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)

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 part-time-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 b ecause 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/