TITLER The Children's University - Small answers to big questions in science LOKALE Mogens Zieler OPLÆGSHOLDERE Erja Hyytiäinen TID 13.30, 14.05 og 14.40 SPROG Engelsk SYNOPSIS This session explores how to awake an interest towards the wonderful world of science and research already from early age. The Children's University at the University of Turku organises science lectures, summer camps and other events for 7-15 year old children. The tremendous success of the concept has astonished even the organisers: both children and parents are enthusiastic about it! Moreover, with practically no marketing budget, the Children’s University and thus the University of Turku have attracted wide positive publicity in the press and in the stakeholders.

1. Children’s University - hosted by University of Turku
We started lessons and camps at 2008. The idea was picked up from EUPRIO-meeting, where it was
presented by a German university. The consept has been widly spread in Europe, but Turku has its
own, nonprofit modell.
First 2 years organized by the communications of university, from year 2010 part-time- koordinator
(20 %), from the beginning of this yeas she is working 50 % part-timer.
There are two main functions: lessons and camps.
Lessons - until now always on april Saturdays and sometimes as part of a another happenining (fairs,
The Science days).
The lesson is always 60 minutes, but the last 15 ones are booked for childrens questions. In the
beginning we had 500 kids / lesson, but it was too much. Now there is 160 kids per lesson – all
together 480 child a year. In the lessons attend children between 7 and 11 years.
There has been 3 lessons per year, now we are expanding. One of the lessons has been more like a
tour (for example in the botanical museum or observatory) and the kids are devides in groups of 30
kids. For this special lessons we add always something to do (look through microscope, see
butterflyes, look at the stars)
Camps
- 1 overnight-camp in island Seili - Seili Archipelago Research Institute. This is the most popular and
most expensive – natural science , mainly biology and marineresearch. this year we will abandon the
Seili-camp because of the risks (its difficult to have hel to the island, if there happens an accident
and there are lots of ticks, which spread a very difficult disease called borreliosis)
- 3 daycamps in kampus – for example Build your own robot, Make your own icecream with liquid
nitrogen, Code your own electronic game, Live like 200 hundred years ago,
- 1-18 kids per camp, all together 66 children, 10-13 years old.
- Camops need more preparing than lessons (must think food, snacks, insurance, accomondation)
When you organize:
- Lecturer is no 1 - everyone can not lecture to the children. To find a good lecturer is our biggest job.
When we find good speaker, we discuss with him/her and nd find together the topic. It is topic that
adapts.
- even though the lecturer must be good briefed ("use pictures (change min 2,5 min/picture), use
different voices and videos, show your doctoral status (the hat), speak slowly, no difficult words
(scholarship), practice by telling the same to your neighbours children. Remember: children are not
easy audience. The might know surprisingly much (for example at dinosaurus-lessons) and if they
don’t like, they can shout “This is boaring”.
Parents are forbidden to attend to the lessons or camps. If they would be there, the lecturer would
try to speak for adults and children both and parents would ask more. We want to give all attention
to the kids. that means also, that we have to have more employees by the university at the lecture
(to help children to go to the loo or parents if they get home-sick)

2. Sometimes we organize mummy and daddy parking. For expamle when we tell kids about making
new electronic games, we might have a lesson to the parents that tells what playing means to the
children.
Marketing – we do not need to do that any more, people know. The southwestern part of Finlands
newspaper wil print an article always when it is time to sign up to the lessons and camps.
Exception for the Middel-Europe modell, in Turku the Children's university is not business. Lectures
are free to the children, universitys communications pay fee for the lecturer. Parents pay for the
camps, 110 euro per daycamp per child, 350 euro per overnightcamp per child. It coveres about 50
% of costs (salaries not included), communications pays the rest.
The cost of all the Children's Universitys activity cost to the communications the slary of the parttime-koordinator and about 2000-5000 euroa cost for the material and other needed stuff.
Why we do this. It is NOT recruitment. They are small children. We want to inspire children to
research – actually strengthen the willingness to do so because children are very keen on searching.
It is also societal interaction (the third function of universities in Finland. With this activity we are as
a part of community, we want that that university is seen in the city of Turku.
Children's university is a big success. All the camps and lessons are fully booked in seconds or
minutes. Parents are also willing to pay for the camps, but we don't want to rise the fees too high
because we do not want that some kids leaves outside because of money.
From the beginning of the 2014 the coordinator works 50 %. The idea is increase the amout of
lessons and some of them will be arranges to the school classes. We hope to reach the kids from the
neighbourhoods where is not so much academic parents. The other big next step is to organize
Youth academy for teenagers. Kids who has grown out from the Children's University has been so
sad that they do not have a possibility to enter any more and are asking after Youth academy.
See: http://www.lastenyliopisto.fi/en/