Science is a game – let's put it on the stage

Paper

Research shows that there is already a lack of young scientists in all European countries. Incentives and motivation for this profession can be given by teachers at all levels of education. At the primary level, it could be done especially through the game. The current trend is to bring science closer to as many people as possible. The festivals of science are well visited, and above all, there are well-attended scientific shows. It is a thoughtful mix of science and theatrical games.
Talented pupils shall be offered something more than they are regularly getting from classes, both in terms of content and learning methods. Hence, we set ourselves the challenge to prepare our own science show.
The paper presents the activity that took place at the camp for gifted pupils of the elementary school Elvira Vatovec Prade called Science is a game - put it on the stage. The participants of the camp were given the task of turning themselves into proper scientists. They had to choose or imagine an attractive physical or chemical experiment that could be performed on the stage and would have an impact on the audience. The experiment had to be carried out with simple and easily accessible devices. They had to prepare well for the experiment: they had to put together an experiment design plan, think about the scientific explanation for the outcome of the experiment, and anticipate the inconveniences that could affect the experiment failing. Thus, a fun scientific "theatre" game or »scientific show« was created by combining theatre entertainment with precise scientific facts.