The continuing education programme aimes at encouraging children to explore natural sciences and technology early on. Developed specifically for kindergarten and elementary school educators it offers inspiring experimental environments for exploratory learning in the STEM area.
To stimulate children’s enthusiasm for natural sciences and technology and to support them in their development, the Technisches Museum Wien (Vienna Museum of Science and Technology) in collaboration with Junge Industrie, the youth organisation of the Federation of Austrian Industries, has been offering the Technology is child’s play! (Technik kinderleicht!) continuing education programme for kindergarten and elementary school educators since 2015.The Technology is child’s play! programme allows kindergarten and elementary school educators to acquire additional qualifications in the fields of technology and natural sciences in the STEM area, teaching them how to deal with scientific experiments, Inquiry based learning (IBL) and how to set up and organise inspiring experimental environments. The museum as a place of discovery and learning offers numerous starting points to do so.
The continuing education programme focuses on the subjects of “Water”, “Technology in everyday life” and “Mobility” and is offered in the forms of either three-day on-site workshops or online seminars via live stream. Educators also receive suggestions and support in the Technik kinderleicht! publication included in the programme, offering more than 100 experimental instructions, 12 chapters sorted by topic, information and material lists – consecutive and structured for progressive, cyclic research at different levels of difficulty. Seminars and workshops addressing “Biomimicry”, “Paper” and “Digitalisation” extend the framework programme and can be selected individually according to interest.
