The Kinder Academy is an important program at Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences designed to give children ages eight to twelve an insight into various scientific disciplines. The Chemistry Department of the Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences contributes to this effort every year with a pre-Christmas event. During the event, the audience is treated to interesting chemistry demonstrations that are woven into an exciting narrative.

After last year’s event, which took a closer look at a first-grader’s typical school day (Julia Rathmann) and the classic elementary school subjects it included were examined in detail, the event on December 20, 2024, centered on the subject of “chemistry,” which was promptly added to the curriculum. To do this, Matthias Jeschke, a certified chemist and lab director for general and inorganic chemistry, traded his lab coat for a traditional teacher’s outfit. He was assisted by Maria Riemer, who also holds a degree in chemistry. Student Julia was there again this year and accompanied this somewhat unconventional lesson with her melodica.

The approximately 80 children and guests in the Audimax Zittau followed the proceedings closely and were both thrilled and engaged. During numerous experiments, they were even allowed to put on lab coats and conduct the experiments themselves. There were fire and smoke experiments to marvel at, small explosions, various color displays, and a good closing fireworks show. In addition to homemade ice cream, each child received a small gift from Santa Claus (Anna Grohmann) to round out the event.

The experiments for this somewhat unconventional lecture were tested, prepared, and conducted by students and graduates of the bachelor’s program in “applied natural sciences.” A heartfelt thank you goes out this year to the following for their tremendous dedication: Anna Grohmann, Ria Hübner, and Pia Schubert.

The chemistry department thanks all the children and their caregivers for their great interest in the event, Frank Schneider and his Kinder Academy team for their good organization, the Friends of Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences, and the university administration for their financial support, and is already looking forward to the next pre-Christmas demonstration lecture for the Kinder Academy.

Text: Diplom-Chemiker (FH) Matthias Jeschke
Photos: Dr. Peggy Rathmann