Nearly 3000 primary pupils will don white coats, wellies and lab specs in the next fortnight to take part in one of the major dates in the school calendar.
Starting today, Dundee Science Festival events are being held in schools and city centre venues, including Verdant Works, the Botanic Gardens, Templeton Woods, Mills Observatory and Discovery Point.
Aimed at P4 to P7 pupils, activities have been tailor-made to promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects, while also complementing other areas of the curriculum.
Jennifer Young, Tayside manager of TechFest-SetPoint, the Aberdeen-based educational charity promoting STEM subjects, said, “The Dundee Science Festival will be a fantastic event with a diverse range of activities available for all ages.
“To prepare for the future, it is crucial that we ignite a spark in the younger generation and to do that, science must be delivered in a fun way. That’s why we’ve created an imaginative, fun and varied programme of events, teaching children that exciting science is around us wherever we are, not just in the lab.”
Pupils will get the chance to watch The Science Magic Show and meet Mr Bug and come face to face with small, friendly animals from around the world.
Others will learn how you teach a robot to dance, visit the Cosmic Dome and take part in an Animal Magic animal handling session, not to mention a session on capturing renewable energy, “wonderful wax” and “genes in a bottle.”
The schools programme is led by TechFest-SetPoint, and pre-schoolers are also being catered for with two dinosaur-themed workshops at Dundee Science Centre Sensation throughout the same week.
As well as an additional family fun day this year, the festival will offer stand-up comedy, a photographic exhibition, dinodig, forensic science roadshows, not to mention events for secondary pupils.
Image used under Creative Commons licence courtesy of Flickr user nessman.The Courier is hosting a Dundee Science Festival logo competition. Click here for more.