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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
"Frankfurter Kinder-Uni" presents Topics from Ethnology, Brain Research, Media Law, and Biology.
For the past three weeks, students in Hesse have been back in their classrooms—and soon, they might find themselves in the largest lecture hall at Goethe University: The 23rd Frankfurt Children’s University will take place on the Westend Campus
from Monday, September 7
to Thursday, September 10, 2026,
each day at 4:00 p.m.
in the Lecture Hall Center
(Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 5, 60323 Frankfurt)
The morning lectures are reserved for registered school classes (more information at www.kinderuni.uni-frankfurt.de) and are already fully booked. In the afternoons, all visitors are welcome to attend without registration.
The Children’s University is designed for kids ages 8 to 12, grades three through six. Researchers at Goethe University prepare engaging, age-appropriate lectures for this special target group, with plenty of opportunities to participate and ask questions. As always, the topics are wonderfully diverse: Each day, the Children’s University explores a different academic field. This year, the organizing team has put together topics from ethnology, brain research, media law, and biology: We’ll look at currencies around the world (Monday), sleep and why it’s so important (Tuesday), the world of social media and what rules should apply there (Wednesday), and how enormous trees manage to quench their thirst (Thursday).
The Program
On Monday, September 7, Prof. Susanne Fehlings and Dr. Sophia Thubauville will take Children’s University students on an ethnological journey through different cultures with their lecture “Salt Blocks and Giant Donuts.” If you want to buy something, you need money. But money isn’t always coins or bills. In other parts of the world, people have used shells, cocoa beans, or even salt bars as currency. It makes you wonder: Why do people do the same things in such different ways? The two presenters will explain what ethnology is all about and how researchers in this field work.
“Why do I have to go to bed already?” is a question many kids ask when they’d rather stay up late. That’s also the title of Prof. Jochen Roeper’s Children’s University lecture on Tuesday, September 8. But let’s be honest: Even if you don’t feel tired, your eyes start to close as soon as you’re in bed. Jochen Roeper is a brain researcher who knows why sleep is so important and what happens in your brain while you’re sleeping. Why do we dream? Why do some people sleepwalk? His lecture will also cover why babies often wake up at night, why adults get to stay up later, and how we all learn—even while we’re asleep.
On Wednesday, September 9, the lecture “TikTok, YouTube, and Insta Without Limits?” will dive into the world of digital media. Legal scholar Prof. Roland Broemel will explore some fascinating questions: Can we always trust TikTok? Do we still need TV, and if so, why? What happens to photos and posts on social media? Who actually influences the influencers? Roland Broemel will explain how digital media have developed, who’s behind them, and what rules do—or should—apply.
The final lecture of the 23rd Frankfurt Children’s University on Thursday, September 10, tackles a fascinating and very timely question: “Why Plants Get Thirsty,” presented by Dr. Markus Fauth. The botanist will explain how water travels up to the leaves, why plants sometimes droop, and what happens inside the plant with the water it takes in. How does water get from the roots all the way to the flowers? Markus Fauth will show why this even works for giant redwoods and what role the world’s longest “straw” probably plays.
As always, there will be a quiz after each lecture. If children know the right answers, they can win a book or a Children’s University T-shirt. Who attends multiple lectures and collects stamps in the Children’s University student pass has a chance to win the “Super Listener” prize. After the lectures, visitors can browse and buy children’s books related to the topics at our book table. The “Sturm und Drang” café will be open in the afternoons for parents and kids.
“For more than 20 years, the Frankfurt Children’s University has introduced young people to academics—and sometimes to the big questions of our time. I’m always impressed by the dedication and curiosity the children bring, the questions they ask, and how they reflect on their own experiences. Fostering this curiosity and openness is science communication at its most vibrant,” says Prof. Viera Pirker, Vice President for Student and Academic Services at Goethe University.
Dr. Marschner Foundation: Reliable Support
“The Frankfurt Children’s University is a project that’s very close to our hearts. It’s a wonderful event that’s not only a lot of fun for the kids. Above all, we see it as an important contribution to equal opportunity: Here, children get to know the university from the inside at a young age—even if their parents didn’t attend college themselves. That’s why we’ve decided to continue supporting this event as a sponsor for the next three years,” says Peter Gatzemeier, board member of the Dr. Marschner Foundation, which has been the main sponsor of Goethe University’s largest event since 2015.
The media partner for the Frankfurt Children’s University again this year is the Frankfurter Rundschau, which will report daily on the events and also offer a prize drawing.
Dr. Anke Sauter and Dr. Markus Bernards
Science Communication
Goethe University Frankfurt
Phone: 069 798-13066 or 798-12498
kinderuni@uni-frankfurt.de
https://www.kinderuni.uni-frankfurt.de
Getting involved is key at the Frankfurt Children’s University – and that’s true for the 23rd editio ...
Quelle: Uwe Dettmar
Copyright: Goethe University
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Getting involved is key at the Frankfurt Children’s University – and that’s true for the 23rd editio ...
Quelle: Uwe Dettmar
Copyright: Goethe University
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