Chipping, cutting and polishing during Geology Day Hunebedcentrum

During that weekend, museums across the country take notice of the science behind their collections. Visitors can talk to experts and conduct their own experiments to experience what it means to be a scientist.

Geology is important.

In a stony county like Drenthe, you can’t ignore geology on a weekend like this. Children in particular were able to learn about Earth sciences at Hunebedcentrum and the museum received assistance from the Geological Society GEA-kring Drenthe. “Geology is very important, because it means we know how everything on Earth came to be,” says Koos Tap of the Geology Club. “We teach them things that aren’t always in the textbooks.”

Children learn this mainly by doing a lot on their own. There are microscopes with which you can see sand or minerals up close, you can buy gems and they are explained for the purposes for which we use our mineral resources today. For example, children learn that smartphone batteries are made partly of the element cobalt, which is already coming out of the earth and will run out at some point.

more than digging

The kids are having a lot of fun today. They chop, cut, and polish to their heart’s content, while lighting something up in the meantime. This applies to their parents as well. And that is exactly the intention, according to activity supervisor Riemke Scharff of Hunebedcentrum. “We want to introduce people to both archeology and geology in an accessible way, because not everyone knows exactly what that means. Of course you’re digging into the ground as an archaeologist, but there’s a lot more to come.”

In any case, the enthusiasm of the children seems to have worked. Most of them walk around with a big smile, especially after they have carved their own fossil or gem stones. The Society of Geologists is also happy, because some visitors have already registered as young members of the club. Scharf: “When I look around, I actually see a party with only happy faces. It’s a huge success.”

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