Getting Kids Excited About Science: The Helmholtz School Labs

We’re pursuing research on the core questions that will shape the future – and want to get the next generation interested in doing the same. Accordingly, since 1997 we’ve welcomed kids and teens to our School Labs, where we equip the researchers and decision-makers of tomorrow with a solid grasp of the basics when it comes to natural sciences principles, approaches, and working methods.

The range of disciplines covered is broad, as we now offer 33 School Labs at 15 of our Association’s Centers. They cover the entire research spectrum at Helmholtz – and represent a true success story: thanks to the Labs, each year ca. 100,000 kids and teens are introduced to the world of research, both during their schoolwork and in their free time. In addition, ca. 3,000 teachers visit the labs each year to take part in continuing education programs.

Our Labs offer a range of activities: schoolchildren can experiment on-site or take virtual classes from their normal classroom. We also offer interested teens vacation schools, or the option of working on individual projects with professional supervision. And we provide teaching and study materials for mathematics and the natural sciences.

What’s more, there are highlights that are only possible when individual School Labs join forces: once a year, they showcase their work on the Federal Ministry of Research’s Open House Day, and in 2024 they prepared a contribution to the Federal Government’s Democracy-Fest. The DLR School Labs went on a nationwide “roadshow,” and a vacation school on Helgoland during the Science Year “Seas and Oceans” even included a brief cruise on a research ship.

In this way, our School Labs promote natural science talent from an early age – a valuable contribution to securing innovation and competitiveness in our society.

To ensure this works as smoothly as possible, the participating research centers exchange notes in the “Helmholtz Network School Labs” – which is also where new joint projects are planned, and current offers are developed further. As a result, young people can be given the opportunity to experience cutting-edge research in an authentic setting – in a program with a scope and quality unmatched by any other research association in Germany.

Picture: DLR