight, mixtures, pressure, or magnetism. Robotics and renewable energies have also had a prominent role in the programming aimed at awakening early vocations.
"A living space where curiosity transforms into shared knowledge" - Queralt Vila, councilor for Education and Citizen Participation and Attention
Queralt Vila has remarked that the initiative turns Girona into "a great educational laboratory based on experiential learning". The councilwoman has underlined the practical nature of a proposal that moves science away from textbooks to bring it closer to direct manipulation.
An institutional network supports the event
The logistical complexity of the event requires the involvement of multiple educational and cultural agents. In addition to the Faculty of Education, the Faculty of Sciences of the UdG has collaborated. The Patronat de la Politècnica and the Cinema Museum have also contributed resources and technical knowledge.
The Network of Museums of the Counties of Girona has joined the initiative together with the University School of Arts ERAM-UdG. In the field of secondary education, the students of the early childhood education cycle of the Montilivi institute have actively participated in the organization.
The Girona City Council coordinates the event through La Caseta-Serveis Educatius. This entity works hand in hand with the Pedagogical Resource Center of the Educational Services of Gironès to guarantee the curricular fit of the activities.
This fair was born in 2008. It emerged within the European project "Pol·len, ciutats llavor de ciència" with the mission of promoting scientific education among young people from a playful and participatory perspective.