At Hirten elementary school, we had the pleasure of working with our youngest workshop participants. As the topic of biomembranes is quite complex, we prepared various games to promote understanding.

One of these games is the "tunnel game", in which the children slip into the roles of different substances - such as sugar, vitamins, salt and water. They crawl through a tunnel and enter the cell, which the children are supposed to represent by standing in a circle. In this way, transport across the cell membrane is illustrated in a playful way.

Incorporating games into the learning process has several advantages. Firstly, games enable a practical and experience-oriented approach to abstract concepts. Children can make a deeper connection to the content by actively trying it out, which promotes understanding and consolidates long-term knowledge. Secondly, games encourage collaboration and sharing among students. This not only promotes social learning, but also allows for open dialog about the scientific concepts. Third, games make learning fun. Children are engaged and enthusiastic, which increases the joy of learning and potentially reduces inhibitions about complex topics. Finally, games illustrate abstract ideas in a vivid way and provide a way to actively engage students in the learning process.

In combination with more traditional teaching methods, games can therefore help to develop a deeper understanding of challenging concepts such as biomembranes.

The workshop was held in May 2023.