During the global pandemic caused by COVID-19, the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru’s ACS Student Chapter developed a project aimed at facilitating children’s access to chemical sciences, and overcoming the difficulties during. The current lockdown. has hindered. Thus, “Chemistry for KIDs'' was born. This is a programme that promotes scientific curiosity and develops critical thinking in children (7-10 years old). These skills set will allow them to understand, question and confront upcoming challenges from a scientific perspective. Thanks to the help of 10 volunteering students from our Chapter and students from other programs at our university we were able to organize a set of activities with innocuous reactants, prepare the experimental kits, open a call for kids and parents that will be willing to participate of this program, guide the participants through all the sessions and organize all the logistics of the event. Throughout the six sessions, the participants learned about color variation with pH, the scientific background of absorbing diapers, and basic chromatography techniques.<br/>40 children from different social backgrounds in Lima - Peru. Every child was provided with an experiment kit, which included basic safety equipment, and the materials needed to perform the experiments. Additionally, potentially harmful reactants found in household products were used and handled with help from the children’s parents. These activities were funded thanks to the ACS Programming Grant, which also covered the shipment costs for every kit. Children, parents and volunteers altogether enjoyed being part of this program, and we expect to hold this initiative in the future and it could be replicated in other places.

How student chapters could promote scientific curiosity and critical thinking in children: The experience of chemistry for kids in Peru

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.