On April 29, Miguel Pinto visited the Professora Aida Vieira Elementary School, in Lisbon’s Padre Cruz neighborhood, to hold science workshops and teaching activities. Throughout the day, the science researcher and PhD student at the Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences visited the classrooms of three 4th grade classes to share his academic career and arouse the students’ curiosity about physics and astrophysics.
The children learned about the planets that make up our solar system and their relative size using melons, oranges, walnuts, peppercorns, chickpeas and couscous. They also learned about the force of gravity and Einstein’s general relativity using oranges and marbles spread out on a sheet.
“Cientista Regressa à Escola” is an initiative by Native Scientists, in partnership with the BIP/ZIP Program “Projeto 005 – Cientista Regressa à Escola (CRE)”, which challenges scientists to return to their primary schools to hold workshops with young people. The aim is to broaden children’s horizons, promote scientific literacy and higher education, and combat stereotypes related to science and scientists.